Chapter 5: Pokémon battling for dummies
In the heart of the enchanted forest, emerald leaves whispered tales of ancient secrets, while sunlight dappled through the towering trees like fragments of a forgotten dream. The air, thick with the fragrance of moss and ferns, carried a sense of mystique to it.
Within the vibrant green expanse lied a Pokémon haven. Pikachu frolicked amid the tall grass, their electric sparks illuminating the verdant surroundings. Above the treetops, flying type Pokémon like Pidgeotto and Staravia soared, their wings casting fleeting shadows over the forest floor.
Truly, the forest was the perfect place to catch a Pokémon. Or so that's how Juliana felt, otherwise she would've gone elsewhere to catch one.
With a careful step, the girl navigated through the forest. Her eyes sweeping through the towering trees and wide bushes. Each step bringing her closer to the possibility of discovery. Rustling leaves and distant cries of unseen Pokémon heightened her sense of anticipation.
"Oh man, we're getting close now." The girl whispered looking over to Sprigatito behind her. The grass Pokémon staying close to the back of her Trainer. The two of them had run into a few different Pokémon by now, but each time, they had gotten away.
It had been about an hour since they headed off to find a Pokémon. Still some more time to kill before they had to head back to regroup with Clavell and Nemona to set off for the academy.
Walking out of the cozy woods, the trees got fewer, and the ground changed from soft to rocky. Small plants and shrubs replaced the tall trees, tough enough to handle the mountain weather. In the distance, perched proudly atop the mountain, a lighthouse standing like a sentinel against the rugged landscape.
The girl was still scanning the surrounding landscape. It was quiet now. Far too quiet. The absence of any sounds aside from their footsteps... it was almost unsettling.
Or so it was, until they finally found it...
A Pokémon, that was. Standing in front of Juliana and Sprigatito, a small, quadrupedal, rodent-like Pokémon that had an almost entirely orange body, with cream colorations on its lower forelimbs, snout, and tail, and green on the inside of its ears. It had beady brown eyes and a tiny nose which juxtaposed to the large yellow sacs on its cheeks which were radiating static electricity.
"Alright, a Pokémon!" Juliana exclaimed in amazement as her Rotom Phone immediately raised from her pocket scanning the small critter before them.
"Pawmi, the Mouse Pokémon. It has underdeveloped electric sacs on its cheeks. These sacs produce electricity only if Pawmi rubs them seriously with the pads on its forepaws."
The wild Pawmi store blankly at Juliana and Sprigatito, almost as if it wasn't aware that it was about to do battle with them.
Juliana snickered as her sight turned to the grass type beside her who returned her gaze. "What do you say, Sprigatito?" The girl asked. "I think a Pawmi would be a good addition to our party?"
Sprigatito gave a sharp head nod before tensing her muscles and lowering her body to the ground. Her eyes narrow into focused slits, fixating intensely on its target.
The wild electric type, seeing Sprigatito's battle stance realized what was going on. fueled by the desire to win, it vigorously began to rubs its yellow cheeks together. A static charge began to build, causing its fur to stand on end.
A jolt of electrical energy erupted from the Pawmi's body like a volcano. With no time to dodge, Sprigatito was zapped by the static shot of lightning. Despite this, it didn't seem to hurt all that much once the move passed.
Grass types don't take too much damage from electric type attacks, but the same applies vice versa, they've both got an equal shot at this... Juliana thought assessing the situation before cracking a smile. "Actually, scratch that. Cause I don't plan on losing." She said with a smirk as she called out their next move. "Quick Attack. ¡Vamos rápido!"
"Spriii!" Sprigatito cried out giving a battle cry before blasting off the ground at supersonic speeds moving faster than the human eye could follow. In the span of a second, Sprigatito emerged in front of Pawmi before crashing into it sending it flying.
