Pokemon X ~To Be a Pokemon~ chapter 9

I was relieved to leave Lumiose City behind me. The events that had taken place there had left me with little sleep and in a foul mood. The start of my journey down route 5 had taken an interesting turn when I’d been ambushed by a lucario, to be precise the retired champion of the gym leader Korrina. The only thing I was now lacking on this route to sour up my mood any more than it was already was battles! I’m sure you all guessed it! I’ve pretty much jinxed my luck with the very thought of it!

“Trainer! We challenge you to a pokemon battle!” a voice yelled as two identical little girls tackled me to the group, one tripping over her roller skates as she fell to the ground, landing on top of my Geneva who let out a plaintive howl as she was squished.

“Great news sis!” a creature squeaked as a minun emerged from inside the girl’s bag. The little blue rabbit scuttled down his trainer’s back to stand atop my fennekin’s head. “Plusle! This one shall be our next opponent!”

“I guess I have no choice but to accept your challenge…” I laughed standing up, trying my best not to sound too sore about this encounter, “I don’t have any excuses not to battle against you two.”

“Great!” the still standing twin squeaked, her voice sounding a lot like the cry of her sister’s minun, “My name is Joy and this is my sister Faith.”

“I’m Nathalie,” I replied helping Faith to stand up on her roller-skates. My fennekin immediately jumping to her feet began shaking her head in attempt to rid herself of the girl’s minun who just laughed as he kept a strong grip to her large ears.

“Awesome!” Faith screeched as she scooped her minun up and promptly began strapping her skates to the little pokemon’s feet.

Geneva and I stood blinking in surprise as the minun cried out in happiness, circling around his companion as the plusle watch him, a large grin of knowledge on her face.

“By the way….you have a pair of skates? Right?” Joy began, and I immediately understood the direction this battle was going, “You must play by our rules for this battle, which means you must pick a pokemon of yours and give them your pair to wear in battle.”

Shrugging I tried my best to hid the worry from my face as I remove my backpack to take out a pair of roller skates, I was starting to feel as if Viola’s sister had known battles like these would come up soon enough. However this would greatly reduce my choice for team members. But as rules went…this one was quite…interesting…

“Sure! I haven’t had to opportunity to use mine yet, so I guess I won’t mind lending them to one of my pokemon for a while…”

My gaze switching between my pokemon and the pair of skates I bit my lip in hesitation. Not only would I have to choose a pokemon who could swiftly use the skates of his two feet but at the same time could be strong enough to take on both of the twin’s plusle and minun.

I looked down in surprise as someone tugged the skates out of my hands. At my feet Geneva hung from the skates as she kept a firm grip on them, dangling from them in an undignifying way.

“I want to battle!” she growled, letting go of the skates to land on gingerly on the soft soil of the path.

“But you’re four legged!” I exclaimed in shock, “I only have one pair of two skates! You wouldn’t be able to use them properly!”

“Idiot!” I hissed, jerking the roller skates high above my head, holding them out of Geneva’s reach as my fennekin attempted to take hold of them to hank them out of grip, “They would have an unfair advantage over you! Not only would it be two against one but you would only be able to use your hind legs making it hard to attack!”

“Aww! Come’ on! Let her fight!” Joy chuckled, interrupting our strange dance of who’d get the roller skates, “She can always use her front paws to drag herself around.”

Sighing in disappointment I crouched down beside Geneva as I strapped the skates onto her paws. The fennekin grinned triumphantly up at me as I stepped back to give her room to stand up, now this was going to be an entertaining battle to watch.

As soon as Geneva stepped forward…well let’s be frank, more skidded clumsily onto the battlefield. Immediately my pokemon was circled by the plusle and minun who glided proudly around her.

“Don’t let them surround you!” I yelled just as my fennekin slide to one side, dodging a small discharge of lightning sent out by the minun.

I gritted my teeth as Geneva flayed around trying to keep her balance as the skates rolled underneath her, so much for an unnoticeable disadvantage…

The plusle surged forward, its gaze locked on it target as it released a strong flow of electricity at my fennekin. Geneva, using her front paws as an advantage jumped into the air in attempt to dodge the attack, however as the skates rolled underneath her my pokemon landed gracelessly to the ground in a thud.

Bursting out into laughter the minun skidded to a halt and began speeding towards my fennekin ready to tackle her if she did not move out of the way in time. Geneva barely had the time to stand up before the two collided, shoving her back to the ground.

Growling in annoyance my fennekin twisted her head to the side and let out a small burst of flames at the minun. Crying out in surprise the small creature scrambled away to join his sister, grinning he leaned forward to whisper something into his partner’s ear, a large smile spread across the plusle’s face and I dreaded what was about the happen.

Standing up my pokemon let out an annoyed whimper as she tried to stay balanced on the skates, not even paying any more attention to her adversaries.

“Hmm…Geneva…” I began but was rendered speechless when I saw what the two pokemon were doing, standing far from my fennekin the plusle and minun had managed to put enough distance between Geneva and them, enough to prevent her from aiming at them as they began charging energy together. I watched as lightning danced between the red and blue pokemon’s tail as they stood close together gaze firmly locked on my fennekin. The two rushed simultaneously as they both held paws letting out a large bolt of lightning that gradually developed in size as it grew closer and closer to my fennekin before enveloping her in its light.

“Geneva!” I yelled in horror as I stood frozen in shock and dismay, unable to help my partner in time of need. My pokemon was clearly struggling to stay standing as the light of our enemy’s attack grew brighter and strong by the second under I had to close my eyes to prevent myself from being blinded from it.  

Opening my eyes to peek at the battlefield I realize with a jolt that the light had not been from our opponent’s attack. No, it had come from the very being that now stood tall in front of me, an entirely new creature had taken Geneva’s place.

