Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

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HayesAJones
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Posts: 9200
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Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

Post by HayesAJones »

PROLOGUE:
The Toyshop
--

International Police Headquarters
Undisclosed region


-

Hot tea splattered onto Looker's wrists as he stumbled on a stray slip of paper that had been carelessly left on the ground. The fall made the tray of food in his hands rattle and rock violently, threatening to throw the buttered bread and mint leaf brew that he had painstakingly prepared only minutes earlier onto the floor.

Luckily, it did not though and Looker was able to catch himself and quickly stand upright. The elite agent of the International Police formed a relieved “O” with his mouth and retook his stride with an embarrassed grimace. He glanced around. Good- it looked like no one had seen.

“Looker! Hey, Looker!”

Or perhaps not.

Putting on his best smile and hoping that there was no color to his hot cheeks, Looker turned around and cried aloud. “Oh, Buck! Hello, my young friend! How are you doing today?”

“Me?” asked the redheaded youth with an odd look. “I'm fine. What about you? You nearly took a tumble there!”

Looker laughed. “I don't know what you're talking about, young partner of mine! Might you be referring to the agility exercise that I was just partaking in?”

“Right,” drawled Buck. “Sure, Looker.”

“Why such disbelief? You can't expect a lithe officer of the law like myself to stay so limber without some form of practice! Agents like us must stay practiced, you know! Yes, we must be quick as Persian! Clever as Liepards! Do you not agree, young one?”

Buck rolled his eyes. “You could just say that you tripped.”

“And lose my credibility in front of a fresh young partner? Never!”

“Come on, Looker!” He pushed a clenched fists against the older agent's shoulder. “It'd take more than that to make you look bad in my eyes. You helped save the Magma Stone after all. That's what made me want to become part of the International Police in the first place. I mean, who knows what a nut like Charon would have done with it?”

Looker smiled, genuinely this time. “Even though there is no reason for me to look bad before you, I appreciate the sentiment, my friend.”

His grin shrunk. “You shouldn't talk so unkindly about our mutual friend though. He is not a cruel person beneath his cold exterior.”

Buck crossed his arms, obviously unconvinced. “I'm not so sure. Why are you so buddy-buddy with the guy? I mean, you personally bring him his meal each and every day and then sit with him as he eats. Why are you so nice to him, Looker?”

“Even one's enemy is not incapable of kindness- that is a lesson I learned from my final solo assignment in Kalos. The one just before I was assigned a new partner- you!”

“Well,” shrugged Buck. “If you say so. Hey, I'll catch you later. My day's almost up and I wanna swing by Grandpa's place before I tuck in for the night.”

“As you do every day. Always so noble, young one! How is the old man by the way?”

Buck grinned and patted his stomach. “Still cooking for Gym Leaders and Champions.”

“His cooking is exquisite!”

“Always has been. Well, see you, Looker!”

“Tomorrow as always, my friend!” the older agent called out to the young man who turned and trotted down the hall, passing several security guards who gave him stiff nods. The two had strolled well into the most secure section of HQ- the Toyshop.

The Toyshop was the nickname assigned to the sole prison cell housed in the top secret home of the International Police. It was built specifically for one man- Charon, the former head of science for Team Galactic and key to discovering where Cyrus was.

The leader of Team Galactic, a genius in his own right, had vanished into the Distortion World- a little known dimension that laid beneath the one he had terrorized with thieving troops and bombs- after his defeat at the hands of a young trainer. The information had come from a reliable source- the very trainer who had stopped him!- but very few people believed that a man who wished to recreate the universe would stay missing for so long.

He had just about proven them wrong though. Nine years was quite a long time to be unaccounted for.

Still, Charon's crimes had earned him longer in prison, so the powers above kept him close just in case. If either Cyrus or information regarding him emerged one day, the old man would be firmly in their hands for the resulting game of wits. After all, he, along with the other commanders of the late Team Galactic, was likely to be one of the first that the Galactic boss would seek out if he were to ever return, although no one outside of old followers of Team Galactic wished that he would. Cyrus had been the first criminal boss to take directly terroristic actions against a region. No one had forgotten that, even after the arguably more dangerous antics of Ghetsis of Team Plasma and Lysandre of Team Flare.

