Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
A chapter of a little bonding and then the start of the battle against Walter.
"I see your fours and raise you… three fives! HA! What do you say about that!?"
…
"Sol?"
The loud snoring was the only response I received, with Sol smacking his jaws as he drooled all over the cards he had been using as a pillow. As I suspected, any lingering injuries that the healers couldn't treat had quickly faded after a couple of days of sunbathing. It would take some time before I considered Morning Sun a mastered move, but it was clear that the Growlithe had learned it. Now we just needed to ensure it was fast enough for combat. The ability to heal anything short of near-lethal damage with nothing but solar power was both cool and valuable; however, there was so much more we could achieve with it.
Interestingly, his regeneration had allowed the Fire-Type to outpace Betty's own healing, despite her having lesser wounds and greater constitution. This, predictably, annoyed the Dragon-Type, but she was easily placated in our current environment. Glancing to the side of the small circle formed by Sol, Herc, and me, I caught sight of the Titan Bagon scampering up the felled tree trunk leaning against one of the more secluded boulder targets behind Cerulean Gym. Her tongue stuck out in concentration as she used the timber like a balance beam.
Reaching the top, she posed for a moment, feeling a sense of rightful supremacy as she let out a roar that lightly shook some nearby leaves and went unnoticed by the Pokémon around the field. Huffing at the disrespect, Betty quickly shook it off and crouched down, wiggling her bottom in anticipation. Then, with a mighty leap, she soared into the sky, eyes closed in contentment…
…and crashed back to earth with a muffled thump!
It had been quite some time since I worried about her doing that, and once again, I was proven correct as she popped back up and ran back to her tree for another attempt.
Noticing that one of the players was kicking one of his legs while lost in dreamland, I decided to skip his turn. He hadn't shown much interest in the game to begin with. No one but Hercules had. It was incredible how quickly a five-person game had turned into a one-on-one.
"Alright, Herc, what do you have?"
The Electric-Type didn't spare me a glance, glaring at his cards with a focus I had come to expect from him during training, though it seemed a bit silly to see it while playing games. Still, at least he was directing that energy elsewhere while he was recovering. Bandages wrapped around his torso and right arm concealed tender bones and hairless patches as they regrew, even though the Elekid insisted he was fine.
I didn't believe the little maniac for a second, especially after I caught him shadow boxing in the middle of the night while wincing with each movement.
It didn't stop him from playing cards, though, I thought, frowning down at the four twos he had somehow been hiding. Conceding the round, I gathered the cards and reshuffled, wiping Sol's off in the grass to remove the saliva while the lazy beast continued to doze.
As I threw down a new hand, I paused when I noticed Herc staring off into the distance, looking down toward the lake where faint splashing could be heard. Rubbing his shoulder affectionately, I tried to console him, though I found his mood rather tedious.
"Calm down, bro. You'll get your bandages tomorrow, and we'll start easing back into it." He sulked in response, so I reminded him of our agreement. "Or you can be reckless and run off again. Your choice. Just remember, you won't get to fight in the Gym battle."
My threat seemed to work; our agreement meant a lot to him. I had struggled with whom to bring to the gym battle, especially since I wasn't sure how many Pokémon we'd be using. Siren was a given. She was the least injured and probably my strongest Pokémon, especially with her new move. Hercules would usually have been a shoo-in as well, but given that he was in the worst shape and had weak electricity, I hesitated. I still wasn't convinced that the deal we made after I caught him sneakily working out was a good idea. However, if he could refrain from training for five whole days and focus on resting and recuperating, I'd let him fight on the sixth.
It had clearly been rough for him, yet here we were on day four, and he had been good so far.
Herc's body deflated with a monstrous sigh as he reluctantly turned away from the nearby training session. I took a glance myself.
I arrived just in time to see Siren watching Walter's Seaking drill a hole through the large stone pillar they were practicing with, smoke wafting from the edges of the three-finger-thick hole. My Feebas concentrated, eyes closed, while her cheeks slowly filled up. It took a while, even though she learned it from a TM, but she managed it. A thick stream of water erupted from her mouth, twisting slightly as it shot through the air. A cloak of steam billowed behind the attack, the hot water evaporating the cooler droplets in its path. The Scald struck the stone tower with a solid thwack! and managed to create a decent dent, although it was nothing compared to Seaking's power.
