Outsiders (ZnT/Pokémon Reverse Summon)
Season 1, Episode 7, Chapter 5
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"Hurry up!"
"Go, man! Go!"
"It's gaining on us!"
The occupants of the van all yelled at the driver, who gripped the steering wheel tightly, his knuckles having long since turned white. Occasionally, he would glance at his rear view mirror to see the snarling Arcanine snapping its fiery jaws towards the vehicle, as the Dragonite did the same to the other van beside him. His focus was on the road, however. The plan hinged on them getting away. That meant he had to shake the Arcanine.
"Hang on!" he yelled as he sharply swerved right, his tires briefly leaving the ground before righting themselves. The Arcanine continued to run after him, only for the driver to suddenly slam on the brakes. Unable to stop itself in time, Arcanine ran full speed into the back of the van, leaving a sizable dent in the back door. The Pokémon swayed back and forth as it tried to regain its bearings, all the while the van shifted back into gear and drove off, leaving dust trailing behind it.
By the time Arcanine stopped, the van was long gone.
The entire daycare facility was now swarming with people. Police officers with Manectrics combed each and every inch of the complex, trying to gather any and all evidence of Flare's thwarted theft. Above them were several helicopters, shining spotlights down on fleeing grunts, who were swiftly caught by their pursuers. News channels had begun to pile in as well, with reporters standing in front of cameramen as they reported just what had transpired. Nurses with portable healers were tending to the injured Pokémon.
None of that truly matter to Louise, however, as she sat inside an impromptu medical tent while Saito and Elizabeth lied on beds in a closed off section.
Of the two of them, Saito had emerged the better off. None of his bones were broken, which Louise thanked the Founder for profusely. He did, however, suffer a concussion and his body was heavily bruised and cut, some of which needed stitches. His arms were wrapped tightly in bandages and gauze, to the point where he almost looked like a mummy. She wasn't too worried about him, though.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, was a much different story. Her prognosis was bad, to put it lightly. Along with a severe concussion and a slightly fractured skull, Elizabeth had several of her ribbed cracked, her arms were broken in several places, and most worryingly, she had lost a lot of blood. For a while, it was touch and go. It was only thanks to Espirit's newfound strength that she had lasted long enough for help to arrive. Louise dreaded to think what would have happened had that not been the case.
"Ms. Valliere?" a doctor said, snapping Louise out of her thoughts.
"Yes, ma'am?" Louise said, giving the doctor her undivided attention. The doctored nodded to herself and began ruffling through papers on a clipboard.
"I wanted to give you a quick update on Mr. Hiraga and Ms. Colette," she said. "Saito is expected to make a full recovery. He's sleeping right now, but otherwise he's fine. We'll be taking him via ambulance to Camphrier General Hospital where he'll need to stay for a day or two at most. Just to make sure there aren't any complications for him."
"Thank the Founder." Louise sighed in relief before refocusing on the doctor. "What about Elizabeth?"
The doctor sighed and took off her glasses. "It's not good. She's lost a lot of blood. We're doing the best we can, but there's only so much we can do here. Camphrier General isn't equipped to handle her injuries, so we're airlifting her to the Lumiose Trauma Center."
Louise's face fell at the news, and she sighed mournfully. Truth be told, she regretted her earlier hostility to the woman. Elizabeth had risen to the occasion and helped to avert what would have been a catastrophe. There was no doubt in Louise's mind that, had they not been there, the entire daycare's store of Pokémon Eggs would have been stolen. The Daycare might have even been forced to shut down. That wasn't to say that Louise hadn't quite forgiven Elizabeth for trying to steal Brennaraki, she doubted that she ever would, but the noble at the very least could give credit where credit was due.
"However," the doctor suddenly spoke up, catching Louise's attention once more, "I did notice something about you two's medical records. According to them, sparse as they may be, you have an O negative blood type."
"…Okay?" Louise didn't quite understand where the woman was going with this, nor was she quite familiar with blood types. She remembered Professor Sycamore talking about them when they set them up before her departure to Santalune, but the concept flew over her head.
"So, you're a universal donor," the doctor revealed, and the pieces began to fit into place in Louise's mind. "We could do a whole blood transfusion and donate it to Elizabeth while she's in transit. It would greatly improve her chances, so…"
"I'll do it," Louise cut the doctor off firmly. The doctor smiled and waved her over.
"Thank you. You are making the right decision."