Pawmi was soaring in the air, propelled by the force of the aggressive Quick Attack. That was before the poor Pokémon's body collided with the unforgiving surface of a large rock, creating a harsh impact that echoed in the surroundings.
"Paw... mi...!" The electric type shouted in pain. Yet, instead of defeat, a fiery resolve ignited within its eye. Shaking off the impact the Pokémon rose from the collision, which shocked Juliana. Seizing the moment, it lunged forward with a primal ferocity, jaws agape and ready to sink its teeth into Sprigatito
"That's Bite!" Juliana realized. Even if she didn't know the move, that's clearly what the Pawmi was going for. "Don't let it hit you, dodge!"
Sprigatito, more agile and nimble than Pawmi regardless of Quick Attack, readied herself to move out of the way. However, just as she poised to dodge, a jolt of static electricity surged through her veins causing the Pokémon to wretch in pain. In that crucial moment, the wrathful Pawmi swiftly closed the gap, its jaws clamping down upon Sprigatito's arm with an audible snap that immediately caused its opponent to scream in pain.
"Titoooo!" The grass type let out a piercing cry as the jaws of her adversary sinked further into the skin of her arm. Juliana watched in horror as the tiny electric type's teeth pierced into her Pokémon's skin. Wide-eyed and breath caught in the moment of dread, her hands instinctively clenched as she helplessly watched petrified.
In the midst of the intense confrontation, a torrent of pressurized water short forth, racing through the air like a fluid missile heading straight for the electric type. Before either Pawmi or Sprigatito knew it, they were both being hit head-on by an aqueous intervention.
"¿Qué diablos?" Juliana cried in shock abruptly turning in the direction of the sudden stream of water. Her eyes widened upon seeing who was responsible for the attack. That being the girl she had battled a little over an hour ago, Nemona, as well as the girl's water type she had received, Quaxly. "N-Nemona! What're you doing here!?"
"Saving your butt." Nemona replied in a stern voice. "But if you'd prefer me to leave, I can."
Juliana's jaw dropped, caught off guard by Nemona's retort. She gave an uneasy smile and rubbed the back of her neck. "Well, since you here, it'd be rude of me to send you off so soon."
The wild Pawmi was laid out on the floor in a puddle of water. As opposed to Sprigatito who thankfully resisted water type moves quite well. Pawmi surged back to its feet with unyielding vigor before pouncing forth to the Quaxly standing before its Trainer beginning to glow with a yellow aura.
That's Charge, it's trying to charge up the strength of its next Thunder Shock, that and raise its special defense so Water Gun does less damage, smart guy... Nemona thought assessing the situation. "So we'll just respond with a physical move, use Aqua Jet Quaxly!"
"Quaxly!" The water type Pokémon uttered as it was encased in a curtain of water. The Pokémon leaped into the air homing straight for its adversary, with a stream of water following it.
"P-Pawmi!?" The lunging Mouse Pokémon, surprised to see such a powerful physical move before it once again crackled with sparks of electricity. The jolt of Thunder Shock shooting forth towards the Aqua-Jet propelled water type who was at serious risk of being hit. It also didn't help that the move would be doubled in power thanks to the earlier Charge.
"Oh no, if that attack hits Quaxly then he's a goner!" Juliana shouted to Nemona who seemed undeterred.
"Hmph, Quaxly, avoid it!" She yelled at just the right time.
With agility that defied the crackling Thunder Shock, the water type seamlessly navigated through the electric onslaught while still enveloped by Aqua Jet. Like a watery phantom, it elegantly dodged the electric currents which looked unbelievable to poor Juliana and Sprigatito. Pawmi was shocked from its opponent's precision, or at least it was until it was hit with the full force of Aqua Jet.
The impact was thunderous, sending the little electric type hurtling through the air head-first until it collided with the ground below. The force of the collision echoed with a resounding crash, leaving an imprint of the Pokémon's tiny exterior on the battlefield as a forever-symbol of the pain it received at the hand of Quaxly.
