Pokemon Virus Version Chapter 107: Knocking Off the Rust
Author's Note: Hello, readers. I bring you greetings from the U.S Navy. That's right, I am out of Boot Camp, and I am officially a Sailor(No, not the trainer class). Anyway, I'm glad to be back. This is my first post in 2017. This is ALSO my first post since Generation 6 of Pokemon. I HAVE played BOTH Sun and Moon, and there are some pokemon I really want to include in Virus Version. IDK, Popplio is portrayed as such a bubbly Pokemon, and out of 800+, Popplio would seem to mesh PERFECTLY with a bubbly character like Yumi. I'll think about it...tell what YOU guys think of Yumi and Popplio, because I kind of have Yumi's 5th and 6th Pokemon figured out. Do you guys MIND a character with a team littered with starters? If you haven't noticed with Seth's team, I've tried to avoid doing that. Turns out that he has alot of uncommon Pokemon that are kind of 'fresh' here on Fanfiction, Chikorita and Gabite aside.
While we're on the subject of Yumi, here's a Yumi chapter to kick off my return.
Location: Mahogany Town-Lake of Rage
Yumi's POV
It's been a while, and I guess I'm kicking off the return.
"So why aren't Seth and the others with you?" Mary-Elizabeth asked me.
The Pokemon Contest Mary and I were participating in was tonight, but right now, it was morning. Mary and I ran into each other as we both went to register at the Lake of Rage Contest, look where we are now? We're on our way back to the Mahogany Town Pokemon Center.
I slightly pouted as I answered to Mary, "Well first off, Seth said he was headed for the Mahogany Town Gym. I don't know why he would bother though, considering Mahogany STILL might not have a Gym Leader. Meanwhile, Rose is kind of under the weather right now, so Chapel out getting medicine for her."
Ugh, those guys! The thought of them made me droop visibly!
…I wonder how their day goes?
"Oh, nevermind them," Mary-Elizabeth started, "Prince flat out told me that he didn't want to walk all the way to the lake until tonight. He can be so lazy at times."
"And ambiguous!" I added.
Haha. Just how short did my saddened state remain?
Well, I guess Mary being with me just makes for good company.
"Vy!" And let us not forget about Snivy. Since our battle with Team Rocket, I've decided to keep the little green snob outside of his Pokeball. Sure, he still walks with his arms crossed and chin up high, but we've learned to accept each other's different characteristics with affection.
With a smile on my face, I sighed. Why not spend the day going on an adventure before the Contest starts tonight?
Footsteps.
"Runt. Runt runt runt." A pokemon.
Who could it be? It looked like the 'adventure' was already off to an unceremonious start.
"Vy?" Snivy's attention was also grabbed.
"It's a Snorunt." Mary remarked.
And it was casually walking in front of us!
I had to grab my powder blue Pokedex, which read:
Snorunt, the Snow Hat Pokemon; Snorunt is said to bring great wealth to any home that it lives in.
Great wealth huh?
"Strange, we usually don't encounter a pokemon in such a straightforward manner," I said as I put my Pokedex away.
"It's the writer." Mary-Elizabeth answered. "He's just knocking off some rust."
For just a split second, there was a moment of silence featuring the cessation of Snorunt's footsteps as it stopped to face us out of sheer curiosity. "Snorunt?"
And at this moment, I asked myself: Why not catch the Ice type? There was nothing for me to lose, and I could really use some sort of Ice Beam or Blizzard to show off at my next Contest, AFTER the one at Lake of Rage, of course.
Oh, I was so excited! I suddenly pointed at the Snorunt as I called out to Snivy, "Time to take stage, Snivy!"
Yes, Snivy did as I commanded. In mere seconds, I was ready to make a new addition to my team, but that did not come without some hesitance.
"Yumi?" Mary called out in worry, "Are you sure you should be charging into a battle so hastily?"
"What?" I was confused.
"While it may lack in size, we have not a clue of what this Snorunt's capable of. And on another note, I don't think you should be battling right now, not with the Contest tonight. What if Snivy gets hurt?"