And, unlike Ghetsis, who suffered a mental collapse and turned himself in several months after the final escapades of Team Plasma, or Lysandre, who destroyed himself along with a tragic percentage of Team Flare, there was no evidence against Cyrus's return.

That was another thing that no one was forgetting soon.

“Hello, Charon!” chirped Looker as he pushed open the door to the Toyshop. It had clicked open a moment before he reached it, the magnetic scanner two meters in front of it reading his ID card and remotely unlocking the armored door.

“Looker,” droned the old man in a bored tone. The agent of the International Police had learned not to be offended by his dull responses long ago- it was simple the way the old man talked.

“I tried adding some vanilla to the tea like you suggested yesterday,” Looker said conversationally as he set down the tray.

Charon, who was hunched over a small work bench provided to him for good behavior, only grunted uninterestedly, but Looker could tell from the subtle way his fingers began working faster and the small shift in his stance that he was pleased- speeding up his work so that he could try the new brew as soon as possible.

The old man was at work nearly all the time. Once he had been gifted his bench and a few basic supplies for being generally helpful- not causing too much noise, helping to locate renegade members of Team Galactic, things like that- he had immediately set to work and had not stopped since. He tinkered constantly. He got his parts from little things given to him by the friendlier guards- broken watches, old Pokédexes that had not been updated in decades, unused Pokéballs, and other tidbits that were useless to people any less clever- and it was quite easy to be less clever that Charon. Looker had donated a Holo Caster from the Kalos region himself. It had fond memories attached to it, but, ultimately, the most precious memories hurt the most.

With all the mechanical odds and electronic ends he received, Charon built whatever took his fancy in the moment that he had the necessary parts- he was not picky about what he built, he simply had to build. It kept his hands and mind sharp. The things that he constructed were usually returned to the guards. Sometimes he simply repaired things- several agents had gifted him with old watches only to get them back better than they were before. Other times, he assembled completely new objects. The guards had come to look forward to his genius little gifts. Alarms that learned your schedule and then set themselves, universal remotes that controlled everything from television sets to garage doors to even Pokéballs and PC boxes- brilliant little things that, while not shattering the image of Earth as it was known, made life a little easier with each that he produced. It seemed a bit unprofessional, Looker had to admit that- a prisoner and his guards sharing with one another. They called it “confiscation” of course, but everyone knew what it really was- a gift exchange. On the other hand, he would rather that than a more hostile relationship.

His mission to capture Xerosic had changed the way he saw the relationship between good men and bad men a lot- because even if a man was bad in one moment, he could be good the next. Kindness did not follow factions.

This is why Looker had “confiscated” a gift from Charon too- an electronically heated knife, blunted of course, that melted butter as it spread it. It was the very tool with which he had prepared today's meal.

Looker, who had taken a seat, leaned over the former Team Galactic scientist. “What are you working on today, old man?”

“I thought I told you not to call me that, Looker,” coughed Charon dryly. “I don't need to be reminded of my age- I'll have you know that I am, in fact, very aware of it. Painfully aware, as one might say.”

“It hasn't made your tongue any duller though, has it? No, no, it is still quite sharp! Be careful with that tongue- you wouldn't want to cut someone with it!”

“Of course I wouldn't. Now, to answer your question, I'm actually playing with a little something for myself.” He laid out a flattened sheet of metal cylinders wrapped in thin cloth. They hummed softly, like the purr of a Skitty. “It's for my back, you see- something to provide both a bit of warm and a little comfort. This drafty old cell isn't doing anything good for my bones. Sadly, I can't seem to manage both at once. What's hot enough is too bulky and what's snug enough is too cool.”

“Then do not worry about it, my friend! If it is too cold in here, I will have a few Fire-type Pokémon posted outside to warm the chilled air! Actually,” considered Looker with his hand on his chin thoughtfully. “I think Buck has a Fire-type. And I believe if I leave now I can catch him on his way out!”