I wasn't worried. The temperature aspect came the easiest to Siren, probably due to our efforts to cool down her Water Gun. Scald was essentially the same move, just reversed. The tricky part was generating enough power. Based on what I remembered from the games, Scald had about an 80-90 power level, while Water Gun was only about 30 or maybe 40. Building up that much water, propelling it, and then heating it was the most complex move we had attempted by far. I imagined it would take quite a while before Scald was anything close to mastered.
Ice Beam was as intense as or even stronger than Scald, but it was a more straightforward move – if Ice-type and therefore harder in that regard. Yet it still took over three years for us to make it serviceable.
Dragon Pulse would have to take a back seat again. I kept telling myself we would start training for it, but then something else always came up.
Not that I was complaining; it was my own choice, and it just meant we had better uses for our time.
If nothing else, Siren's Water Gun and Water Bullet had seen a noticeable increase in power. Nothing revolutionary, but Water Gun, Scald, and even moves like Hydro Pump were essentially just water at different speeds, with a few extra effects thrown in.
She also had the opportunity to scout Walter's team a bit in preparation for our battle. I didn't expect much since he would hopefully use something much weaker than the casually building-wrecking fish, and Siren couldn't make Seaking do anything it didn't want to do, but it was worth a shot. I wasn't quite sure how to prepare for Walter, so observing some Water-types seemed like the best course of action.
I'd trust her judgment on where to focus her efforts for now, and I planned to have Sol and Betty get involved alongside Hercules the following day. The plan to load Sol up with as many moves as possible before he evolved – just in case it worked like in the games – would continue. He was still learning Agility, and I hadn't decided whether his next move would be Fire Fang or if we should jump straight to Flamethrower.
Flamethrower might be the last one, as Betty could benefit from it as well. Thinking it over, I realized that it might be wise to put Dragon Claw aside for now, focusing on Siren's Dragon Pulse. It was a powerful move that Betty could use effectively—as a Bagon. While I didn't believe she was close to evolving, I did notice during one of our daily neck massages that her bone crest was slightly elongating. According to PokéNet, that was one of the early signs indicating her species was getting ready for the next stage.
Once she became a Shelgon, melee moves wouldn't see nearly as much use as they did when she was a Bagon. Normal Shelgon had trouble moving, never mind whateverfucking monstrosity Betty would turn into.
So, emphasizing ranged attacks for now seemed like a smart strategy, even if they wouldn't be as helpful to her fighting style until she evolved.
Herc was the simplest of the group. We started with general warm-ups, and once he was fully ready to go, I considered the Hammer Arm he had pulled off against the Houndoom.
That move was impressive.
The cabin fight had been rough, but we made it through stronger and tougher. Hopefully, we could take what we learned and apply it moving forward. A nudge from Hercules snapped me back to our game.
I looked down to see four Aces laid out neatly, making me throw my own cards in disgust.
"FUCK! You're cheating, I know it! You're lucky you're a mummy right now, or I'd kick your ass!"
He responded with an outstretched tongue, and I mumbled insults under my breath while shuffling.
"New game! This one is Texas Hold 'em Poker. You're going down this time."
I would forever deny that it was me who ripped up the cards when the little guy got a Royal Flush on his first hand.
"Alright, forget it – no more games!" I sulked while Herc posed in victory. Standing up, I put my fingers in my mouth and made a loud whistling sound, waving Betty and Siren over when they looked. I couldn't help but snort at the contrast between Siren's eager pace and Betty's despondent lumbering. I also took the chance to poke Sol in the ribs repeatedly until the Growlithe stopped pretending he didn't notice me.
