Chapter 30
Ash shot another Dragon Pulse at Houndoom, but no matter how many times he hit the fire type, it never attacked him, always going for one of his Pokémon instead. Even when he had let his guard down for a moment, Houndoom went for Skye instead, forcing Ash to make a tricky maneuver to save his Pokémon. Was this Nigel's plan? To take out his Pokémon first and then finish him off? Oh no you don't. He smashed into Houndoom as the fire and dark type tried to attack Pikachu.
Latios let out a grunt as Kangaskhan hit him for what felt like the hundredth time. Battling Kangaskhan was hard enough to do once, but doing it a second time, without Ash's commands, was much, much harder. He had to find an opening. Now. The clock was ticking.
Latias knew she was going to lose. On top of constantly having to watch out for Gillotine, she also had to dodge every bind thrown at her. A single hit from either attack meant a quick and painful defeat. As she dodged an X-Scizor, winced as the attack grazed her side, and fired a Dragon Pulse. This was for Ash. She could do it.
Ground types are not fun to battle when you're an electric type. Pikachu threw another Electro Web on Dugtrio. Not because it would do any damage, but because it held the Mole Pokémon down long enough for Skye to get in a Leaf Blade. Pikachu made a mental note to have Ash help him learn Grass Knot later. That would be really useful right about now.
Skye took turns with Pikachu baiting and hitting Dugtrio, switching between her Leafeon and Vaporeon forms. It wasn't easy, but Pikachu had only gotten hit twice. Skye intentionally took several hits for Pikachu, knowing her grass-typing could take the attack much better than he could. Normally, this battle would have been fun, but getting hit by a three-headed Pokémon that smashed you when you were least expecting it wasn't. They should really make a video game on this; playing it would be much more fun than actually battling.
~~~
Nigel smirked. He knew his Dark Pokémon wouldn't win, but he didn't need them to. He leaned back, half wishing he had a snack to enjoy the show. Once they were weak enough, he would bring in Ho-oh.
Nigel pulled out a picture from his pocket. It was one of him when he was much younger; he was wearing his favorite T-shirt, which had a picture of Ho-oh on the front, and wore a checkered hat. He was surrounded by his Pokémon, a Digglet, a Houndoor, a baby Kangaskhan, a Pinsir, and a Mudkip. He was so young and naive back then; all he thought of was being best friends with his Pokémon. That was until one day, the day he thought was the worst day of his life. But now he knew it was a lesson, a simple fact of life.
Flashback
Nigel skipped along the streets of Ecruteak City with his Pokémon. "Look, guys! It's Bell Tower!" He pointed to the historic monument.
"Dig? Digglet?"
Nigel shook his head. "No, Digglet, we can't go inside."
"Hound?"
"Why?" said Nigel. He wasn't sure that's exactly what his Pokémon said, but after being with them for a long time, he had a general idea. "Because we're not allowed to, it's too dangerous,"
"Khan, kangask,"
"Yes, of course I want to go in, Ho-oh's one of my favorite Pokémon, but we just can't, alright?"
"Sir pinsir, pin," the bug-type pointed out.
"There's no one around?" Nigel looked around, just to make sure. "Well, I guess a peek couldn't hurt,"
His Pokémon cheered.
"Shh," Nigel held a finger to his lips. "Quiet,"
His Pokémon muffled their cheers to a whisper.
"Alright, we're going to sneak in through that door in the back, keep watching and make sure no one sees us,"
Nigel and his Pokémon cautiously tiptoed through the back entrance. With a final glance, Nigel closed the door behind them, leaving only a few rays of sun that filtered through the cracks in the wall to light their way. They slowly started up the stairs, almost jumping with every creak they made along the way.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the group finally made it to the top. Excited, Nigel burst through the door, wondering if he would see Ho-oh.
"Hey, kid! What are you doing here?"
Nigel froze. He turned his head to see 2 men, each with a strong-looking Pokémon standing next to them. "I-I was j-just looking, I'll g-go now." He slowly backed toward the stairs.
"Not so fast," one of the men glared at him. "You're not going anywhere." His Tyranitar growled.
Nigel's Pokémon hurried to his side, stepping right between him and the Tyranitar.
"No! Don't!" said Nigel.
"Aww," said the other man, who had an Alakazam floating next to him, "the little boy has his little Pokémon to protect him, how cute."
Nigel bit his lip. How dare they insult his Pokémon. "Just let me leave, I promise I won't tell anyone about you,"
"What do you think?" asked the man with the Tyranitar, "Should we let him go?"
The other man considered the question. "Yeah, no sense dragging him along with us. But let's teach him a little lesson first,"
"Alright, Tyranitar, use Brutal Swing!"
Tyranitar stepped up to Nigel. He closed his eyes as the Armor Pokemon swung a blow at him and braced himself for the attack. The attack never came. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes to see his Mudkip lying on the floor, battered and bruised.
He scooped up his Pokémon. "Midkip! Are you ok?"
The Mud Fish Pokémon didn't respond.
Nigel glared at the two men, even though he was only half their size. "You won't get away with this! Everyone attack!"
"Stone Edge,"
Nigel could only watch as his Pokémon were knocked away by the sharp rocks.
The man with the Alakazam smirked. "Let this be a lesson to you, kid. Don't interfere with those who are stronger than you. Only those who have power make it in this world." He turned to his companion. "Tie him up,"
A gag was stuffed in Nigel's mouth as he tried to yell for help. Ropes were tied around his wrists and feet, allowing him no more movement than the blinking of his eyes. The two men laughed before teleporting away with Alakazam.
A few hours later, a group of workers found Nigel, and he and his Pokémon were taken to the Pokémon Center. However, his Midkip didn't make it. Not even Nigel's parents or Pokémon could comfort him for weeks. He took those words, 'Only those who have power make it in this world,' to heart and vowed that he would never, ever be weak again.
Flashback End
Nigel put the picture back in his pocket and grabbed Ho-oh's Pokeball off the table. It was time to finally take the power he had dreamed of for years. Time to capture the strongest Pokémon in existence. Time to show everyone that he wasn't weak.
It was time to rule the world.
~~~
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