Up until now I've been uploading from a backlog, so updates will slow dramatically from this point forwards. I'll be trying to still upload chapters weekly, or maybe even more than once a week, but how much I write can vary quite a bit.
Thank you for your patience.
~Joziah3
"Murkrow! Use Peck!"
"Yeller! Tail Whip!"
The valiant yellow rat charged forward as the dark bird swooped down from it's perch, beak glowing with white energy. The three-legged rodent spun rapidly, bringing it's bushy tail to bear right into the glowing beak of his aerial opponent. I watched the clash intently, keeping only the minimum attention on Bronze himself. Fortunately, he didn't seem inclined to approach.
Unfortunately, Yeller was severely lacking in pure power and was only barely able to deflect the attack from a direct attack to a glancing blow. I suppressed a wince imagining the pain of being hit that way.
After the attack, the Murkrow landed with a stumble behind Yeller, which left a small opening. "Yeller, Bite!" I called out, and the Rattata spun, summoning the purple energy teeth over the Murkrow's body.
"Dodge Forwards!" Bronze countered me, and the Murkrow dived into a forward roll, barely evading the energy jaws, but I wasn't ready to let him off yet.
"Yeller! Tackle!" I called out, pointing to the battlefield.
"Murkrow! Counter with Wing Attack!" Bronze attempted to counter.
But when I said the word Tackle, I snapped my fingers. And I wasn't pointing at the Murkrow, but at Bronze.
A trail of white chased my agile partner as he streaked across the bridge, slamming with the full power of that white boost into Bronze's abdomen.
Although it had been a while since it was useful, I'd continued to train Yeller to use different moves than the ones I called out when I snapped my fingers. When I'd told Yeller to use Tackle, snapping my fingers had actually changed the command to be Quick Attack. And by pointing at Bronze, I was able to get a cheap shot at his liver.
"Gah!" Bronze hacked, swinging his arms down and shoving the yellow rodent off of him in surprise. "Fr-" He coughed once, mid-sentence, before continuing. "-eaking Rat!"
Unlike Morty however, Bronze was seemingly able to keep fighting after taking a blow like that. It was probably because he was used to the sort of dirty fighting we were partaking in.
"Murkrow, Pursuit!" Bronze managed to wheeze before breaking into another set of painful coughs. The Murkrow responded immediately, gathering black energy into it's wings and then launching them at Yeller aggressively.
"Yeller, dodge it and then use Tackle!" I commanded.
My partner Pokemon did his best to evade the attack towards Murkrow but the power was just too great, and even after dodging the actual energy itself the air pressure sent Yeller flying through the air towards both Murkrow and myself.
"Wing... Attack!" Bronze heaved. I'd really hoped he wouldn't have enough breath to make that command.
"Yeller, Launch yourself out of the way with Bite!"
The Murkrow's wings began to glow with a piercing white energy as Yeller desperately attempted to maintain an equilibrium. Unfortunately he was flying through the air without any control, and the Bite he summoned as a shield was not steady enough to stop the Murkrow, who deftly swung around it with an aerial roll before slamming the white wing into Yeller's neck.
With a crash, Yeller was sent reeling down to the ground between Bronze and myself. Stifling a curse underneath my breath, I sprinted towards him.
"Now!" Bronze decreed excitedly. "Finish this with a Wing Attack!"
Even without opening Yeller's Status I could tell-He wouldn't be able to take another hit from Wing Attack, or even Peck, without passing out. My faithful Rattata was still trying to regain his balance as the Murkrow swooped in, and I did the only thing I could think to do.
[Allocate Stat Points:
HP: 16/30 + -
Atk: 15 + -
Sp. Atk: 1 + -
Def: 12 + -
Sp. Def: 5 + -
Spd: 20 + -
8 points remaining
Confirm
Cancel]
Rapidly I placed my last free stat points and confirmed the selection, presenting my torso between the Murkrow and my partner.
"Nnnngh!" I grunted in pain as the wings both slashed across the back of my upper left arm, leaving a hot sensation as the sharp feathers drew blood.
[Log:
Your flying proficiency has increased by 5%.]
...Status!