"Of course I am," Louise nodded, and the doctor smiled even more. The two walked over to a nearby table, where a boxy monitor with tubes coming out of its side sat. Louise sat down on a nearby chair while the doctor rolled up Louise's sleeve and, after feeling around for a vein, applied rubbing alcohol to the inside of her elbow.
"So, how exactly does this work?" Louise asked, suddenly getting nervous. She gulped once the doctor pulled out a needle, and her skin paled. "Oh, no…"
"Scared of needles?"
"Of course not!" Louise loudly protested, silently cursing Sycamore more making her submit to blood testing. Still, her pride refused to let her show fear, even as she was about to have a needle pierce her body's natural protective layer and pull out the vital lifeblood within her, blood that she very much needed to live and should not be outside of her body for any reason.
Louise paled even more as the doctor pressed the needle to her skin, and with a great deal of effort she forced herself to look away. A second later, she felt a pang of pain as the needle stabbed into the vein, and soon after, blood began to pump out and fill a nearby bag.
"You're doing a very brave thing, Louise," the doctor said as the machine continued to work.
"Don't mention it," Louise forced out, taking great pains to look anywhere than the slowly filling bag of blood lest she grow even more nauseous. She needed to distract herself, and so she began to talk. "I'm glad you guys got here when you did."
"Same here," the doctor agreed. "From what the police told us, they got the call about an hour ago and had to wait for Malva to arrive with her specialized unit before proceeding. That's the only reason why they were able to arrest as many as they did. Still, Flare being back… I won't lie and say it doesn't trouble me."
"Same. I wasn't here in Lumiose when they attacked, but from what I heard, it got bad." Louise nodded to herself and closed her eyes, only for them to shoot open when she realized just what the doctor said. "Hold on, you said the police got the call an hour ago?"
"Yes," the doctor confirmed. "Why? Is that a problem?"
"The siege started three hours ago. We didn't get the phones working until thirty minutes before Malva arrived. Charlotte told me that after things calmed down."
"So?"
"If Malva wasn't responding to our call, then whose call did she respond to?"
The van barreled down the dark forest road, the driver taking care to avoid any of the trees rushing past. Moonlight filtered down through thick leaves and thick clouds of dirt and grass shot into the air, kicked up by spinning tires. Headlights illuminated everything that came towards them, and the driver quickly avoided every rock and fallen tree that came into view with expert precision.
"I think we lost them," a Grunt declared, looking out the rear window with a smile on his face. True to his word, there was no sign of the pursuing Arcanine or Dragonite, and the occupants let out a victorious cheer. The driver, however, remained silent, even as they entered into a large clearing.
"Good job, man!" another Grunt slapped the driver's shoulder. "That driving back there was sick!"
The van jumped up slightly as they ran over a small rock, jostling the egg containers slightly.
"Hey, keep those secure!" a woman called out. "The bosses will have our hides if any of them get scrambled!"
"On it, ma'am," a Grunt complied as he and a few others began tightening the straps holding the containers down. After a few testing tugs, the Grunt flashed a thumbs up and the woman nodded back. She turned back to the driver, only to lurch as the van slammed to a halt.
"Whoa!" the occupants yelled out as they braced themselves against the van wall. A few were unable to keep their footing and fell to the ground, only to pick themselves up and glare at the driver.
"What the hell, man!" one called out angrily while the others simply glared. The driver, meanwhile, remained silent and merely put a pair of sunglasses on his face.
Suddenly, bright floodlights shone out from the darkness, revealing an entire squadron of uniformed officers, Manectrics by their side and completely surrounding them. The sound of rotating helicopter blades hovering over them could be clearly heard.
"We have you surrounded!" Officer Jenny yelled into her megaphone. "Come out with your hands up!"
"Arceus dammit!" a Grunt yelled as he grabbed a Pokéball. The other occupants began to do the same, bracing themselves against the door. The driver remained silent, removing his hands from the steering wheel.
"Get us out of here!" the woman yelled at the driver, who calmly looked at her from behind his sunglasses with a growing smirk on his face. It slowly dawned on her that something was off about the man, and suddenly her eyes widened in realization. "You son of a—"
"Electroweb," the driver ordered. The tiny Joltik hiding in the far corner of the van, unnoticed til now, immediately complied with its master's order and enveloped the criminals within the back of the van with electrified silk. Electricity coursed through the Flare Grunt's bodies, wracking their bodies with pain and collapsing many. A few attempted to fight through the pain, only for the driver to speak again.