Looker sprung up and waved his hand excitedly to the old man. “I'll be off then! Try not to expire due to the cold while I am gone!”

Charon huffed. “Running off after that energetic young brat, Looker? What- have you become too lazy to check the ranks of your own Pokémon?”

He regretted the words as soon as they left his mouth.

Looker had frozen where he stood, his lengthy stride stretched halfway to the door. Charon sighed in regret as he remembered the fate of the agent's Pokémon partner.

“I am sorry, Looker. I keep forgetting. Losing a friend is never easy.” He meant it.

Looker gave him a smile, but Charon could tell that it was pained. “Ha ha! Do not worry about it, old man. How could I expect someone as ancient as yourself to keep his own thoughts together? Ha ha hah!”

He made for the door, but stopped again- this time remembered something himself.

“Well, look at me mocking your ability to hold down a memory at your age,” said Looker sheepishly. “When I nearly forget to give you this myself!”

He handed the old man a small brown package.

“Another reason for me to leave! To give you some privacy! Such a gift- one left completely unlabeled aside from your name and from the outside, not a mere broken trinket that one of us guards has 'dropped'- should be opened in privacy. So I'll be off! I shall knock when I return, just in case you have not finished surveying your mysterious present. And don't worry- it has been thoroughly checked for present dangers! Nonintrusively, of course. And there appear to be none. So happy openings!”

The elite agent of the International Police and master of enunciation swept out the door without waiting for a response. Charon shook his head. Such a manic, manic man. Kind though.

Removing his thoughts from Looker and placing them squarely on the package clutched in his old hands, Charon went to the task of opening the plain brown box. It was a bit of a struggle with his bony old fingers, but he managed to pry it open all the same.

Inside was a dirty, scuffed plastic robot that seemed to be at least five decades out of place.

Charon smiled- a small, warm, genuine smile that made his wrinkled face seem a bit younger, a bit lighter and warmer. The grin soon became something colder and more triumphant though. Sweeping aside the useless heating pad that laid across his work bench, Charon reached beneath the workspace and pressed a small button hidden underneath the desk. The surface of the messy tabletop swiveled and a primitive computer monitor took the place of the clutter that he let the fools who guarded him see.

A simple message waited for him on the screen.

[DID YOU RECEIVE THE LAST COMPONENT?]

Charon's smirk grew. He replied.

[YES.]

Not a minute passed before a response came from the other end of the conversation.

[GOOD. WE SHOULD BEGIN IMMEDIATELY.]

Charon shook his head and laughed through his smile. Andromeda- that girl had probably been waiting at the monitor since she had delivered the package in the early hours of the morning. She was stupidly loyal, although not exactly to him- she was loyal to Cyrus. She believed he was too, and although the two were functionally the same thing, she would turn on him in an instant if she began believing for even a second that he was no longer balling for that young showoff- no, he supposed that after nine years in the Distortion World, Cyrus would no longer be so young. If he even survived that long.

Charon stroked his chin carefully. Andromeda- he would have to practice caution around that one.

[NO. THERE IS ONE MORE THING I MUST DO. YOU WILL WAIT UNTIL THEN.]

[UNDERSTOOD. HAIL CYRUS.]


Charon grinned to himself.

[HAIL CYRUS.]

[user ANDROMEDA has logged off]

Shutting off the monitor and retuning it to its hiding place with a flip of a button, Charon picked up the toy robot that he had received in the package. He scrubbed its stained torso with a fingertip.

Charon smirked. What he had said to Looker earlier was true- losing a friend was hard.

But the thing about the lost is...

The dead plastic eyes of the robot suddenly crackled to life with ghostly electricity and a cheery intellect looked up at him from behind them.

… they can always be found again.

“Hello, old friend.”