[Cyan Hughs
Status:
HP: 9/30
Atk: 15
Sp. Atk: 1
Def: 20
Sp. Def: 5
Spd: 20
Stat Points (0)]
My shoulder throbbed with pain, and I could tell that this wound was pretty bad. There was a good chance I would regret taking this hit later, but I'd worry about that when the time came. To be honest, I was a bit upset with how much damage the hit had done even with my boost to defence. Perhaps I was just being salty, but I didn't feel like I'd taken nearly as much damage from Pursuit's energy.
"Uh, Kid?" Bronze's voice called out to me. "You really should surrender now. If you hand over your Pokemon and the Nugget, I'll help get you some medical attention." His gaze washed over my arm. "Seriously, that wound could kill you if it gets infected. I wasn't planning on killing anyone today."
I scoffed, placing my backpack on the ground and taking off the blue jacket I'd been gifted by Professor Oak. I felt a little bad to use it like this, but it was an emergency situation. "If your resolve in this battle is that weak, you'll never win." I responded.
This seemed to catch Bronze by surprise. "...Were you planning to kill me if you won?" There was actually the smallest hint of fear in his voice, even though he seemed sure that he'd win.
"Well, I don't know about that..." I answered honestly, tearing the sleeves off of the jacket. "But I'm prepared to die for..." I trailed off, realising the problem present with my mindset at the moment. I'd always been the soldier of war, prepared to lay down my life for my country if it was demanded. For that same reason, I'd helped Chee to escape.
But right now, I was the only person who knew the future... At the very least, I couldn't afford to die until I'd met Red and told him everything that will happen.
"...No, I suppose I can't afford to die after all. So I'll just have to beat you up without sustaining any mortal wounds." I grunted, tightening my makeshift sleeve-bandage over my shoulder. "I still intend to make you pay though."
I turned my eyes down to my partner by my side as I slipped both straps of my backpack over one shoulder. "Yeller. Tell me honestly, do you think you can win this battle?"
Yeller met my gaze with determination, but a hint of resignation fell through his eyes. I'm willing to try, but I only give myself 20-80 odds.
I nodded solemnly. Much as I hated to admit it, I largely agreed with that assessment. Murkrow was a Pokemon naturally much stronger than a Rattata, and Bronze's Murkrow was just overwhelmingly more powerful. My tricks weren't particularly effective on Bronze, either.
"There's no point in being reserved then, is there." I murmured.
The Rattata nodded. If we go all out, we might be able to reach 30-70.
"Murkrow, finish that Rattata with a Peck." Bronze got bored of waiting and gave his decree.
"Yeller, Focus-1, full charge!" I exclaimed, turning and running away from the Murkrow. The weak Rattata leapt into my arms where I cradled him.
"Seriously!? Are you trying to die!?" Bronze called out to me, but I ignored him as I desperately used all of my senses to evade the attacks of the Murkrow.
Yeller would need quite a bit of time to reach his maximum charge, and I intended to earn him every second of that time with my own skill.
"Murkrow, use Pursuit instead!"
I didn't wait for the Pokemon to launch it's attack, instead I skidded to a halt and pivoted on one foot, positioning Yeller so I could hold him with one arm and swinging my other arm to bat the Murkrow with my hefty backpack, knocking it out if it's flight path and cancelling the pursuit.
Ordinarily I held my backpack in front of me as an extra shield for Yeller when using Focus-1, but I'd specifically set myself up so I could use it as a weapon this time.
One Charge...
"Seriously...?" Bronze watched in disbelief. "Fine! Murkrow, use Haze!"
The Murkrow flew into the air and began to beat it's wings, black smoke pouring off of the wings as the flaps began to increase in intensity. The smog wasn't difficult to breathe through, but it did make it much harder to see anything in the area-Especially in the moonlight that was now all the light I had to work with. Worst of all, I knew that the user of the move would be unaffected-Although Bronze would still have trouble seeing.
Two Charges...
"Murkrow, hit the Rattata with Pursuit!" Bronze exclaimed, adding a dangerous clause. "Keep going until you hit them!"
Frustratingly, Bronze was actually quite good at a real Pokemon battle, probably because he actually fought dirty just like I did. I no longer knew where the Murkrow was, and I could only afford to dodge towards the Murkrow or else the attack would home in on me. I might be able to take one hit, but any more than that and I would go down. My left shoulder still throbbed with pain as well.