"Thunder Wave." At the driver's command, the Joltik fired an electric field at the criminals. Paralyzed, the criminals could only fall helplessly to the ground, glaring hatefully at the traitorous driver. Silently, the driver unlocked his seatbelt and unlocked the van, his Joltik jumping onto his shoulder as he did. He stepped out, with Malva waiting for him.
"They're inside, paralyzed. Should last for a few hours," he said as he began taking off his Flare uniform, Joltik carefully maneuvering itself to the top of his head. Malva nodded back and threw her arm towards the back of the van, ordering a group of officers to open the back door and drag the criminals out. "We got half the eggs in there."
"And the other half?" Malva asked as another group of officers gingerly carried the egg canisters out of the van and into their own.
"With Maxwell, unfortunately. Bastard never trusted me completely." He looked at her as he threw his red coat into the van behind him, his red gloves following suit along with his red pants and tie. Without missing a beat, Malva handed him a black suit jacket with matching pants and tie.
"And he's long gone. Dammit." Malva clenched his fist then looked at the suited man in front of her. "Smith, what are we going to do now? He got dozens of eggs."
"The original plan would have resulted in hundreds getting stolen," Smith countered, "had I not been embedded from the very beginning and the outsiders hadn't interfered."
"And now we managed to nab most of his supporters and his lieutenants." Malva didn't allow herself to smile at that, although she desperately wanted to.
"He's going to have to start recruiting again," Smith observed and stepped fully into view, his sharp black suit a marked contrast to his previous disguise. "I'll contact my colleagues in INTERPOL, have agents start watching the other cells and monitoring them for activity." He began to walk away, his hands tucked into his pockets. Joltik took the opportunity to hop onto his shoulder.
"Where are you going?" she called after him while he simply waved back.
"Following up on a lead," he cryptically replied as he continued his trek back towards the Daycare center, his thoughts focused on two of the interlopers in particular.
Louise and Saito watched as Elizabeth laid in her bed, a tub going into her arm and filled with Louise's blood. A monitor beeped with Elizabeth's pulse while others displayed her body's temperature. Her body was covered bandages and casts, and her breathing was slow.
"She… doesn't look so good…" Saito whispered softly at the scene. He was laying in bed as well, with a few bandages and gauze wrapping his arms and torso. Every few breaths he would wince, but the pain was only minor.
"Yeah…" Louise replied as she watched Espirit continue to bathe Elizabeth with Heal Pulse. Her efforts had been instrumental in keeping Elizabeth alive thus far, but it was obvious she was tiring out quickly. Each pulse was taking longer and longer intervals, sweat was beginning to accumulate on her body, and her breathing was beginning to grow labored.
"Espirit, how about you take a break? The doctors are here now, they can handle her."
'Not…yet…' Espirit replied, her voice audible to all. Louise smiled faintly at her Kirlia's voice. As it turned out, Espirit's evolution, beyond simply making her stronger, also increased her psychic abilities to the point where she could actually talk to the people around her. No longer would they have to rely on psychically-transmitted pictures to talk to one another. Now, they could just talk normally, or as normally as one could with one side being telepathic.
"Your trainer is right, young lady," the doctor called out as she and a few nurses entered the medical tent. They could hear the sound of helicopter blades spinning behind them, and at once Louise knew what was about to happen.
"Alright," she said as she got out of her seat. Reluctantly, Espirit followed after her and stopped her usage of Heal Pulse. She was breathing heavily, and so Louise carefully picked her up and held the Pokémon to her shoulder. Espirit's breathing softened, and soon she fell asleep. Louise smiled and rubbed her back before pulling out her Luxury Ball and returning her. Behind her, the sound of squeaking wheels filled the tent as another nurse wheeled Saito to the ambulance waiting outside. Louise moved to follow him in, only for a cough to catch her attention. She turned around, and to her surprise saw a pale Elizabeth slowly tossing her head back in forth, obviously in a great deal of pain.
"Whe…where am I?" she said, her voice so quiet Louise almost didn't hear her.
"Hey, everything's fine. Your safe," Louise soothed the injured heiress. She didn't dare touch her, worried about the state of her injuries.
"Di…did we…"
"Yes, we won." Louise didn't dare reveal that a dozen eggs got stolen, not in her present condition. Elizabeth smiled faintly at that, only to groan in pain. Tears were beginning to form in the corners of her eyes, and a pang of guilt stabbed through Louise's heart.
