Chapter 13: Getting Cooler
"So there's some roving band of turtles going around harassing people?"
-"Seaking..."
"Damn, okay uh, not what I expected to hear this afternoon. How much time to prepare do we have?"
-"...King." The others all begin to panic.
"Easy! Easy everyone! Autumn is still a month and a half away! We have time to prepare. If we all just work together-"
-"Kar kar karp!" One of the newer ones yells, daggers in their eyes.
"Ouch, that one really hurts you know? If you don't want to fight, the way out is... well, pick a direction and swim." Motions around at the open sea.
"But for those of us who don't want to pack up and leave what we worked so hard to find, I plan to stay." At his words, numerous other fish swim forward. One of the old crew moves up, held back by one of the locals.
-"Kar kar!"
-"Magikarp!"
-"Karp..."
Full of determination, they shake off the new fish and swim proudly next to Tentacool.
"You don't understand. You were born here, and some of us were to, but we had to fight to get here. It was so hard and took so long. I was only in that lake for a month, but some of these guys were there for years! Yearning to return home! And now that home is in danger... They can't run away and neither can I!"
-"Seaking." Jessie's new pal approaches, nodding their horn in his direction.
"Thanks King, that means a lot to me."
-"Sea-king."
"Oh! Emperor! My mistake, nice to know your name. I'm-"
-"King."
"Right, you've been talking to- ANYWAY!" *pose* "Who's up for some training?"
-"Alright now son, take Old Scratch here and catch your first pokemon!" The youngster tosses out a pokeball, releasing a well seasoned Magikarp.
"Nice to meet you, Scratch. Let's have a good fight."
-"Karp."
It wasn't their first battle since coming here, but the locals could only do so much. Their levels were low enough as it was and fighting with their natural predator probably wouldn't be good for morale. That left one option, the only one worth considering at least, trainer battles.
-"O-okay, use Tackle!"
-"That's good, boy! Weaken the pokemon first, then throw a ball."
The enemy rushes forward, each time Jessie narrowly dodges by propelling itself upwards rapidly. But the old karp had experience. Switching directions on a dime, it plows into the Tentacool dealing a glancing blow.
-"Good work, Scratch! Yay!" Taking advantage of the trainer's inexperience, Tentacool lashes out with a pair of Poison Stings while the pokemon is waiting for orders.
-"Don't lose focus now, keep an eye on the battle."
The next attack misses, Scratch narrowly evading one way then faking out and turning fast once more. Another order rings out. Tackle! But this time Jessie doesn't move, Constrict! The two blows clash, dealing only minor damage to either side. But with Scratch's speed lowered, it fails to dodge the Supersonic released at point blank!
-"Scratch, no! Uh, take this!" *bloop*
A pokeball lands harmlessly in the water... Tentacool uses Poison Sting! CRITICAL!
"Good fight, Old Scratch. Go on back to your trainer now, and good luck next time!"
-"Karp.." *faint*
-"There there, no point in worrying over every lost fish. Buck up, Bucko! Let's go celebrate your first poke-battle! I've got an ice cream sandwich with your name on- hm?"
'I give the pokeball a little toss back up onto the docks and dive down again. No reason to scare the kid away from the water. I want another battle after all!'
-"Hoy lil jelly!"
"?" Another piece of bait lands nearby.
-"Thanks for being a good sport! Yer a good un!"
"...Tentacool." 'I take my treat and head below. No reason to refuse if they were gonna give me food for free. Exercise is hungry work after all! And also, if we can make this a running thing, I may be able to get a good few levels, and snacks, off of the locals.'
'Muahaha! Yes puny humans, offer up your food and become experience for me!'
-"Wow Tenty, you sure are popular!"
"That's dark lord Tenty... I mean Jessie Cooledge!" Loafy, never far behind, has himself another good laugh. 'Is this how you get your kicks, Loafy? Watching me make a Bidoofus of myself?'
-"But I'm glad you know? I'm gonna be the trainer who catches you someday!"
"Yeah yeah, keep dreaming kid. I'm not gonna just stand... float here and let you hit me with a pokeball. You gotta earn it like everyone else! And by that I mean, I will run away if it looks like I'm gonna be caught!"
-"Yeah! I'm looking forward to traveling with you to!"
'What am I gonna do with this kid?'
-"Rem Rem Rem!"
"Hush." *dive*
The others who decided to stay, which included the 9 remaining og members of the party plus a decently sized portion of the newcomers, have been training almost nonstop! Those that weren't were hard at work gathering and hunting for those planning to combat the enemy turtle clan. Thankfully the majority of them had even managed to accept having a Tentacool around to help out. He couldn't really give pointers seeing as he was technically younger than every one of them in poke-terms, but he was one of the best battlers none the less.
A few were still not up for "making nice" with the outsider though. But most of their group had since moved away to safer waters, so they were just about outnumbered now after Jessie's speech. One way or another, he had managed to become a hero for this school. And through fear or admiration, every member was looking to them for strength.