Three Charges... Just a few more.
It was difficult to see through the murky fog of the haze, but it was still possible to make things out just so long as they were only a few feet from me. And thus, I was able to make out just a glimpse of the black energy that curved at me from both the left and right.
And harnessing every ounce of my speed, I leapt backwards and spiralled around to run in that direction. Fortunately I guessed right that Bronze would attack me from my most disadvantageous position, and I counted 7 additional sets of dark energy whiffing harmlessly past me as I ran to evade.
"Stop!" Bronze yelled, and I felt a smile rise on my face. He must have used Pursuit at least 11 times... Even at Murkrow's level, it wouldn't be able to use it more than another 9 times. Hopefully.
Four Charges...
Yeller was getting there, but he still needed a little more time before I could safely release him from my grip. I took advantage of the Murkrow ceasing it's attack to sprint downwind, hoping to get away from the large cloud that obscured my vision.
"Get one of them with Peck!" Bronze exclaimed, and I waited two seconds before diving onto my backpack while holding Yeller still, feeling a gush of air flow past me just barely unable to land the peck before returning to sight.
Any trainer worth their salt who used a smokescreen like this would train their Pokemon to leave the smokescreen before acting on a new command. As such, I knew the odds were that Murkrow had gone straight up. That meant any attack it tried to make would be a sweeping attack, like the one I just dodged.
Well, it would know that I could do that now, and aim low enough to make that dodge unviable. Very soon that wouldn't matter though.
Five Charges...! Almost there!
I dashed back out into the open air, relieved to once again be able to see clearly. The wind was gently forcing the smog away from the bridge anyway, but I was now sure I'd be able to see Murkrow's next attack coming.
And see it I did, as Murkrow swooped right down towards my ankles from directly in front of me, beak glowing with white energy.
I braced my knees, refocussing all my energy into a last ditch leap skywards to get out of the way. Unfortunately, the wind had blown a bit too much of the haze away, and Bronze saw what I was trying to do.
"He's trying to jump, go up!" The teen called out just before I leapt straight up. I cursed under my breath, but it was too late to try anything else so I committed to the leap.
With a gentle curve the Murkrow raised it's aerial path, digging it's glowing beak straight into my right leg, just above the angle. "OW!" I exclaimed involuntarily as I tumbled to the ground, just barely able to shield Yeller from the tumble by twisting my torso, even though that sent more pain shooting through my already wounded left shoulder and back. It continued it's path, hovering beside Bronze as he smugly looked down on me.
Six Charges!
Finally, the wait was over as Yeller positively brimmed with blue energy, and not a moment too soon. The strength in my injured leg was failing. Without standing up, I gave another order. "Yeller! Quick Mode! Use everything you've got!"
And Yeller flared with white energy. In a flash the energy trailed from the ground, to the banister, to right in front of my opposing enemy trainer, who recoiled in a desperate attempt to evade. "Wha-!?"
It was useless though. Yeller had used 4 Quick Attacks to make that journey, and Bronze wasn't the target anyway-He was just a platform. The flash of white passed the Murkrow as my Partner's tail brushed it, lowering it's defences by one stage. Then one of Yeller's paws tapped Bronze's face ever so lightly, and in another flash of white it had hit the airborne Murkrow with yet another tail whip, spiralling through the air towards me.
I could feel a dire sense of danger as he soared towards me. Yeller could only use Quick Attack at most 30 times, and combining the 6 he had just used with the 4 he'd used earlier on in the battle, he would only be able to use it another 20 times.
This isn't looking too good. I mused as I wrapped the other sleeve from my torn jacket around the wound on my ankle. It still didn't feel too stable.
"Perfect! Pursuit Murkrow!" Bronze commanded, and the Black bird once again raised it's gastly wings that charged with an evil-looking energy. With a powerful slash the energy flew through the air towards my Rattata.
But unfortunately for Bronze, my Rattata was able to touch the ground before the attack hit. The black energy beams collided harmlessly with the planks in the space Yeller had occupied only moments earlier, breaking off a piece of the fence on the walkway, revealing the flowing waters beneath the bridge even at the height I was lying at. Slowly, I began dragging myself towards it.