"Good…good…" With those final words, Elizabeth fell back into a deep sleep. Doctors and nurses then ushered her out and Louise complied. A few moments later, she watched as Elizabeth was wheeled to the waiting helicopter, which took off and headed west towards Lumiose as soon as she was safely aboard. With a sigh, Louise turned and walked into the waiting ambulance. The doors were shut behind her and they softly drove off down the road to .
"Well…that was a mess," Derflinger spoke to the assembled People and Pokémon in the waiting room at Camphrier General. Saito and Louise were currently inside his room, the girl fretting over his condition despite his very loud protests. It was almost comical.
"I'll say," Tanuki replied, his voice serious and his arm in a sling. His free paw tightened into a fist and his growled. "When I get my hands on that Lucario…"
'You'll what, exactly?' Maindo said. 'They went through us like wet paper, Tanuki. We can't do anything to them just yet. Going after them is just suicide.'
"So we should just let them get away with putting our trainer in the hospital?" Tanuki glared at the indifferent Ralts, who merely shook his head and shrugged.
'Just stating the obvious.' Maindo's tone, normally sharp and biting, was much more subdued now. They all knew it was from whatever Gallade did to him, and although he refused to speak about it, they all knew it affected him deeply. Seeing him like this, they almost missed his normal barrage of insults. Almost.
"Nothing good came out of that experience," Ronin declared as he hung his head, guilt over failing to protect his trainer filling him. He then looked to a tired Espirit and softly smiled. "Well, not everything."
"That's right. Espirit evolved into a Kirlia. Before me," Brennaraki grumbled that last part but no one minded. "You know, I have to ask. What's it like?"
'What's what like?' Espirit asked, slightly confused. They noticed how much clearer her voice was. While they could always understand her, now it was like she upgraded from an old radio with faulty wiring to a cell phone.
"Evolving," Brennaraki clarified. "What did it feel like? What triggered it? I feel like I'm close but… I just can't reach it."
Espirit hummed to herself as she thought over the experience. It was so sudden, the environment so chaotic that she hadn't really thought about it before now.
'Was was…strange, to be honest,' Espirit began to explain. 'One moment, I was just fighting, doing everything I could to keep Flare from succeeding, hearing the terrified voices of the babies and the…anger of everyone else. Then,' she pointed to her chest, 'I just felt this…power erupt inside me. It was like nothing I've ever experience before. It was euphoric, it felt liberating, and strangely warm. Everything turned white and my body just…changed. When I could see again, I was…this.' She pointed to her entire body in emphasis and everyone smiled.
"Hope I evolve soon. Turn into a Braixen. Can't wait for it," Brennaraki sighed with the others murmuring in agreement.
"What about you, Derf?" Aile asked, directing the ancient Honedge's attention. "You've been in Kalos for the past six thousand years. You looking to evolve?"
"Nah, never felt the need to," he explained with a small movement of his hilt, imitating a shrug. "I'm fine being a Honedge. It's…familiar." His answer surprised the Pokémon, but before they could question him, they heard a knock at the door. They turned their attention towards the sound, and after a moment an irritated Louise stomped out of Saito's room.
"How many times to I have to get that Smith guy to leave us alone?" Louise grumbled as she walked to the door. The others all sighed at that, knowing the incessant attempts of the strangely familiar INTERPOL agent trying to debrief her and Saito. It was only due to the hospital administrators and Louise's stubbornness that he finally relented, accepting a written statement by Louise that she finished writing up an hour ago. The fact that it was in Ancient Kalosian was an act of pure spite, as the language she had to write it in was not specified.
Louise stopped at the door and grumbled to herself before another knock was heard, followed by a feminine voice. Louise's eyes widened as she recognized it and quickly opened the door, revealing Joyce standing in the entryway, holding two Egg Containers in her arms.
"Oh, Joyce? What brings you here? And what's with the eggs?" Louise said in surprise.
"I wanted to thank you two personally for your help yesterday. May I?" she asked, and Louise nodded and shifted her body to the side, her arm outstretched in an open invitation. Nodding back, Joyce stepped into the waiting room and looked around. She smiled at the assembled Pokémon, who waved back, Maindo's halfheartedly.
"Where's Saito?" Joyce sounded worried there, and Louise waved her hand around to dismiss it.
"He's fine, don't worry. Just refusing to change out his bandages."