I closed my eyes, and with a smile on my face, I waved off the maroon haired girl, "Don't be such a worry-wart, Mary. I've got the situation under control."
I opened my eyes to see Mary-Elizabeth. She had a very unconvinced look on her face, while her arms were crossed. Oh, Mary-Elizabeth…She's always had a bit of a motherly side to her, worrying the way she does.
I turned back to the snowy path about to be used as a battlefield, and focused my attention on Snivy and the wild Snorunt.
"Vy…"
"Sno."
A casual encounter left to simple chance. We hadn't a clue what this Snorunt was thinking. What did it think about us? Did this Snorunt live nearby? Where did it come from? What did it hope to accomplish by walking out in front of two humans?
…
…How young is the Ice type?
That would be answered once I caught it! "Snivy, use Vine Whip!"
"Vy!" It was always my style to go in and try to land the first strike in a battle, and that trend was not going to end today, for Snivy and I said and launched a single vine at the Snorunt.
Come on…A dodge…A dodge…I am SO expecting this Snorunt to perform a dodge, like many of my past opponents.
"Raahh!" But it didn't! Instead, Snorunt opted to blow a breath of icy cold wind in our direction.
"Ack!" This Icy Wind was by no means small. Both Mary and I quivered as we could feel the below-freezing temperature. "S-Snivy."
"Vy?!" It was terrible. Once I opened my eyes, I saw that Snivy's protruded vine was completely covered in ice.
"Runt!" Icy Wind was only half the story. Next, Snorunt wasted no time capping off its opening move…or combo…whatever. Snorunt charged head first at a Snivy who was trying to tend to his frozen vine.
"Agh!" His vine still protruded, Snivy was sent to the snowy ground. Not tired in the slightest, Snivy immediately glared at Snorunt with gritted teeth.
"Snivy!" Mary called out Snivy with worry. She then said to me, "That Snorunt's good."
"Oh please!" I was just caught off guard by a first impression! Let us not forget that Snivy's a great pokemon himself.
"Runt runt runt." Snivy and I were ready. Ready to retaliate, ready to shift the momentum, and ready to capture Snorunt.
But-
"Runt!" That Snorunt had no intention of letting any of our hopes come true. For when Snivy was just about ready to get up, Snorunt was ready to tuck and run!
Into the snowy forest it went, and before the battle was really getting started too.
"Hmm…" I stared at the footprints Snorunt was leaving behind, "Is it even possible for me to lose Snorunt if I go after it?" An obvious 'no'. The conditions were in my favor, meaning that there was absolutely no excuse for me NOT to capture Snorunt today.
I had to start the chase. My footprints now in the snow, I began my way into the forest with haste.
"Yumi?!" That didn't come without its own issue though. Mary-Elizabeth was the one who called out to me as she ran up to comfort a Snivy just making it to his feet. "What about Snivy?!"
While running, I turned around to Mary and answered, "I'll only be a minute! Please take care of Snivy until I get back!"
I said it before, and I'll say it again. Mary had a bit of a motherly side to her, so I knew she'd be able to take care of Snivy. I WASN'T just 'leaving Snivy for dead', I knew what I was doing…I thought.
"Ugh!" Mary groaned as he took Snivy in her arms, much to Snivy's surprise. Next, Mary began running after me. Why? "I don't know if 'you'll be back' because you don't know where you're going!"
Ugh, what a worry wart! Does she really think I'll get lost in this icy forest?
The drawn out and somewhat light hearted adventure of the pursuit of Snorunt caused the question to escape my mind completely.
….
Snorunt in front of me, and a Mary holding Snivy behind me, I found myself sliding across patches of frozen ice on more than one occasion. With her near-perfect, ladylike finesse, Mary-Elizabeth managed to ice skate her way across. However, I was as fortunate.
"Ow!" I had slipped on the ice a number of times before, but this time I landed extra hard on my bottom. "Thank Arceus I haven't fell on my face yet…" I muttered as I rubbed my bottom.