Yeller's trail of white zig-zagged across the fence walls of the bridge at 6 points, building up intense speed before diving directly into the flying bird. The hit was impactful, but the bird managed to stay in control of it's airborne path.
And then the first wave of blue energy poured off of Yeller, floating through the air and battering the bird with a second hit, almost as impactful as the first.
13 left...
"Murkrow!" Bronze exclaimed. "That's a nasty trick, but..." He trailed off, and I could only assume he'd only now realised.
There were five more floating orbs of blue energy, all charging towards the Murkrow. Each one collided one after the other, intensifying the attack again and again and again. But just when I thought I'd won the battle...
The Murkrow dropped a berry from it's hat, yellow and bulbous, like two spheres stuck together. A Sitrus berry. Without waiting for the next wave of Focus Energy to strike, it consumed the berry in one gulp. Doing so seemed to give it just enough strength to take the final hit of Focus Energy without passing out-Although it was still sent reeling through the air towards the river.
Please, fall into the river...! I prayed, but my hopes were dashed as the bird flailed it's wings and managed to shakily recover it's flight just before landing in the water.
"Damnit!" I seethed. "Yeller, Bite Barrage on Bronze!"
Yeller didn't wait to be told twice, flashing over to Bronze with a trail of white, large purple jaws raised up and chomped down over his body, though he blocked it with his arms crossed. Yeller was undeterred, opening and chomping down again and again in rapid succession.
"Murkrow! Pursuit!" Bronze screamed, clearly in pain. Yeller continued to bite over and over until the black energy drew dangerously close and he retreated back to my side in a flash of white and yellow.
...I hated to admit it, but this was pretty bad. Even though I'd finally managed to land a decent hit on Bronze himself and get some revenge on Chee, the injuries weren't really comparable. Murkrow had nearly been defeated but had recovered, and both Yeller and myself were on the verge of passing out. I wasn't sure I could run properly anymore either.
...Nine more uses of Quick Attack, 12 of Bite. He can still use Pursuit at least another 7 times, and he hasn't used any other move more than 5 times...
"Yeller. Focus-2." Yeller shot me a look that seemed to be asking if I was crazy. If I do that, he'll definitely hit me?!
"If you use Quick Mode, you can manage it." I answered softly. "I trust you. Do you trust me?"
There was only a brief pause before Yeller resolutely nodded his head. He leapt into my arms and I forced all of my strength into throwing him upwards as hard as I could. At the peak of the toss I felt the telltale white energy trail boosting his speed even further as he flew straight up into the air.
All I could do was trust Yeller now.
The yellow rodent gently bobbed through the air, eyes closed as he focussed on generating energy.
"Idiot, that just makes him an easy target!" Bronze grinned. "Murkrow, Peck!"
Bronze's partner soared into the air after my Rattata, and I could only hold my breath and wait for the telltale blue sign of Yeller becoming charged. Each second felt like it was longer and longer, until finally, just seconds before impact, I saw the blue flash.
"Yeller! Quick Attack Bronze!" I screamed with all my might.
His eyes widened, and we met each other's gaze for the slightest of moments. It may have been my imagination, but I felt as though it was only in exactly that moment that he understood exactly what it was that I wanted him to do.
The Murkrow dove in, and Yeller reached out a single solitary paw, managing to make contact with the bird's cheek right before the peck could make contact.
And in a blazing trail of white, he landed directly on the centre of the bridge, unharmed. A single breath later, he charged with energy and slammed directly into Bronze's guarding arms. Bronze held on valiantly, but the blue energy washed over and sent him flying backwards across the bridge with a powerful and painful scratchy thud.
All was silent as Yeller resumed his place by my side.
...2 Left. Yeller had two uses of Quick Attack left. Just enough to run away. We both looked at each other, and I knew that he realised it too.
I won't abandon you. His eyes promised. And I won't leave you unless you tell me to.
I nodded. I still had one last plan anyway, though I had no idea if it would work. If it didn't... Well, I'd just tell Yeller to run, and Bronze could do whatever he would with me.
Finally, I'd dragged myself all the way over to the hole in the bridge fence. I reached into my bag, digging for something useful as I watched Bronze's body, praying that he wouldn't stand back up.
