"Vulpix use Dig!"
Vulpix hops in the air before burrowing underground
"Ekans, follow it down!"
The boys Ekans moves towards the hold ready to follow down
"Use Fire Spin!"
A solid stream of spiralling fire fires up out of the hole and engulfs Ekans who writhes around
"Now Dig!"
Vulpix blasts up out of the ground slamming into the bottom of Ekans, it lands in front of its trainer and is unable to continue
"Great work Vulpix!" I say running out and picking up the fox
The other boy return his Ekans and walks up to me
"Congrats" He says shaking my hand
My phone beeps confirming my victory with the PBL. I'm allocated with a winning bonus from the Public Junior Trainer fund. It was established in the last ten years as request winning from the opposing trainer seems a little crass and it can lead to further issues. As we are chatting a kid runs up fairly frantic holding a knocked out Meowth
"Hey! Do you know the way to the nearest centre?!" He shouts
"Uh its that way" I say pointing off toward Vermillion
"Thanks, there's a super strong water type that way" He says as he sprints off
"Hmm, I'm going to check that out" I say wandering my way up the lake water line, I can see a few fish Pokemon flip up out of the water line but nothing too intimidating. I wander up and down a few times with nothing coming out, I manage to grab a Meowth, Nidorino and Fearow for my dex. I about to give up as I walk back towards Vermillion when there's a massive splash from the lake and a Poliwag lands in front of me
"POLI POLI!" It screeches at me waving its tail at me
"Are you the water type that kid was talking about?" I say sending Ivysaur out
The Poliwag spins and fires off an Ice Beam which Ivysaur narrowly dodges
"Wow! You know Ice Beam!" I shout as it moves into Doubleslap
"Grab it Ivysaur"
Ivysaur sends out one of its vines and catches Poliwag before slamming it into the ground
"Sleep Powder!"
Ivysaur envelopes it in a cloud of spores, it tries to whip it tail back and forth but it slowly succumbs
I throw out a Pokeball and capture it quickly, I pick it up and thank Ivysaur before taking a seat by a nearby tree, I pull my phone out and scan the Poliwag. It really strong for the surrounding area being level 31 on a regional level. The levels of Pokemon are separated into three different categories, local, regional and global. These power level are variable so a Pokemon may be level 50 in a local section, 25 in regional and 10 globally. This Poliwag is stronger and has some tm moves so it seems unlikely that it is a standard wild Pokemon. I scroll further through its profile to see an old OT, looks like it was released recently by another trainer. I send it out and it looks around before turning to me
"Hey there" I say with a smile kneeling in front of it
"Poli!" It chirps up at me
"So looks like your last trainer released you, I'd love you to come with me though, I need a strong Pokemon to beat Surge!" I say energized by the new capture
It eyes turn fierce and steely as it begins to jump up and down calling out in a battle cry
"I'll take that as a yes, welcome to the team!"
I take some time to familiarise myself with Poliwag battling style, its very skilled, it has the ability to move and fire ranged attacks at the same time and the combination of Ice Beam and Mud shot fills me with more confidence even if Poliwag does have a type disadvantage. We train for a few hours before heading back to the centre, I hand my mons in for healing and use this time to get the Tm for Sludge Bomb to teach to Ivysaur in the morning. I head to bed after retrieving my Pokemon full of vigour for the battle tomorrow.
"Welcome back there Cadet, you back for another round?" Surge shouts as I walk up to the trainer box
"This time I won't lie!" I shout out to him
He chuckles with a confident smile as the Rotom descends down and initiates the battle
"Voltorb I choose you!"
The small round Pokemon emerges onto the field and spin in place
"Changing it up this time" Surge shouts out
Okay stick to the plan
"Ivysaur you're up"
Ivysaur emerges on the field and roars out
"Right Voltorb lets start with Magnet Rise!
Voltorb rises it to the air and crackles with electricity
"Sludge Bomb"
Ivysaur takes a deep breath before spitting out a volley of dark poison pellets
"Dodge!"
Voltorb spins out of the way
"Swift!"
Voltorb spins and fires off a stream of starting
"Razor Leaf!"
The two attacks collide and cause a huge blast
"Shock Wave"
Voltorb fires of a wave of electricity, Ivysaur tries to dodge but is hit fully by the attack
"Are you okay?!" I shout out to it
Ivysaur shakes itself and calls back in confirmation of being okay
"Right, grab Voltorb with a Vine Whip!"