"Ha ha!"
"Hn!" I glared at the Snorunt as it pointed and laughed at me from a distance.
"Runt runt runt!" Why is it that pokemon always get a kick out of making fun of me?
"Haha." Mary-Elizabeth too. The cherry haired perfectionist continued to skate with ease. She made her way back and stopped right next to me as she offered her hand, the other still holding Snivy, "Still the same old Yumi. Need some help?"
Mary was only trying to be funny, so I didn't hold anything against her. I took her hand, and from then on, SHE held on tightly. Gently, she guided me across the several patches of ice that heavily decorated the forest floor. Snorunt was still a decent distance away.
"Ice skating is a lot like swimming: your mindset is crucial," Mary said as she let go of my hand, "If you're not calm, you're not going to succeed."
There goes that motherly side again.
….
We made it deeper and deeper into the forest, and each additional step meant that we were getting further and further away from the path that separated Lake of Rage and Mahogany Town. Time was ticking away, and every second-every minute-they were all beginning to add up.
"Yumi, might you know the way back should you lose track of Snorunt?" Mary asked.
Her question was so sudden, but even so, only half my attention was on it.
"Um, yeah." I gave a halfhearted answered.
"Sni." Snivy wasn't at all convinced as he crossed his arms.
"Your tone tells me a lot about that little white lie," Mary said.
I sighed. Arceus knows I've been travelling too long with people like Seth, who will be too oblivious to perceive my hidden messages, or just not care all together. I'm not able to get away with that crap with Mary. The way she's bugging me about EVERY LITTLE DETAIL is starting to become not-so-comical, and a bit on the annoying side.
I decided not to give Mary any hint of the thought as I started to pursue Snorunt even faster and asked rhetorically, "What do you want me to do?"
Might Mary HERSELF know the way back to the path? Either way, I was not coming back without Snorunt, not before the Contest, of course. The Contest will take priority when the time comes, obviously.
Mary didn't allow my question to be rhetorical as she answered, "I would like for you to be a little less rash."
Feeling slightly annoyed, I decided to let the situation be and not answer Mary, which sparked a predictable groan.
….
We made our way past frozen flowers that could pass as crystalized. There weren't just flowers, there were other iced plants as well. How a Parasect could live in these temperatures was beyond me. Less surprising, were Pokemon such as Vanillite and Cubchoo, along with the occasional Mareep and Flaffy who could be seen sleeping. Every pokeon seen in the wild was a reminder to us: We were proceeding into the more remote parts of the forest.
Eventually, we began to see streams of ice connecting the trees. There were being used by pokemon such as Smoochum and Shelmet to traverse the forest like some sort of interrelated web. This would prove to be our final passing point as-
"Snorunt!" The Snorunt finally came to a dead end. The Ice type was low to the ground, staring at the rocky hill that seemed to stretch for miles.
Sno! Snorunt! Runt! Snorunt runt! Snorunt!" Snorunt was on the lookout as it cried desperately.
I smiled, "It's too late for you, Snorunt. I now have you cornered." Allow me for the tangent to come. I clasped my hands and swooned as I cooed, "Oh my gosh, you'll be the most adorable cutie yet! I'll get you a ribbon, and a pretty dress!"
"-Sonrunt! Runt!" The Snorunt paid no attention to my words as it continued crying out.
"Don't let you guard down Yumi," Mary-Elizabeth said, "I think Snorunt's trying to call for help."
"Vy?" I guess Snivy was trying to ask 'really?' while still in Mary's arms.
"Ha! Even if Snorunt's help gets here, it'll be too late." I replied. Now it was time to put an end to what has been started, "Alright Snivy, it's you turn again-"
"-Wait a minute!" Mary interrupted as she kept a firm grasp on Snivy, "Snivy's had enough battling, at least until the Pokemon Contest tonight."
I gritted my teeth. Today is not the first day I've had to deal with Mary and her motherly instinct. In addition to her being motherly, she's also nitpicky, even prissier than I am, and at this point, annoying…Maybe she WASN'T annoying. Maybe it's just all in my head. Either way, it was as if my next sentence was automatic as the words left my mouth.