But today wasn't my lucky day, and the lanky blonde teen rose back to his feet, only a little bit shaky. "What the hell is that move?!" He cried out. "How can ANY Pokemon move like that!?"
His calm demeanour was cracking, and his burning orange eyes were glaring at me now. "Who on earth taught you to fight like this?"
I smiled at him, a vain attempt to hide the weakness I felt at the current situation. "Who can say, but I'll tell you this... The man who taught me all this..." I smirked at him, my smile growing wider than it should. "Is the same man who will one day destroy your entire organisation."
That got a tangible reaction from Bronze, his face paling in surprise. "You mean... You were an anti-Rocket Trainer from the start? Is someone preparing an army to counter Team Rocket?! If a kid like you is already this capable then..."
He seemed to be misunderstanding something, but that only worked to buy me the time I needed to draw the item I wanted from my backpack. Quickly, I pulled out the golden nugget I had earned from the bridge and held it over the edge of the water.
"Hey, this is what you're really after right?" I shook the rock at Bronze, and I watched his orange eyes widen as they changed back to silver. "You probably weren't supposed to actually give this away. That's why you were waiting for us to return, even when the event was shut down."
I was pretty sure Bronze was supposed to steal the Pokemon of whoever passed the challenge, while they were still weakened from the intense battle. The Nugget was only supposed to be used as a distraction, not as an actual reward. If Bronze went back without it, he would probably get in big trouble-And I'd already caused him to get in trouble beforehand.
"...I'm going to need that back." He answered, regaining his calm disposition with his goal right at hand. He held an arm towards me. "If you give it to me, I'll let you and your yellow rat escape."
"See, here's the thing." I countered. "I don't trust that if I give you this, you'll leave me alone. So I'm just going to tell you straight up... I'm going to lob this into the water. Good luck catching it!"
"You're bluffing." He huffed. "There's no way you'd just throw that much money away for no-"
And as I drew my arm back and threw the rock straight up into the sky, Bronze broke into a sprint and leapt right to the banister, diving for the Nugget. His Murkrow soared after him. A moment later I heard a small plop followed by a loud splash, and I let out a small chuckle.
It... Was kind of painful to just throw the money away like that, but fortunately I didn't actually need it.
"Alright Yeller..." I winced as I shakily got back to my feet. Let's get out of here before they wash ashore and decide to come after us.
That was a clever plan, sir. But please don't be so reckless next time. You've gotten hurt. The eyes of my stalwart but exhausted partner seemed to answer to me.
I frowned. My ability to read Yeller almost felt... Too clear, all of a sudden.
...Status.
[Yeller
Rattata* (Level 11)
Hp: 3/29
Atk: 22
Def: 14
Sp. Atk: 9
Sp. Def: 14
Spd: 23
Status Points (1)
Skills:
Human Communication
Moves:
Tackle
Tail Whip
Quick Attack
Focus Energy
Bite]
A skill!? My eyes almost popped out of my skull. Hurriedly, I reached to read the description-When I heard a faint sound from the river to my left.
"Pursuit!"
Fear washed over my body, and I stumbled over my own injured legs as I dived to the ground, barely avoiding a dangerous blast of black energy that drilled straight into the bridge where I'd been standing just moments earlier, and I rolled across the wooden planks.
And I just lay there in pain for a few moments, feeling almost as though I couldn't breathe.
St...Status...
[Cyan Hughs
Status:
HP: 1/30
Atk: 15
Sp. Atk: 1
Def: 20
Sp. Def: 5
Spd: 20
Stat Points (0)]
I felt a powerful sense of dread wash over me at the same time as an intense desire to fall asleep where I lay. But I knew all too well that it was much too dangerous to allow myself to sleep at a time like this.
I recognised anew just how dangerous Bronze had been as an opponent, and I cursed that I'd allowed him that chance at a final cheap shot. Steeling my resolve, I stood and began limping my way back towards Cerulean City.
I was now convinced that Bronze would be petty enough to charge straight back to the bridge, even if he was injured himself. My only chance was to escape before he got that chance.
...
It was well into the middle of the night and almost an hour after I'd run from Bronze when I finally dragged myself into Cerulean City. Even though it was dark, there were still a few civilians wandering the streets and I could finally breathe a small sigh of relief.