"They've already been changed out today!" Saito's muffled voice was heard through the walls.
"It won't hurt to change them again!" Louise shouted back.
"It's unnecessary!" His reply was instantaneous, and Joyce couldn't help but chuckle.
"Uhgh, boys," Louise grumbled with a smile. Her eyes then shot to the egg then back up to Joyce. "You didn't tell me what the Eggs were for."
"Well… This would be better to say to the both of you, if you don't mind." Louise looked surprised at this then, after a moment, nodded and opened the door, revealing Saito lying down on a hospital bed. A Kantoan anime was currently on the TV, something martial arts related and involving magical balls with stars on them, but his attention was currently on the daycare worker in front of him.
"Hey, Joyce. How's the Daycare?" he asked, his eyes briefly shooting to the eggs in her hands. Joyce's smile turned plain at the question and she sighed.
"We're still cleaning up the mess. Right now, estimates are above a million Pokédollars, what with the repairs, medical treatment, replacing of damaged equipment, not to mention increased security. This will never happen again." Her eye's turned hard at that declaration, and Louise and Saito nodded.
"Any word on Elizabeth?" Saito asked, and Joyce nodded.
"She's recovering, based off what I know. Her parents are pissed, though. Not at us, of course, but at the whole situation. That being said, they're paying for both the repairs and upgrades, not to mention the medical treatment."
"So that's who paid the bill," Louise realized and snapped her fingers. She had tried to use her savings to pay for Saito's medical bill, as small as it was, only to find that it had already been paid. "That was nice of them."
"Remind me to send them a thank you card," Saito joked, causing Louise to shake her head. He then stared at the Egg more pointedly and then back at Joyce. "So, to address the Mamoswine in the room, what's with the Eggs?"
Joyce smiled at his question and nodded. "The others and I, we all got together and talked about the events from earlier. Had it not been for you two and Elizabeth, things would have been an absolute disaster. Every single egg would have been taken, and who knows how many Pokémon would have been kidnapped. You guys saved the daycare, and we felt that a simple thank you wasn't enough."
She held out an Egg proudly, a bright and wide smile on her face. "So, as a humble expression of our eternal gratitude, the Kalos River Daycare Center gifts you two with your own Pokémon Egg."
Saito and Louise stared in shock, their eyes wide and their mouths agape. Carefully, Louise took the Egg from the worker's hand and stared back, the other safely held in Joyce's arms. The egg in Louise's arms was a steel grey color, with three red bands forming around the center.
"I… I don't… We can't accept this… I can't accept this…" Louise stammered, and Joyce shook her head.
"Of course you two can." Joyce continued to smile. "Jason's on his way to Lumiose to give Elizabeth her own Egg, and we wanted to give you two one as well."
"You're…giving us all one?" Saito numbly asked, and Joyce nodded.
"Yes. You all have more than earned it. Please, take them." Joyce held out the other Egg, this one a mixture of white and light blue. Louise remained quiet and stared at the egg in her arms, going over everything that had transpired. Her eyes sparkled with wonder and longing, and she wanted nothing more than to accept Joyce's offer and take both.
"I, uh… Thank you," Saito said as Louise numbly handed the grey and red egg to him. He looked upon it in wonder, curious as to what was inside, while Louise stared at the other egg. Her heart was beating rapidly, her thoughts filled with curiosity and longing. She wanted nothing more than to accept the other egg and accept whatever hatched out into her growing family.
"I can't," Louise finally got out, her voice final. Joyce looked confused as Louise stepped away. "I'm sorry, but I don't deserve this."
"What do you mean? You helped save the facility." Joyce was confused while Saito looked on knowingly. From behind the worker, Derflinger nodded approvingly, knowing exactly what was going into the rosecrown's decision.
"All I did was follow what my mother and father taught me," Louise explained. "I simply performed what is expected of me and yet, my actions don't compare to what Saito and Elizabeth went through. Besides..." she looked at Espirit, "...I already got my reward out of all that, I believe."
Joyce looked confused for a minute then smiled faintly then nodded. "I think I understand. Well, guess I just take this guy back then." She hefted the egg in her arms and smiled. "I know he or she will make it to a good home one day. You sure you don't want it?"
"Positive," Louise answered with a smile. Joyce nodded back then began turn around.
"I best be getting back to the daycare. I got a lot of paperwork to fill out in the next couple of days." Joyce sighed in resignation then straightened herself. "Feel free to stop by whenever you guys want. You are always welcome in our doors."