Ivysaur whips out towards Voltorb and grabs it wrapping the vines around
"Shock Wave"
Voltorb zaps and it flies down the vines toward Ivysaur
"Plant yourself"
Ivysaur dig its feet into the ground and it helps Ivysaur take the attack
"Right good strategy, use Gyro Ball!"
Voltorb spins causing Ivysaur's vines to double over it itself like a twisted wires
I count Voltorb as it spins, one two three four
"Okay, one more" I whisper to myself
"Do it again Voltorb spin the vines away!"
Voltorbs spins again
One two three four
"Now Ivysaur, spin it the other way!"
Ivysaur whips it vines the opposite way sending Voltorb spinning away into one of the walls, it zips around before managing to stop itself but is completely disorientated
"See Voltorb has a gyro organ inside it that will always try to right itself to keep it the right way up, its why when you used Gyro Ball it can only spin four times, by making it spin way more it loses its senses at high speed" I shout out
"Vine Whip"
Ivysaur lashes it two strong vines down on Voltorb breaking the Magnet Rise sending it crashing to the floor, it unconscious and unable to go on
"Voltorb cannot continue!" The Rotom ref announces
"YES! Way to go Ivy!" I shout out to Ivysaur who roars back in adjuration
"Not bad kid, well lets see what you've got for this!"
He sends out Magnemite who bops up and down in the air
"Return Ivy, go Vulpix!"
Ivysaur disappears from the field and is replaced by Vulpix
"Use Ember!"
Vulpix breathes out a small burst of red hot flames which Magnemite deftly dodges
"Shock Wave!"
Magnemite spin and fire of the bolt which connects with Vulpix causing it to fall slightly on it right front knee, it perks itself up and shakes itself off
"Vulpix use Dig!"
Vulpix hops and burrows it way down deep into the ground
"Wait for it to come out Magnemite"
It hovers around waiting for Vulpix to emerge after about 30 seconds Surge adds more
"Get above the hole and fire Magnet Bomb down there!"
It hovers over and just as it positions itself above the hole
"Fire Spin like you did against that Muk!" I shout
In seconds a huge gulf of spinning fire flies up out of the hole and surround Magnemite constantly hit it with fire
"Magnemite use Shock Wave!"
Magnemite manages to get itself some space away from the fire and sends a bolt right down the hole. Vulpix is thrown up out of the ground and is laid out unable to continue, Magnemite is then engulfed again by the Fire Spin causing it to fall to the floor unable to continue also
"Both competitors cannot continue!" The Rotom ref squawks
I return Vulpix to its ball
"Thank you so much for your help today, we've got it from here" I say before clipping it back to my belt
"Ivysaur come on out!"
Ivysaur lands back on the field looking steely towards Surge
"Well kid you've done much better! But you won't beat my ace" He says sending out his last ball
"Rai Rai!"
Surges Raichu lands on the field with a thud, it cheeks crackles with electricity
"Now Raichu, Thunderbolt"
"Rai!"
It summons all the electricity in its body and fires it across the field, it hits its mark and Ivysaur absorbs the hit as best it can
"Use Vine Whip and pull it in!"
Ivysaur whips out and attaches itself to the midriff of Raichu and pulls it in
"Now Poisonpowder!"
It blasts the Raichu with a mixture of black and purples spores, Raichu calls out it pain as a small purple line appears on its forehead
"Iron Tail"
Raichu uses its tail to break the vines away, it then slams it tail down on its head before flipping away
Ivysaur slumps to the ground unable to continue
"Ivysaur cannot continue"
I return her to her ball
"Thank you for all your help, we've got this"
I take a deep breath before sending out Poliwag
"Poli Poli!" it emerges bouncing up and down in anticipation
"First you come with a type advantage and now a disadvantage?" Surges roars out slightly mockingly
"You've got this Poli!"
Raichu flinches taking damaged from the poison
"Ice Beam on the ground!"
Poliwag jumps and spins in the air covering the whole field in ice, Poliwag deftly touches down and begins to skate around on the field using it tail almost like a rudder to direct itself
"Mudshot!"