"Fine, fine!" I grunted as I took out a Pokeball, "But can you please stop nagging me for once? I swear, you're worse than you used to be."
No reply from Mary, but she became visibly frustrated as now SHE was gritting her teeth.
Never mind her. Now it was all about me capturing the cornered Snorunt who had finally given up on trying to call for help.
Wordlessly, but with plenty of energy, I threw the Pokeball which lit up the slightly dingy setting underneath the snowy trees which stood above and around us.
A quadruplet set of feet landed in the snow.
"Umbreon." My first pokemon made his whisper of a cry.
Surely, Mary-Elizabeth wasn't going to complain about me using Umbreon, right? I mean, she has no idea whether or not I'll even use Umbreon in the Contest tonight.
No comment. Alright then!
"Snorunt!" Unlike last time, Snorunt made hast with the first move as it stopped calling for help. A strong, snowy wind was headed straight for Umbreon.
"Umbreon, lead with Iron Tail!" I called.
"Um!" Instictively, Umbreon moved away from the Powder Snow's path, jumping to his right. "Umbreon!" Then, with his tail now covered in a cold, steely aura, Umbreon snapped toward Snorunt.
"Agh!"
"A direct hit!"
Iron Tail made a super impact, and there was exceptional knockback as Snorunt was slammed into the air. "Runt!" It took a few seconds, but Snorunt was able to rebound, landing on a branch belonging to one of the forest's many trees.
Though I was going to command further, Umbreon beat me to the punch. "Ha!" A ball of dark energy was launched at the Ice type.
"Sno." Quickly, Snorunt dodged by taking a huge jump.
"Impressive." Mary-Elizabeth remarked, adding to my steadily increasing annoyance.
"Umbreon, Snorunt's still in the air!" I yelled, "Try Shadow Ball again!"
Umbreon complied, launching another ball of dark energy at the now descending Snorunt. How could the drifting Snorunt avoid taking damage this time? The answer is easy, to a somewhat infuriating extent. "HAAHH!" THIS SNORUNT LAUNCHED A POWDER SNOW AT THE SHADOW BALL.
"Are you kidding?!" The Powder Snow didn't directly collide with Shadow Ball, but it still did its job. The Powder Snow was actually strong enough to deter the path of Shadow Ball, causing Umbreon to miss his intended target. Shadow Ball ended up crashing into the rock wall, while Snorunt landed back on the tree branch.
There was no moment to spare, "Raa!" The Snorunt leapt off the branch once more, only this time its intention was a crash course landing. Snorunt's target? Umbreon.
"You think you can take this one, Umbreon?" I asked.
Umbreon answered with a simply but loud roar of a cry as he jumped, charging upward at the falling Snorunt.
"Raahh!" This Snorunt began to spin its head. This, I knew would only add to the impact of its diving Headbutt.
"With a spin and gravity on its side, Snorunt has the clear advantage. This doesn't look good." Stupid Mary. Why can't she keep her thoughts to herself? We didn't need to know that, but it's not like it matters. I'm confident Umbreon will win.
"Let's go!" I cheered.
Umbreon's tail became cloaked in the aura of Iron Tail once more as he and the wild Snorunt closed in on each other.
Struggle away, Umbreon. Let's finish this!
"Um!"
"Runt!"
The diving Headbutt of Snorunt and the Iron Tail of Umbreon collided. Yes, there WAS, in fact, a struggle between the two.
"RRRN…" At first, it appeared the spinning Snorunt had the advantage with gravity on its side, just as Mary predicted.
"Um…rgh!" Umbreon was forced back to the ground, but not without enough resistance needed to maintain the struggle.
Second later, it seemed Umbreon was slowly but surely shifting the momentum with his super effective Iron Tail. He smirked.
"Runnn…runt!" Despite Snorunt's presumed advantage, it soon caved in to an Umbreon who was simply at a higher level. "Uunt!" Snorunt was sent flying.