"Thank you," Louise said as she escorted the worker out. "Give the others my regards."
"I will. Good luck in the Pokémon League. We're rooting for ya." At Joyce's declaration, Louise smiled, waved, and watched as Joyce walked away. Once she was out of sight, Louise gently closed the door and turned back to Saito, who was still staring at his egg intensely.
"Mind if we come in?" Derflinger asked from the entrance to Saito's room. The two trainers nodded, and at once the Pokémon filed into the smaller room. Saito's Pokémon hopped onto the bed alongside him, while Louise's Pokémon were content to get onto the various chairs, desks, and her shoulder.
The Pokémon stared at the Egg with wonder. Espirit could feel the developing Pokémon inside, and the soothing messages she sent it made it feel warm and happy. That with them, it was safe. Tanuki bounced in place, thinking over in his mind what his new teammate would be, Ronin strategized on how to ensure it wouldn't be corrupted while Maindo plotted ways on how to do just that.
A few hours went by, marked by the two trainers alternating between studying and theorizing about the egg and watching the anime still playing on the TV. Everything was peaceful, and Louise couldn't help but smile, only to suddenly feel a weight on her shoulder. She looked, seeing that Saito had fallen asleep, and she couldn't help but smile at the sight. She rubbed his head and took the egg from his hands, placing it on the table beside them. Gently, she lowered his head onto the pillow and quietly removed herself from the room, turning off the lights and closing the door behind her.
Lying down on the couch in the waiting room, Louise felt her Pokémon cuddle up alongside her and she smiled. She then closed her eyes, and it wasn't long before she drifted off into a deep sleep.
[~][~]
Hello, everyone! Here is the next chapter of Outsiders! A much calmer chapter than last time, but one that is no less important. Lots of important things happened here, such as Saito getting a Pokémon Egg in reward for his defense of the Daycare, along with Elizabeth while Louise refused. Now, while they fully recover from their ordeal, they will be off on the next leg of their journey.
Now, onto the Q&A:
Drewd00d: This is a great review! Thank you for it. These reviews are my personal favorite to see. Let me answer all of your questions.
I'm actually the one who came up with Louise's line back there. I'm particularly proud of that one, if I do say so myself. Glad you liked it. And yes, she may have overplayed her hand a bit, but she was in a dangerous situation that warranted it.
This was a very important arc for Elizabeth as well. She is the most important human OC in the entire story, and this chapter will be very important for her arc. We're happy to see the interest in her backstory and where things will go.
Yes, it was an endurance battle on all sides. We wanted to keep the PoV on the good guys' teams for this chapter, which is why we didn't showcase the Flare mon's PoV. But, if you want, imagine that all of the Flare mon's were a combination of mentally exhausted and pumped full of adrenaline that would later make them crash.
You can thank NecroMechanoid from the Spacebattles thread for the omake, actually. While it isn't canon to the story, it is something that we all loved and want to explore in this story as well. Not just on fossils but in general.
Zander2212: The Genie's introduction was one of my inspirations for that scene, actually.
DPSS: Don't worry. Saito will have more to do in upcoming chapters. This chapter was mostly on further setting up Louise's and Elizabeth's character development. Also, keep in mind that it was Derflinger who was doing 90% of the work during that fight, and even then Elizabeth got her ass kicked. She will not be doing that again.
revan4221: Standard Void spells actually don't affect Arceus all that much. All she's doing is simply splitting one or two atoms, nothing more. She's not tearing holes in reality here, like with her summoning spell.
That does it for this week's chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it! Now, before we go, NechoMechanoid has yet another omake that I would like to share. Hope you all enjoy it as much as I have!
Pokéball Store
"I just want to provide the best for my Pokémon!" Louise argued. Currently, they were at the store where Saito thought it was a good opportunity to educate Louise on not only the basics of different Pokéballs but also on their, mainly Louise, expenditures.
"And I understand that. That's what any self-respecting trainer wants for their Pokémon." Saito agreed with her sentiment, but it was clear in his teacher-like tone that he had a rebuttal coming. "But the reality is that neither of us can afford to splurge like that. Especially since we don't have a large and steady income being deposited into our accounts." He expressly pointed out that fact.
"All I have is the money I've been saving for the start of my journey. Plus my monthly allowance my parents put into my account. And all you have is that apology money from Elizabeth's parents, which you've already spend most of it on every fancy and expensive item you could get your hands on..."