With a firm, steadfast gleam in her eye, Nemona swiftly reached for a Poké Ball. With a forceful throw, the ball sailed through the air zeroing in on the electric type before connecting with its target, encapsulating the Pokémon in a burst or red light.
"Pawmi's got to have taken more than enough damage to get caught!" Juliana cried out, much more anxious than the seasoned-Trainer beside her who showed no doubt whatsoever. The Poké Ball quivered, shaking once, twice, and then a heart-pounding third time until with a triumphant ding, the Poké Ball stilled, securing the captured Pokémon within its confines.
"Woah, you made that look easy!" Juliana exclaimed. She knew Nemona was good from their earlier battle, but this was something else entirely.
Nemona leaned over picking up the Poké Ball. "A Pawmi huh, this'll make a great addition to the new team I'm forming." She whispered softly before turning over to Quaxly with a faint smile. "Excelente trabajo, amigo. You did a fine Job!"
Juliana walked up to the senior Trainer with her arm held out and a smile on her face. "Thank you for catching Pawmi for me. I don't think we could've done it by ourselves."
Nemona's demeanor changed as she swatted her hand unexpectedly. Juliana quickly moved her hand back. "Thank you for catching Pawmi for me? You think I went through all that trouble so I could give you this Pokémon. It's mine."
"Oh..." Juliana muttered, clutching her hand. "Well how did you find me here, anyway?"
"Are you kidding, I could smell you from a mile away. You spray way too much of that perfume." Nemona revealed which caused Juliana to suddenly step back in embarrassment.
"I-I do not!" She argued defending herself. "I spray the exact amount mamá tells me too! Plus, it smells good!"
"Oh right— your madre. Me and the director had run into her not too long ago back at the house, she mentioned that you were off to catch a Pokémon before we go off to Mesagoza. Mr. Clavell suggested I go find you to make sure you weren't getting into trouble... despite my protest."
"I see." Juliana said ignoring the backhanded insult before she heard the sound of Sprigatito groaning in pain. Both girls turned to face the bruised grass type behind them. Who was still feeling the effects of stray volts of electricity.
"Sprigatito! What's happening to you!?" Juliana worried, crouching down next to her damaged Pokémon. Nemona watched immediately concluding what had happened.
"It must have occurred back when it used Quick Attack. Are you familiar with the ability Static?" Nemona asked with perplexity washing over Juliana's face.
"Ability?" She repeated, indicating she had no clue what Nemona was referring to.
"What, you don't know what abilities are!?" Nemona said dumbstruck. "Ay, ay, ay, los jóvenes de hoy en día. Abilities can be learned, but they're usually born with them. Like how some girls are born with low intelligence." She said earning an annoyed glare from Juliana. "I'd wager that Pawmi had this ability called Static, which pops up at the worst of times to paralyze whoever's unfortunate enough to be inflicted with it. It's usually transferred by physical contact, like when Sprigatito smashed into it with Quick Attack."
"Makes sense... what about Quaxly, didn't it use Aqua Jet on Pawmi?" Juliana asked turning her attention to the unscathed water type. Of course, the experienced Nemona had an answer for that too.
"Static doesn't always work, the chance of it activating is actually pretty slim, you were just dealt a bad hand." Nemona explained before Sprigatito winced in pain again still suffering from the pain of paralysis.
"Hang in there señiorita!" Juliana said gently placing her hand on her Pokémon's head, petting her. "There's surely a way to treat Static, isn't there!?"
"Dios. You worry too much." Nemona said, exhausted by the girl's yapping as she reached into her bag pulling out a red spherical berry with a long swirly stem out. Instead of handing it to Sprigatito herself she held it out before Juliana. "Hand this to it. It's called a Cheri berry. It should do the trick."
Juliana, trusting every word Nemona said, grabbed the berry from her hand and immediately fed it to Sprigatito, who weakly took a bite out of the berry before finishing it with the next bite and spitting out the stem.