"Alright," I began once they were all gathered in front of me. "I was going to leave this for later, but I might as well get it over with." Taking a seat again, I waited for them to do the same, letting out an 'ooph' that quickly turned into a wheeze when both Sol and Betty decided that sitting on me was the best choice. With Siren's not-so-gentle help, I herded them off, ignoring my now-soaked clothes, and continued.
"Right, well, thanks for that. Here I was about to praise you guys, and this is the gratitude I get. I see how it is." I crossed my arms dramatically, turning my head with a huff. I watched out of the corner of my eye for any of them to react to my words, but I was disappointed. Betty was poking Sol, who was slowly shuffling closer to me, Herc was picking at his bandages, and Siren was technically looking my way, although her glazed-over gaze suggested she was contemplating things beyond my mere human understanding.
Giving up, I decided to just get it over with quickly. They clearly weren't in the mood for long talks, and I wasn't going to force them. Four years of being around Pokémon and learning from Professor Oak had taught me that you have to work with them, even if it meant not doing something if they didn't want to.
"I'll keep it short, then. You all did well against the thieves in the cabin, despite how messy it got. Sol, you performed better against that Houndoom than I expected." I nodded to the Fire-type and rubbed his belly with one hand, allowing him to flop over onto my lap as he panted happily, while my other hand pulled Betty down beside me. "It was definitely stronger than you, but the lack of space allowed you to use your bulk to force it into a physical fight. Great job! The Haunter was a little trickier, but that's why you have me as your Trainer to guide you. You'd probably have handled it better with more range. All in all, fantastic work, buddy!"
After giving him some extra rubs and slipping him a couple of treats, I finally acknowledged Betty's increasingly insistent nudges for her own attention.
"Yeah, yeah, you too." She melted under my fingers with a content sigh, forcing me to push my weight against her as I tried to support hundreds of pounds of reptile. "Okay! Yes, you did well, too. You mostly followed orders and stayed close by. Honestly, you barely used lethal force, even though the situation was pretty dire. I was very, very impressed. You're growing up so fast it won't be long before you're ready for official battles." I wasn't sure if she was listening, but she certainly enjoyed the pampering.
"Herc, I don't have a lot to say to you." The Electric-type looked away with shame written across his face, but turned back to me when I kept poking him with my toes, since it was the only body part I could move. "This was your first serious fight with us, and you did fantastic." His eyes widened in disbelief as he pointed to himself, much like he did when I told him I wanted to catch him.
"Yeah, you. Is that so hard to believe? Sure, maybe you weren't the most effective against the Haunter, but that thing was immune to your punches. We'll ask around after the Gym battle for some tips on training your electricity, or we can stop in Vermilion if nothing else. Beyond that, you got hurt badly yet still got back up, learned a new move, and helped save the day. Absolutely awesome, bro."
Hercules seemed stunned by my words, but I noticed how his spine straightened just a little.
Good. The guy was a strange mix of confidence and insecurity. Anything I could do to tip the scales in favor of confidence was worth it, especially since it was simply true.
"And last but not least, come here, Princess." I waited for Siren to slowly float over to Sol and land gently on the lightly snoozing canine's chest. He didn't stir an inch under the added weight. "I know I don't have to say it anymore; we've been through this a few times now, but you did great, too. You're the best ranged fighter of us, so you stayed back and sniped. You were good at spotting openings and taking advantage of them. Really, all we need to do is get you faster and stronger so they stay down when you hit them." It was hard to tell, but I was pretty sure the slight upturn of her eyes was a sign of pleasure. "The only criticism is that you were a little slow to leave when I told you to, but I get that. We all have our issues to work through."
"Also, hitting people in the face with you is as effective as always." Knowing her for years allowed me to pick up on the embarrassment on her fishy face, much to my delight. She could be so disinterested that it was always a joy to make her crack a smile.
"But yeah, great job, everyone. The only one really worth complaining about is myself, but what else is new?" I appreciated the chorus of disagreement, yet I knew I was right. I did better than in Mt. Moon, at least. Unlike then, we actually completed the job, but I still had a lot of room for improvement.
My team deserved nothing less. I refused to work less hard for them than they did for me.