"You're never gonna let me forget that, are you?" Louise interjected with a sour pout.
"Nope!" He gave a quick answer before proceeding. "And there is whatever we earn along our travels."
"Like that nugget you found in the cave." Louise said. In their venture through the cave, Saito found a gold nugget no bigger than a compacted Pokéball. When he sold it at the jewelers shop, he received a decently large amount of money for it. Something which surprised Louise since, in Tristan, she doubted that little bit of gold would be worth anywhere close to what even untitled nobles make.
Saito nodded before continuing. "This means that we NEED to be practical and conserve our money in case of any emergencies that are likely to occur along the road." He starts to number sceneries with his fingers. "For example: what if our supplies and gear get lost or destroyed. We'd have to buy replacements. What if we come in need of professional medical attention. We'd have to pay the bill. What if, and this is actually quite common an occurrence to trainers like us, we cause unintentional property damage. We still have to pay for those damages. And that's just covering the basics."
Louise eyes widen as he listed off those sceneries and could almost feel her money getting blown away like a leaf in the wind. It never occurred to her just how bad it could get. In hindsight, it should've been obvious. If she is not careful, she could wind up broke before ever getting close to the Pokémon League.
Saito took note of Louise's clear look of shock realization and gave a knowing smirk. "And now comes the reason why we are here." He turned his gaze to the side for a second. "Well, part of the reason. But this is more important." He pointed to Louise's belt, specifically the orbs clipped on it.
"Luxury Balls. Designed for comfort which helps in making Pokémon more relaxed and friendlier." He explained. "However, while helpful, that's not why they're so expensive. The outer casing is made of fancy metals and expensive materials all meant to look eye-catching. In other words, it's just not worth the price tag."
Saito turn to grab two Pokéballs of a different kind that were next to the typical red/white. One is blue with two red accents on the top with the basic white bottom. The other ball has a black top with a yellow stripe that looks like the letter H and a white bottom.
"Great Ball and Ultra Ball. They have a 1.5 and double the catch rate of the stock model Pokéball respectively. I've heard stories of trainers using these to catch good Pokémon without needing to weaken them using these. The Ultra Ball especially. And both are cheaper then Luxury Balls."
Louise looked at their respective price tag and at the Luxury Balls'. The difference was obvious. Especially compared to the Great Ball. And for the higher chance of a successful catch, that does sound far worth it.
Placing the two orbs back, Saito grabbed another one. "Now we have the more specialized Pokéballs. Since we just finish venturing through a cave, this feels appropriate to start with." The Pokéball in question was black all around with green spots on all sides. The band and button around the center are colored orange. "This is called a Dusk Ball and it's made to work best during the night or in dark areas like inside a cave. Perfect for those looking for cave dwelling and nocturnal Pokémon."
Louise wants to know how that is, but she thought against it for now as she is enraptured by all this.
Saito moves on. "Here we got a Net Ball." This one retains the white bottom, but the top is a nice shade of light blue with black band across it like that of a net. "This here is great for catching bug and water type Pokémon, so they are popular with bug catchers and fisherman alike. Guess they wanted to take out two birds with one stone with this."
The next Pokéball seem to bring a smile to Saito as he looks at it with a fondness. It has a green top with yellow/brown bands that make a circle around it. "This one is nostalgic. It's called a Nest Ball and it's a simple and cheap Pokéball meant to catch weaker Pokémon. Great for kids who want to practice for their eventual journey while under parents supervision. My parents actually got me one for my tenth birthday since they wouldn't let me start then. Caught a Caterpie with it."
"What happened to it?" Louise broke her silence, wanting to know more on the subject.
"I raised it. It evolved all the way to a Butterfree. And when the mating season started, I let him go so he could start his own family." He smiled as he said that, and his eyes became glossier as water began building up. He then dried his eyes with his sleeve. "That was three years ago and doesn't really matter now. Let's move on."
Louise nodded with a small smile on her face as Saito grabbed the next ball. 'It feels like I'm back in class again.' A stray thought entered her mind, but she didn't mind it at all.
"...Here we have the Quick Ball" Saito presented a blue Pokéball with yellow strips pattern in a manner as to illustrate lightning. "This Pokéball personifies the phrase 'catch-n-go' as its made to catch a Pokémon best when its unaware of you. Throw it before your presence is known and you got a high chance of catching it. But if its guard is up, then it's no different than the stock model. Perfect for those Pokémon that prefer to run than fight. A lot of people looking for Legendary types tend to pack these."