"Alright, this is it!" I just knew it was, because Snorunt was headed straight for a tree that would deal the finishing blow for me. I took out a Pokeball before it was all said and done, and was ready to capture Snorunt…that was until-
"Aaaahh-ah…runt?" Snorunt WAS going to crash into the snowy tree. It was not even half an inch from impact as it suddenly halted in midair.
I was confused. Snivy was confused. Mary-Elizabeth and Umbreon were bewildered, and even Snorunt took a few seconds to figure out what happened; it was surrounded by a light blue aura.
"Th-that's a Psychic!" Mary stammered.
"But how? Why?" I questioned while still holding my Pokeball.
Snorunt gave me a knowing smirk, and there was an almost nonexistent sense of doubt beginning to creep up on me. Emphasis on 'ALMOST nonexistent'.
Snorunt knew something was in store for us. Moments later, that 'something' turned out to be…some sort of pokemon suddenly appearing in front of Snorunt and staring us down, "Gem!" There were two of them, and they seemed to be aiding Snorunt in its distress.
…
…Aw! Aiding Snorunt?! "These pokemon must be the help Snorunt was crying for earlier!" I exclaimed as if a lightbulb flashed over my head.
I then took out my Pokedex to scan the two identical pokemon.
The Pokedex read:
Elgyem, the Cerebral Pokemon; Elygem uses its strong psychic power to squeeze its opponent's brain, causing unendurable headaches.
"Psychic types…" Umbreon could beat them both easily…I COULD hit them with a super effective Shadow Ball, but it'll be easier to hit both targets at the same time with Iron Tail…
Yes, I commanded Umbreon to charger at Elgyem with Iron Tail. That Snorunt was going to be mine no matter what.
"Um! Breon!"
Interuption! And just before Umbreon was going to hit them!
"Gem!" Elgyem's eyes began to glow just about every color imaginable, and so fast as well.
Bizarre, I hadn't a clue what the two Elgyem were doing, but Umbreon began to glow bright pink.
"Is that a Psychic type move?" I asked out loud.
"Yumi!" Mary-Elizabeth called in worry, "Those Elgyem are using Miracle Eye! Umbreon won't be immune to Psychic moves now!"
"What?" There's a move that can do that?!
There was no time to think. Umbreon's demeanor totally changed, his eyes going wide as he was stopped in midair and surrounded by the blue aura of Psychic.
I gritted my teeth. Normally, I would've screamed in worry, but not this time. I quickly readied a Pokeball containing a pokemon that would come to Umbreon's aid, "Braixen, you-"
"Breon!" I hadn't the time to release Braixen from her Pokeball as the Elgyem sent Umbreon right at me.
I flinched, but not without opening my left eye very slightly. I was greeted with a fiendish smile coming from the Snorunt standing behind its Elgyem cohorts.
You KNEW I was messing with the wrong pokemon, huh Snorunt? I guess revenge is a dish best served cold here in the icy forest…
Snivy and Mary flinched as well, and once Umbreon was uncomfortably close, we all began to glow the same aura; The Elgyem had us all under their Psychic power!
I felt everything around me begin to white out, like our presence was being forced out of the icy forest. This creeping pulsation, was beyond bewilderment to me.
…This creeping pulsation…
…This creeping pulsation, had us white out COMPLETELY. What was happening? What have I gotten us into?
…
Next thing I knew, we were beyond the white forest…
To Be Continued…
Like I said, I was merely 'knocking off the rust' this chapter. It's purpose is to set up for next chapter, which is complete. I didn't intend it to be as long as it is, but hey, as a writer, I've kind of learned to just 'let the chapter flow and let the characters be themselves'.
Please, let me know what you think about Yumi and Popplio. The match up is just too obvious. I DID have her 5th and 6th Pokemon planned...but then Gen 7 came out.
Yumi's Party
Umbreon(Male)-Synchronize
Braixen(Female)-Blaze
(Purified)Gligar(Male)-Sand Veil
Snivy(Male)-Overgrow