"Whatever, enough serious talk. I know I already mentioned this earlier, but take the rest of the day off to do what you want." None of them moved. Actually, that wasn't true; Hercules scooted over to my unoccupied side. He didn't lean against me like Betty did, but our arms brushing against each other seemed to be enough for the recent addition to our little group.
Siren's eyes briefly glided over to the Seaking that was watching us from the lake, then slid closed afterwards as my determined Feebas took a rare break and just relaxed with the rest of us.
It was funny. I was so keyed up for my fight against Brock that I could barely sit still. Now, standing outside the doors of Cerulean Gym, with a huge, goofy Dewgong smiling down at me, I felt much calmer. There was the anticipation before what I hoped would be one of my most intense battles in a legitimate setting, along with the increasingly familiar urges for violence that I'd started to associate with my Aura flaring up. There were only so many times this could happen before the pattern became obvious. But the distress and panic were absent.
It's hard to believe that it was just two weeks ago. It felt very different.
Probably because I knew the Gym was going to be empty, other than the Waterflowers. Daisy had insisted on that, claiming it was embarrassing for others to see their 'uncle' doing their jobs for them.
So, even though it was for a Badge, it didn't really feel like it as I walked through the automated doors and took in the empty foyer. Even the receptionist was gone, having been given the day off or something. It was a little eerie, passing through the barely lit underwater corridors with nothing but the sound of my footsteps. I could've let one of my teammates out, yet it felt more ceremonial to do it myself.
Besides, I wasn't a fucking pussy. I could handle it.
A red octopus with a cartoonishly puckered mouth, half-lidded eyes like it was high, and yellow spots on its head and tentacles swam out of a small cave in the rocky terrain at the bottom of the aquarium. It peered at me curiously. I tapped the transparent wall as I walked, smiling when the Octillery tapped back in the same rhythm, leading to a small game where I tried to throw the intelligent cephalopod off. I didn't have much success, yet it barely took any effort from the Pokémon to make me lose. Competing against eight arms was utterly unfair.
Waving goodbye to my momentary playmate, I left that hallway behind and stepped into the blinding light of the Gym arena. I mumbled curses under my breath at whoever decided it was cool to blind competitors before their match. I scanned the large hall for the people I was supposed to meet. Not spotting Walter, which was surprising since I had deliberately arrived a little late, I made my way down to where the sisters were sitting on the left side of the pool, idly kicking at the water and making small splashes.
"Hey," I greeted, receiving a choir of responses in return. Glancing around again, I still couldn't see the old man who was supposed to match me claw-to-claw. "Where's the old man?"
They groaned in unison. "He's being dramatic-"
"-you really lit a fire under his ass-"
"-which sucks. He's been unbearable for the last couple of days-"
"-so honestly, good luck bro, but win or lose, I just want you to get this over with."
I nodded a couple of times, amused by the idea of Walter acting like a kid over our match. I hadn't seen the guy since I accepted his challenge, so it was good to know that he was looking forward to it just as much as I was.
"Okay, but I was kind of trying to be dramatic myself with a cool walk down and everything, so should I go back outside until you call me?"
"Please don't," Lily begged. "We've got a show later today and need to fix whatever damage you meatheads do. So, we need you two to wrap this dick-measuring contest up, please. Just go take your place at the podium." She pointed over to the far end of the elongated basin.
I definitely didn't pout, and there were no cameras to say otherwise.
"But-"
"Peri, please."
"Fine." I slumped, dragging my feet over to the podium she mentioned. I was in a good mood, which I blamed for my childishness. Herc was more or less rested up, if still a little tender; the others were good. I was finally going to get the Cascade Badge and get out of Cerulean— no offense to the Waterflower Clan.
I don't know, I just felt like a silly guy that morning. Sue me.
Leaning against the front of the podium, I flicked the microphone a couple of times out of boredom; however, someone had enough foresight not to turn it on yet. Tapping the blue-painted wood rhythmically, the tiled walls soon echoed with my terrible drumming as I tried to amuse myself. Lily and Violet sat with their heads together, looking at the same type of device Walter had, while Daisy lay flat on the floor, staring at the ceiling.