Don't relax too much. My partner's eyes warned me. It was a moment like this that almost got us last time.
"I know, don't worry." I mumbled in response. "There's people who can see us now, he'll be hesitant to follow us any further-But I'll keep my eyes open anyway."
I continued to limp towards the Pokemon Centre as I finally once again allowed myself to look and see what Yeller's skill was. It had surprised me to learn that he had gained one.
[Human Communication: (Passive)
Sometimes all that's needed to communicate information is a meaningful glance. This skill is the culmination of a Pokemon working tirelessly to understand a Human without the need for words. Now it only takes a glance to communicate with your Trainer.]
And it all made sense. To an extent I'd always been able to understand Yeller just by trying to read his eyes, but now he was able to send me more detailed information than ever.
"It looks like we'll be able to communicate even better from now on." I murmured to him. "I'm glad."
Standing up on his hind legs, the three-legged Rattata used his remaining arm to flash me a thumbs up. Looking forward to working with you!
"Honestly," I chuckled at him. "You're the best partner a boy could ask for. Thank you, Yeller."
Yeller didn't respond to that, but I thought I saw a hint of a smile on the rat's face, odd though it may sound.
We were now right outside the Cerulean City Pokemon Centre, and to my surprise it was absolutely bustling with activity even though it was the middle of the night. The lights were all on and I could hear various murmurs and chatting coming from within.
I limped my way though the entrance, and was shocked to see the foyer was filled to the brim with more than a dozen adult trainers, all focussed around a trio of female figures standing in the centre of the building. I recognised one of them as the nurse Chee and I had met during the morning we arrived, and another with blue hair was obviously wearing official police attire, but I had no idea who the third woman was. Her orange hair was tied up in a side ponytail, and she wore a coat over a full body swimsuit. Perhaps she was some sort of celebrity?
Off to one side however, I noticed a sight that caused me to take a slight detour from my initial plan of limping straight to the nurse. In a corner of the room behind all three female figures, was a young black-haired girl who was curled up into a ball, her arm bandaged with a white gauze. Even from this distance I could tell that she was sobbing profusely.
I took a deep breath, forcing the pain as far from my mind as I could manage, and I began to walk towards her, keeping my stride as regular as I could. As I did so, I listened in on the orange-haired girl as she began to bellow.
"Listen everybody! This Team Rocket is a group of criminals! They won't fight fair, and it won't be safe, we stopped their scheme on Nugget Bridge, but they've gotten their hands on a young boy and his Pokemon! The goal of this operation will be to locate and rescue both of them!"
As I tried to stay focussed through the pain, I couldn't help but feel sorry for whoever had been captured by Team Rocket. I'd gone through that once already, and if they ended up unlucky enough to meet someone like Bronze, I could only hope they faired better than I did.
"Team Rocket is a dangerous criminal organisation, and it's possible that even if we find him he might be dead. If you don't think you could stomach that, this is your last chance to turn away."
I shook my head. Poor kid.
"Alright, fortunately the target is very distinctive in appearance. The description is as follows! A young boy, just turned 12 years old. He has golden yellow eyes and his hair is a vibrant steel blue! A part of his bangs is almost white in colour! He's known to travel with his partner, a Rattata!"
I paused. Wait a second, that sounds a lot like...
"The Rattata is also distinctive! It's a yellow Rattata, and it's missing a limb from a birth defect."
I almost wanted to bury my head in shame as I realised what was happening.
"Once again, the Boy's name is Cyan Hughs, and his Rattata responds to the name Yeller!"
I cleared my throat, steeling my will for what I knew was about to be a very embarrassing moment.
"Any remaining questions!?" The orange-haired woman bellowed, her hands on her hips.
"Ma'am!" I exclaimed, raising an arm into the air. The crowd turned to look at me, and I watched as Chee's head slowly raised to look at me in disbelief, tears and snot streaming down her face.
"I escaped and made it back here ma'am!" I called out, suppressing my embarrassment as much as possible. "Please call a doctor, I'm injured!"
The entire room was silent for a long few seconds, first broken by the excited crying of Chee as she rushed over to my side, wrapping her arms around my waist in dangerously powerful hug. She forced her head into my chest, rubbing it back and forth excitedly.