Poliwag speeds up and blast off a stream of mud which connects with Raichu, forcing it backwards to it backside
"Thunderbolt"
It fires of a jolt of electricity slightly weakened by the damaged it has taken, Poliwag spins out of the way and speeds in towards Raichu
"Use Waterfall!"
It picks up more speed becoming uncloaked in water before slamming into Raichu, it topples back wards and pulls it self up. It flinches again from the poison and falls flat down to its stomach
"Raichu is unable to continue, the challenger is the victor!"
"We did it!" I shout before racing out to Poliwag, I slip and slide on the ice before grabbing it into a hug
"That was amazing Poliwag!" I say
It jumps up and down before turning a bright blue, the light quickly dissipates leaving the newly evolved Poliwhirl in its place
"You evolved!" I say grabbing it
"Nice work cadet!" Surge says wandering up
"You put you're plan into effect and didn't deviate from it!" He says handing me a Thunderbadge
"Thank you sir!"
Surge gives me access to some more Tms and points me to head towards Celadon next for the gym challenge. I wander my way back to the Pokecentre before I'm stopped in my track by flurry of sludge
"Kid you best give me that Poliwhirl you got"
I turn to see the imposing figure of Bruce from down the Underground Path accompanied by a Golbat
"Hey, no way, are you following me or something!" I shout to him
"Believe me I never wanted to see you sorry ass ever again!" He shouts back
"But that Poliwhirl is a target I was moving for my boss and he wasn't too pleased when it got away from me, so hand it over and its no problem"
"FARFETCH!"
All I see is a brown blur move over my shoulder, it slams into Golbat sending it flying to the floor, it jumps back and lands revealing a Farfetch'd
"Leave my Dusty alone!"
I turn to see the stomping figure of my Grandmother appear, she runs in front of me to shield me
"God why do you always have some broad coming to your rescue each time"
"Far Far!" Farfetch'd stand squawking up at the man as Golbat floats back to his sidelines
"Lost cause, get us out of here Golbat, Haze!"
It coughs out a cloud of black smoke, as it clears you can make the figure of Bruce flying away holing the leg of Golbat
"Grandma, what are you doing here!" I say as she grabs me into a hug
"Oh Dusty I was coming here for some supplies and I knew you might be close" She says shaking me side to side in her arms
"Oh well thats nice, sorry can you put me down!" I say being squeezed harder, Farfetch'd eventually smacks Grandma on the back causing her to drop me
"Oh sorry Dusty!"
"Its okay" I laugh
"Come, a quick drop in home, good cooked meal and a warm bed" She says grabbing my hand
"Uh yeah well okay"
Grandma car is slightly cramped with her shopping excursion and my camping bag however I manage to squeeze in the back while Farfetch'd sits in the front. I feel myself dropping off and I rest my head against the window falling sound asleep. I wake up to the car coming to a sudden stop, I look up to see the old wooden cottage that is home, its an older building with a thatch roof, the windows are made of a thick brown wood.
"In we go" Grandma says with a laugh
We wander in I park my camping bag by the door, the living room and kitchen is open plan, there a sofa and chair off to one side with a TV mounted to the wall and the kitchen suite pushed to the opposite side. In the middle of the room sits a great big oak table.
"Right there is stew on the hob which will be ready in a ten minutes, get yourself a shower, send out your cuties too I want to meet them!"