Louise could see how such a thing could be very useful. Especially when dealing with more dangerous Pokémon.
"Going from the Quick Ball, we come to its opposite." The next Pokéball Saito displayed possesses a mostly white color with a black top and red strips on its side with a red crest on the top front. It almost looks like those cooking timers she's seen in Professor Sycamore's kitchen. "The catch rate on the Timer Ball actually increases the longer the battle with the wild Pokémon last. The crest here is a sensor that picks up on the fight between the two Pokémon and charges up the Pokéball. The longer the battle, the greater the chance of the catch."
Louise blinked twice as she slowly comprehended the point of such a thing. It made a sort of sense that if you have a Pokéball for a quick catch that you have one for prolong battles. Cover every scenario. Something her mother always talked about.
"Now this one here is favored by farmers and people looking to start their own small business." The next Pokéball looked very much like the common models expect there was a gold chain design on the top that starts at the top and goes to the back of the ball. "This is a Repeat Ball. It syncs up with any Pokémon registry device, a Pokédex in our case, and increases the chance of catching a Pokémon you already have. Great for farmers and ranchers who run a Miltank Dairy Farm or a Combee Honey Keep."
Having tried Miltank milk and Combee honey, it was not hard for Louise to see how such a Pokéball would be great for anyone desiring to enter such a profession. 'Now I want more Combee honey.'
"Last one here is made specifically for water-type Pokémon. Specifically for catching them underwater." The last Pokéball has a nice coloring of gentle blue shades with a white pattern on the top that all together gives it an ocean look about it. "The Dive Ball is made for catching Pokémon that live under the ocean. It's got a reinforced casing to better handle sea pressure, but it also has small water thrusters to propel it when thrown since if you use any other Pokéball, the water will stop it the moment it leaves your hand. Great if you are ever planning to give deep sea diving a try. You would not believe how many cool Pokémon live on the ocean floor."
Louise blinked once and then twice as she saw all the different Pokéballs in the room. So many for an equally many form of situation. And a good number of them are cheaper than the luxury balls she bought at Lumiose City. 'Damn that woman!'
Saito didn't seem to notice the scowl on Louise face as he proceeded to grab his purchase. Two Great Balls, a Dusk Ball and a Net Ball. "Well, that's all the Pokéballs in the shop. There are others like the Heal Ball, which is actually sold in the Pokémon Center. And there are those given in special and public events. But there are models that are exclusive to certain regions, like in Johto. Wish I could've gotten one when I lived there."
"What about that one?" Louise pointed to a poster displaying a Pokéball with a purple top and two brighter purple circles on its side with the letter "M" printed on top of its face.
"That, Louise...," the tone in Saito's voice made it evident just how big a deal that certain Pokéball is, "...is called the Master Ball. A well-deserved name too. The Master Ball is a guaranteed catch on any wild Pokémon anyone can encounter."
"Guaranteed?" Louise asked just to be sure.
"One hundred percent guaranteed catch." Saito assured. "Doesn't matter the physical state of the Pokémon. You throw that and its caught, period."
Louise could not help but gasp at the picture of the Master Ball. "That things must be incredibly expensive!"
"That's like saying a Golem has gotta be rock-hard." Saito said completely serious. "The Silph Corporation, who made the Master Ball, had hopes of introducing them on the market but after an incident with the criminal organization, Team Rocket, as well as the intervention of the Pokémon Association and League, they stopped any plans from ever bringing them to the wilder public. Any form of production and distribution is tightly regulated and highly scrutinized. Rumors pop up of the Association granting one to certain individuals, but no one really knows. Especially with how the identity of those lucky few are kept well away from any media."
Louise understood the reasoning behind such action. If such a device became available to great quantities for all, especially to those of ill-repute...she couldn't imagine the chaos that would cause.
"Well, I got what I wanted." Saito said holding up the four Pokéballs and the proof of purchase. "Anything you're looking to get before leaving?"
Louise looked around at the selection before taking one Great Ball and a Dusk Ball. "I'll just take these two."
[~][~]
Once again, these omakes are not canon, but I just wanted to share them with you all. See you next time on Outsiders!
Also, in case any of you are interested, I have started a RWBY/DC crossover with Jessesanman and NaanContributor called Hunters of Justice. If you like either of those franchises, I encourage you to check it out!