"Ow! Owowow! Chee, I'm happy to see you too but I'm injured!"
Her eyes shimmered as she looked up at me, tears still falling down her face-Though she'd rubbed most of the snot into my shirt. I can't believe it... You're still alive!
I frowned at her. "What did you think was going to happen?"
I thought-I thought that...! Her eyes welled with tears anew. I was so sure it would be just like last time!
She squeezed my waist a little harder. Thank goodness you're yellow! And she buried her head into my chest again.
"Hey, make way! Coming through!" The Orange-haired woman pushed through to see me. "I guess you really are Cyan Hughs. You really escaped from Team Rocket by yourself...?"
I nodded quietly. "Not without injury though, both my partner and I are badly hurt." I gestured towards the sleeves wrapped around my shoulder and leg, both of which were now deeply stained red from the blood they'd absorbed. The yellow Rattata by my side gave a weary thumbs up.
She nodded quietly for a moment, then turned to the crowd. "Alright! Looks like our wayward kid is here after all, thank you all for showing up on such short notice!"
There was a set of grumbles and murmurs of relief as the crowd began to dissipate, people making care to give me space as they left the building or returned to their rooms in the Pokemon centre. Although they had been too late to make a difference, I found some amusement in the idea of them facing Bronze in my stead.
Outnumbered 20 to 1, beaten up by dozens of Cerulean Trainers. That would be a sight to behold. Maybe that would have taught him a lesson. I shook my head, returning my hazy focus to the woman in front of me.
"And who are you, ma'am?" I asked cautiously.
"Oh, allow me to introduce myself." The orange-haired lady placed her hands on her hips. "My name is Misty, I'm one of the Gym Leaders of Cerulean City."
"One of...? No, never mind." I winced in pain. "Please call a doctor, I might look like I'm handling it alright but I'm in a lot of pain right now."
"The Doctor is on his way down." The Nurse cut in, appearing from the remnants of the crowd. "Honestly, I thought it was a one-off thing, but you're planning to make a habit of this aren't you?"
I frowned at the nurse, trying desperately to keep my focus. "A habit...? A habit of what...?"
"Don't play coy with me!" The nurse snapped. "Your sister here seems to care for you an awful lot, but you need to stop taking her with you to such dangerous places! Moreover, stop going to such dangerous places in general! Just because you get some thrill out of doesn't mean you can risk your life like that!"
I rubbed my forehead softly. "...I don't particularly make a habit of going dangerous places. If anything I'd rather just do the Gym Challenge normally..."
The nurse folded her arms, greeting me with a scolding look-Almost like that of a Spearow staring at a trainer who had angered it. "Don't give me that. I had to wash her after the LAST time you two showed up injured you know, I've seen how many scars she has!"
That caused me a short pause. "...What? Scars?"
I glanced down at the young girl who was still holding me tightly around the waist. She twitched slightly, probably noticing that my attention had shifted to her, but she kept her face pressed into my chest without moving it.
"Just think about what you're doing to that girl's future!"
Misty seemed to take some pity on me now, stepping between me and the hot-headed nurse.
"Now now Mary, the Boy's clearly had a rough day. Talk to him about it after the doctor has seen him." She spoke soothingly, becoming a calming presence for the group. "Oh, and young lady, you should let the poor boy go now. The doctor needs to take a look at him."
Misty reached for Chee, gently curving an arm over her shoulder.
"Uh, ma'am, I'm not sure that's a great idea-"
The older woman tried to pull Chee away gently, and was completely unable.
"...Huh?"
"She's crazy strong, just let it be." I whispered to Misty.
She tried again, now putting all her body weight into the pull.
"Ma'am..?!" My eyes widened as I had a faint premonition of what would come next. With the full force of Misty's body weight, she was able to loosen Chee's grip ever so slightly-Only for Chee to tighten her hug with the full force of her strength.
"Kghhht!" I wheezed as all of the air was forced from my lungs. I'd barely been holding my consciousness together until now, but that was the final straw that broke the Rhyhorn's back.
[Log:
Your HP has reached 0.]
As I rapidly drifted out of consciousness, I heard a pair of high-pitched screams followed by the nurse calling desperately for the doctor to hurry up. I couldn't pay attention to what happened after that because...
I passed out.