It had only been a couple of minutes, yet I was losing my mind. I had come in all amped up, and the guy had no-showed me!? What a jerk. He was probably busy posing for the front cover of a trashy romance novel, cosplaying as a pirate or something-
Was the water boiling, or was it just me?
It wasn't just me. The calm, mirror-clear surface of the pool was being marred by rising bubbles. Turbulence disturbed the reflective top as an indistinct shape I hadn't noticed before wavered and flickered in and out of visibility while crawling upward. A black dot emerged, followed by the rest of a triangular pirate hat that was hiding Walter's long hair, his wet braids intertwining with his beard. His eyes were closed, and his arms were crossed over his bare chest; his only garment other than his hat was those ridiculous shorts.
I had to admit, he was ripped for an older guy. He could make most bodybuilders jealous.
As the bottom of his feet appeared, the Pokémon carrying him came into view. It was an immense light blue creature with a clear body, a bulbous upper half, two large red orbs on either side, and a smaller orb in the center. Huge eyes peered out from beneath the hat-like growth, black and opaque in a way that made me uncomfortable. Extending from its lower body were two blue, beak-like appendages, and all around the Tentacruel were countless grey tentacles, each as long as an Onix, hiding just beneath the surface to ensnare any unsuspecting prey.
The two thoughts running through my head upon seeing the Water/Poison-Type were:
1. That was way too much jellyfish in one place, and I didn't like it.
2. If it weren't for Walter standing on its back and the Tentacruel emerging from the water, I would have never known it was there. I vaguely remembered something about camouflage, but I didn't expect the damn thing to literally vanish at the waterline.
Cocking my head to the side, less impressed than I had been when Brock pulled off a similar trick, I decided to speak up before Walter could.
"How long were you down there? Also, Brock did it better."
Ignoring both my question and my criticism, Walter suddenly opened his eyes, swung his arm up to dramatically point at me, and stomped one foot forward. His mouth opened to start speaking, but he hesitated for a moment before stomping down on Tentacruel again with a slight frown. Slowly, a dozen grey tentacles pulled themselves out of the water unenthusiastically and waved limply around. Tentacruel continued to stare at me with a lifeless, shark-like gaze. Walter's eye twitched; however, he recovered and powered on.
"Challenger! Ya stand in the Cerulean Gym, before the Waterflower Clan, and think ya have what it takes to earn the Cascade Badge?! Impudence!"
"I thought you were trying to be all stoic and cool; what the fuck is this?" I asked, genuinely confused by the boisterous introduction. At my question, Walter lost his pose and shrugged, allowing his Water/Poison-type Pokémon to wrap him in its long appendages and lift him to his podium.
"Eh, ya gotta take your fun where ya can get it, lad. Life's serious enough as is; no need to add to it. Not that a moody brat like ya would understand that." He petted the tendrils before recalling Tentacruel into its Pokéball. I hid a sigh of relief. I hadn't seen the jellyfish Pokémon in action, but I hoped Walter would go a little easier than that. He had said it would be a hard fight, but there was a difference between challenging and impossible.
"Now," my opponent continued, clapping his hands and rubbing them together, "I thought long and hard about how to conduct this battle. There aren't a lot of ways to be fair about it, especially since ya're a weak little kiddie." He paused for a second, clearly expecting me to react, but I refused to play his game any longer. His casual attitude was a great counter to my prickly nature.
When I didn't crack, he shrugged again and continued as if it didn't matter.
Fucking bastard.
"First, I thought, 'maybe we'll do four of yars against one of mine at the same time,' but that sounded a little too far from normal Gym rules, and it would be over in a blink, so I scrapped that idea. Then I considered, 'Three-on-one could work if I used something weak so ya would have a chance.' In the end, I modified it a bit, so here are the actual rules!" I nodded in response to his expectant look, which made him tip his head back.