After devouring the Cheri berry, the lingering effects of paralysis began to vanish, and vitality once again coursed through her system.
"Tito!" The Pokémon cried surprised it felt so much better now.
"Menos mal que estás bien." Juliana muttered before sighing in relief. "You really saved my tail. Thank you, Nemona."
"Whatever. I'm just glad I have this Pawmi now." Nemona said raising the Poké Ball that contained her newly caught electric type. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be heading back for the house, and you better be there by afternoon, or me and Mr. Clavell are going to leave without you!"
With that, Nemona turned her back on the Trainer she had practically saved, walking back towards the wilderness she had come from. It was at that moment when Juliana realized it was now or never.
"Wait!" She called out to the senior Trainer who stopped in her tracks, back still turned to her. Sprigatito looked up to her Trainer surprised but eager to hear what she had to say.
Juliana's gaze softened as her eyes gracefully descended, seeking solace in the downward cast. "Listen, about earlier... I'm sorry. I was way too arrogant— and ignorant. I had no right underestimating you like that. I hope you know that. You're actually really cool, and I'd like to start over. So, what do you say?" She asked with her eyes slowly journeying back up towards the back of the girl she apologized to.
Nemona slowly began to pivot herself to Juliana. As she turned around to face the poor girl, a shadow of impatience flickered across her face. As their eyes met, a tense interruption cut through the air. "...Do you ever shut up?" She uttered in a sharp tone, clearly annoyed by Juliana's softness.
A startled gasp escaped Juliana's lips with surprise etched across her features. Yet, in the blink of an eye, that shock gave way to an unforeseen anger bubbling up within her. I really do not like that girl...! She thought, face red with frustration and a vein on her head about to pop.
A sudden hush fell over the scene, as the two girls stared each other down angry at the other without uttering a word. The air thickened with an eerie silence, punctuated only by the distant echo of a mysterious beastly cry. The unexpected sound, haunting and primal, could be felt by not only them, but their surroundings, which almost looked to be trembling from the loud screech.
Their previous discord momentarily forgotten, both girls exchanged wide-eyed glances. United by the shared sense of shock and wonder they felt.
"T-that sounded like a Pokémon!?" Juliana cried out getting up from her knees with her starter leaping on her shoulder looking around in every direction to locate the source of the noise.
"Anyone ever tell you that you really like to state the obvious!?" Nemona said once again poking fun of the girl as she began to look around.
Juliana ignored Nemona's insult running off in the opposite direction of her rival. She didn't run very far before she stepped on the edge of the cliffside trying to look over at the horizon to see what monstrosity was responsible for that soul-piercing cry.
The air quivered with the next deafening cry of the mysterious beast, an intensity that seemed to resonate through the very Earth. As the formidable sound reverberated, the ground Juliana was standing on gave a shudder, unable to handle the seismic force. With an ominous crack, the solid surface fractured, creating fault lines that zigzagged along the edge.
Nemona swiftly turned around towards the girl she kept bickering with. Only to watch in utter horror as Juliana and her starter Pokémon were caught in the upheaval. Feeling the foundation beneath her crumble, she plummeted downward as the cliff side succumbed to the formidable force unleashed by the beast's cry.
"JULIANAHHHH!" Nemona screamed at the top of her lungs. Panic seizing her entire being as she witnessed her companion's descent.
As for the falling Juliana and Sprigatito, time seemed so slow, every heartbeat drumming an urgent rhythm as she grappled with the helplessness she now felt.
Whew, how was that? I think that was actually a pretty good chapter. But anyways, that's it for this one. Next chapter's going to be a pretty big one, so as always, stay tuned.
Oh yeah, also before I forget, comment what Pokémon you guys want to see in this story, I may include some of those Pokémon, well, as long as you guys don't suggest like, Mega-Gigantamax Arceus or MewThree or something... you get me?