“Awesome!” the new pokemon laughed, her voice sounding more mature but still containing a hint of Geneva’s distinctive accent, “Nat look at me! Guess what?! I’m a braixen now! I can use these awkward skates with two paws…err…feet!”

Reacting quickly the braixen spun swiftly around to face her foes. The plusle and minun barely had enough time to scramble backwards before Geneva let out a large burst of flames while skating towards them. Hurt the minun let out a shrill cry as he lurched forward, falling to the ground with a loud thud and lay there too wounded to continue fighting.

Ignoring her now fallen opponent, and thank arceus, leaving him to live another day. Geneva glided gracefully towards the plusle who began throwing bolts of lightning at her in attempt to stall the braixen from the inevitable.  Swiftly dodging the attacks Geneva finally halted a fair distance away, far enough to hit her target but sufficiently distant to make it hard for both pokemon to aim their attacks.

I watched in awe as the braixen reached behind to grab a long stick that she’d hidden among the heap of fur that was her bushy tail. With a quick gesture and a large grin on her face the magnificent beast wielded her stick as if it were a wand, pointing it directly at the plusle who simply stood in wonder as purple energy began to form at the tip of the branch, boiling up as it ready to burst.

I took me a moment to register what was happening, and dread overcame me, “Dodge now!” I yelled at the small plusle who didn’t seem to understand what kind of power was about to hit her as a ripple of energy exploded from the wand, sending everyone standing, except for Geneva, collapsing to the ground.

Jumping to my feet, fear gnawing at my stomach I search the battlefield. That explosion would have been strong enough to eradicate any small pokemon that stood in its way, and if Geneva had killed that plusle I think I would never be able to forgive myself.

Spotting the plusle I let out a sigh in relief, luckily the braixen’s aim had been off and she’d missed the plusle but a meter. The explosion had been enough to throw the plusle off guard leaving it paralysed in shock, however it was still conscious and living…

“You won…” Faith said making me jump as she spoke behind me, “This was an entertaining battle, but I’d rather end it now before someone dies.”

Nodding in agreement I approached Geneva, handing my newly evolved partner a pokepuff “Congratulations girl! You did a good job!”

“Thank…” Geneva mumbled, her thoughts seemed to be elsewhere as she sat down to remove my skates, “I never thought I’d come close to killing someone….”

I let my shoulders slump as she crouched down beside her, placing the skates in my backpack next to my team’s pokeballs, “I will make sure you don’t kill anyone…I promise…”

My braixen’s whole frame seemed to grow tense, “Don’t make promises you cannot keep, all trainers end up the same! Either too coward to continue fighting, or too paranoid that they waste their money keeping their team alive! Then there are those who chose to go down the path of blood willingly! Fighting is just another never ending cycle of life and death! If it’s not you who will end up dying it will be your opponent!” her gaze flickered with an unexpected agony as she stared up at me, “You won’t be able to stop all those deaths…soon you’ll end up being swept along as the tide grows stronger…”

Unsure what to reply stood up and not even bothering to think up a response I turned my attention towards the twins. Both the plusle and minun seemed to have recovered with the support of potions, however the plusle seemed still to tremble from paralysis.

“Thank you for challenging us.” Joy spoke in a saddened ton “I never saw that evolution coming, in fact I’ve not seen a pokemon evolve in midbattle before. It will be an interesting tale to tell to our parents.” Looking up at the sky she smiled sheepishly, “I recommend you are your team quickly head off to Camphrier Town, I feel a storm coming and I wouldn’t wish it on anyone to be caught in it.”

Nodding I followed the two sisters, occasionally glancing up at the sky as the ominous clouds seemed to grow by the minute, threatening to burst any second.

Hurrying down the path, Geneva quickly trailing behind me I waved goodbye to the two twins and headed towards Camphrier town. However we’d had been too late and it was pouring by the time I arrived at the pokemon center, leaving us soaking wet as we entered the empty center.

Relieved that no one was around to see me sopping wet I sat down at a table near the entrance and released my team out of their pokeballs to wait until the storm was over.

“Amazing!” Loiret exclaimed as she circled Geneva, inspecting the braixen’s large bushy tail, “You evolved!”

Geneva grinned with happiness, any sign of her sudden breakout of sorrow long forgotten as she stood arms crossed leaning proudly against the wall.

“Humph!” Toulouse grumbled as he paced around the room glancing outside at the downpour “I should have been the first one to evolve! “

“Well look who’s jealous!” Oxford growled as she sat on the table stuffing her mouth with pokepuffs, “You should get Nathalie to train you. Oh! But I forgot! Naturally you’re so graceful that you pridefully believe you are unbeatable…which we all know with proof that it isn’t true!”

The ralts shot her a hateful glare before letting his shoulder slump as she slid to the floor. I must admit that I felt bad for him, Toulouse seemed to have gone through a lot, even if he did not open up to anyone I could feel that something in his past had left him this way, making him an impossible one to understand.

“FINE!” he snapped, making me jump, “I’ll train with her! If this means that it will make me stronger than I’ll anything to achieve that! Even if that means I have to team up with a trainer who knows almost nothing about the world around her.” He paused turning his gaze to face me, his eyes shining in an unspoken sorrow, “If she’ll accept me as he leading fighter….”

I smiled, he was clearly determined to succeed and I wasn’t going to stand in his way. However, I did not have the time to answer his plea, for something…or more someone’s arrival drew my attention as he staggered inside, dripping wet as lurched forward shaking from fear to land with a loud thud on the ground.

We all stood up and raced to his side, my pokemon remained by my side as the stood watching the newcomer in worry as he lay panting on the ground.

“Please…” the white creature whimpered, “I beg you…there are people out there who are looking to harm me…I swear I just want to have a new start…”