I send out Ivysaur, Vulpix and Poliwhirl
"Oh look at this lovable bunch!" She says squealing
I look towards a door for a room offshoot
"Um Grandma, is she awake?" I question
"Oh, well let me check" She says wandering over
You see Grandma isn't really my Grandma by blood. I call her Grandma as she's been in my life since I was young plus all my actual Grandparents had now passed away. She moved into the property once my Dad had passed away to help look after myself and
"Oh hello lovely, we have a surprise" She says beckoning me forward
I look into the room, there a huge window looking out onto the se, it glow bright orange into the room as the sun sets. There a bed pushed against it and in it sits a small thin lady, she has long brown hair pulled to each side, her eyes are bright blue, she looks to me as I move into the room and she smiles softly
"Hello sweetheart" She breathes out
"Hi Mom"
I move up close and take her hand
My Mom was the old mayor of Ayapan Town taking over from her father when he passed. My dad had met her when he was a travelling trainer, he'd given up his journey to stay with her and opened a local restaurant to pay the bills. She had been diagnosed with an Immune deficiency disorder shortly after I was born. She had been at the major Saffron Hospital for years but when Dad passed away she asked to be moved back home. Grandma had been the ward manager at the hospital and moved back with her as she had been an old friend of my paternal Grandmother . She had taken a local spot as a doctor and moved in to look after Mom
"How are you feeling?" I say to her as my three Pokemon move into the room
"Much better for seeing you sweetheart" She says brushing my face with her hand
I laugh
"Not sure about that, I'm dusty and dirty" I respond
"Rugged not dirty" She says with a chuckle
I look behind to see Poliwhirl and Ivysaur close behind, Vulpix looks to the bed and sniffs. I pick her up so she doesn't jump to the bed onto Mom
"This is my team so far Mom, I started with Bulbasaur like Callum too!" I say with a wry smile
Ivysaur calls up as does Poliwhirl while Vulpix sniffs at her from my arms
Mom leans forwards and pat Vulpix on the head and she coos out happily
"Well its lovely to meet you all, I'm pleased you chose Dustin as your trainer"
I feel a wave of happiness overtake me, Mom had always been there as I was growing up abut her condition had limited her but she had always been supportive of my dream
"Well Dustin you go and get yourself a shower and then we can all eat" She says happily
"Okay Mom!"
I shower quickly and dry myself off even quicker, I grab some clothes from my room and run down the stairs. My Pokemon are all lined up munching away at their bowls alongside Farfetch'd, I look to the big table and Grandma is spooning out stew and I'm shocked to see Mom seating at the table
"Mom I thought we would eat in your room" I say slightly shocked
Generally growing up if Mom was up to eating we would eat a a smaller table in her room so we could socialise
"Oh don't be silly, I'm feeling much stronger at the moment so it no work for me" She says laughing
"Thank you for the stew Jacqueline it smells delicious as always"
"Thank you Sophia, I made more to store too" She responds patting the seat next to her
I take it up and take a big gulp at the stew, it warming feeling over washes my whole body like an elixir refreshing a hero in a story. It rich and meaty but with a crunch of the vegetables
"so good" I say under my breath
"I'm glad you enjoy, I kept some to put in a thermos for you"
"Thanks Grandma"
We sit and eat, I keep them all up to date with my journey filling them all in on the details. I tell them about how cool Ryan is, all the Pokemon I have caught and the gym battles I've done. They both sit and listen happily interjecting with questions or comments every so often. Eventually I look to the clock and it 10pm, I can see Mom slightly dropping off, she had properly used a lot more energy getting up to the table than she had let on.
"Uhhhh well I'm really tired" I say faking a slight yawn even if I am slightly tired
"Oh well it sounds like its been a long day" Mom says her eyes drooping
"Let me help you back to bed first Mom" I say jumping up and holding my hand out
She takes it and stumbles slight to her feet, she totter a bit before a vine comes and takes her other arm to support. She turns to see Ivysaur who calls up and helps her walk
"Why thank you Ivysaur" She says happily
We slowly support her across the room as I hear Grandma clearing up behind us. She flops to the bed and pulls herself in, I help tuck her in and she sighs happily
"Im glad to see your doing well sweetheart, I keep an eye out when I can on the battle channel to see you" She says
"Well thanks, I'm just trying to do my best, there will be bumps but I'll get there especially with Ivysaur!" I say patting my starter on the bulb
"Well, just keep up what your doing, I'm sorry I can't come watch you battle more"
"Its okay Mom, maybe if you feeling stronger and I make the junior finals you can come but no pressure"
"That sounds like a great idea but Dusty remember no matter what happens I'm proud okay?"
I feel my feeling swell and I gulp
"I know Mom, I'll do my best, for you and Grandma"
"I know you will" She says lying back eye almost closed
"Sleep well Mom" I say leaning in kissing her forehead as she falls into slumber
"I'll do you proud"
Location: Mt Moon Pokecentre
Current Party:
Ivysaur (Lv29) Female
Attacks
Sludge Bomb
Razor Leaf
Vine Whip
Poison Powder
Vulpix (Lv26) Female
Attacks
Fire Spin
Dig
Quick Attack
Ember
Poliwhirl (Lv32) Male
Attacks
Ice Beam
Mud Shot
Waterfall
Doubleslap