"This'll be a four-on-two battle! Four of yars against two of mine, no substitutions! That might not sound very fair, so I'll give ya a couple of goodies!" Reaching down to one of his belts, Walter grabbed a Pokéball and enlarged it with a click. Looking it over, I raised an eyebrow at the shiny exterior of the ball, which was uncharacteristic of the rest of his set.
The capture device cracked open against the tiles, and a round shape emerged from the resulting energy, revealing a Pokémon with stubby limbs and a long, jagged tail. As the red light dissipated, the blue and white color scheme of the Azumaril came into view. Waving a short arm at me, the future Fairy-Type began rapidly punching the air to warm up, its fingerless hands blurring with speed.
"Recognize him?" Walter asked. Taking a closer look, I realized I did indeed recognize the particular pattern of white bubble markings on the Pokémon's torso as belonging to the same Azumaril I had fought alongside against the thieves. "Figured ya might. The little guy felt grateful and a bit embarrassed about his performance. That Haunter did a number on him, and he wanted to show ya what he's actually got. He's stronger than yar team, but it should be doable, so I thought, 'what the Distortion' and let him do the honors. I'll be taking a backseat mostly and leaving the bulk of the fighting to him. So, that's the first thing I'll give ya."
I nodded again, mainly to keep my clenched teeth hidden. This was bad. Walter didn't know it, but that was about the worst possible pick he could have made for this match, apart from his own personal Azumaril, who had defeated that Muk.
The Water/Fairy-Type countered my entire team.
Betty was practically useless; even though it didn't officially have the undiscovered typing at the moment, Azumaril was supposedly immune to Dragon-Type energy. It might not work precisely like that; it would be hard to go for centuries without realizing that Fairy was a type when they shrugged off attacks like that. Still, it was a huge disadvantage, especially considering Azumaril almost certainly had an Ice move.
Sol was in trouble due to the Water typing; Siren would be competing with a stronger Pokémon at their own game. Hercules was my only potential contender, yet he was nearly a Fighting-Type through his lineage, and Fairy-type was super effective against Fighting-Type Pokémon. Plus, he was still in the worst shape health-wise.
Hard and brutal fight was right. I'd almost lost before we had even begun, and Walter still had a second Pokémon!
"The second thing I'll give ya," the standing Gym Leader interrupted my spiraling thoughts to clarify that very point, "is that my second Pokémon isn't actually mine. Well, neither is Azumaril, but he's at least the son of my own Azu. The last Pokémon wasn't going to be part of this, but she insisted when she heard. At best, she's as strong as one of yars, so you don't need to worry too much about holding back."
Okay, that was something. My mind raced through the possibilities, my eyes on Azumaril. Perhaps the other Pokémon was from the cabin fight.
The small Eevee, perhaps?
"Are the conditions acceptable to ya?"
Taking a deep breath, I pushed those thoughts from my mind and focused on the upcoming fight, letting the rhythm of my heartbeat and the warmth of my spreading aura fuel me. I would worry about everything else when the time came. As I felt everything come together, I nodded one last time, excitement rising within me. It had been a while since we had engaged in an official battle that promised to be interesting.
"They are."
"Then, when you're ready, send out yar first Pokémon. The girls will act as referees, once they get their feetsies out of the water!" The last part was almost yelled at the sisters, who complied as slowly as possible, with Daisy sticking her tongue out at her grand-uncle.
"Yeah, yeah. If you're both ready…" It was almost impressive how disinterested she sounded, but I noticed the focus in her eyes, especially since all five pairs of eyes in the room were suddenly directed at me. I also noticed Lily releasing a Starmie beside her, probably to prevent any rogue attacks.
Right. It was go time.
It felt awkward to throw the Poké Ball, causing it to hit one of the platforms and bounce back while simultaneously releasing the Pokémon into the water, but I managed. Siren materialized mid-air before dropping down into the pool with a splash!
If I wanted there to be any chance of the others doing something to Azumarill, I had to weaken him first, even if it meant my best choice would be my first Pokémon.
Still feigning boredom, Daisy lifted a hand into the air. After pausing for any last-minute interventions, she brought it down in a chopping motion.
"Then begin!"
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.