HayesAJones
Keizer
Posts: 9200
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2010 8:19 pm

Re: Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

Post by HayesAJones »

CHAPTER ONE
The Boy in the Library
--

Sinnoh
Canalve City
Canalave Library



Ryder ducked between book shelves, looking for one particular title that he knew he would need before the day was done. The name of the text had been burned into his mind long ago- Advance Battle Tactic and Predictions. Even with the title blazing in the folds of his brain, it took a bit of time to find- the Canalave Library was big as it was extensive. A man could spend his entire life researching here and never quite finish. It was a bibliomaniac's paradise- as well as the second home to one.

“Found the book for your lady friend yet?” came the voice of the one man in Sinnoh who loved books enough to spend more of his time in the library than in his own home.

Ryder groaned and tugged on his messy yellow hair in frustration. “Oh, be quiet, Lucian. You know she's not my 'lady friend.' She's a nut.”

Stepping out from between two rows of books, a novel in his hand and a pair of silver glasses balanced on his elegant pointed nose, Lucian laughed at the tall blonde teenager trying his best not to stumble into book shelves. Ryder had never been the most graceful person, and working in a place of such sanctity as a library only exaggerated his clumsiness through the awareness of it. “Yes, well, we all have our interests, don't we?”

Having located the book and launched himself into the task of trying to tug the thick volume loose from its niche in the towering shelf of Pokémon how-to manuscripts- their most popular section- Ryder snorted in bitter agreement. “Yeah, I guess you're right. Although, with you two nuts, it's more like obsession.”

Lucian waved away the comment casually. “Connotation. There would be no genius without obsession.”

“You calling yourself a genius now too?”

“Of course not. I am not so vain, you realize.”

There was a dull crash as Ryder finally managed to pull Advance Battle Tactic and Predictions from the shelf. He had tumbled backwards and bumped his head into the opposite shelf, and was now rubbing the back of his ringing skull with a groan. He sneered in spite of his pain. “She is.”

“Oh, you really shouldn't be so quick to judge,” scolded Lucian gently with a flick of his wrist and a flip of his hair. His violet eyes were being drawn back towards his book now. He hardly looked Ryder in the face as he spoke. “Having pride in one's self is not a crime.”

“She calls herself a Pokémon genius. That's more than pride.”

Lucian shrugged, his soft silken suit rolling off of his shoulders with the gentle hiss of fabric on skin. He lifted his book to his eyes and answered without looking. “I suppose, but I've heard that she has proven herself quite capable at the Trainer Academy.”

BAM!

Advanced Battle Tactic and Predictions slammed down on the counter, startling Lucian. His novel nearly clattered to the ground and his glasses slipped far down onto his nose. Ryder's cheeks were red from anger and he marched towards the front counter he had left to search for the book.

“That doesn't mean she has the right to rub it in every time I see her though!”

“Ryder,” Lucian sighed, stalking after the boy with a few long, deliberate strides. “Is that what this is about? I thought you were satisfied without being a trainer. You told me so yourself when you signed up here to help me maintain the library. Were you lying?”

Ryder's bright blue eyes flashed with indignance. “I would never lie to you, Lucian. You've been a great friend.”

The older man smiled thinly. “I meant if you were lying to yourself.”

Ryder struggled to answer. He wandered to a shelf and began sorting a few books that had been misplaced. “It's not that, I swear. I don't need to be a Pokémon trainer. I don't want to be. But it's hard to be... embarrassed when she brings it up everything we meet. I don't know why she hates me so much.”

“Do you really believe she hates you?”

“Yeah! How could she not?”

Folding down the page corner of his book and tucking it away in his suit, Lucian gave Ryder a long, although not necessarily hard, look. “All sorts of misplaced feelings are mistaken for hate.”

Ryder shot back his own flat look. “What does that even mean?”

“I truly hope that you find out.”

Ching, ching~

The library's front entrance.

“Oh!” Lucian perked up like a spooked Watchog. “That's my cue to disappear. Please try to fend her off the best you can, won't you, Ryder? I assure you that there is one thing that we can agree upon about her- she is quite obsessive. Ta ta!”

Ryder chuckled as the well dressed man vanished into the maze of book shelves that dominated the library. For someone so willing to defend Maxine in an argument, he was completely intimidated by her in reality. Not that he blamed the bookish man- she was overwhelming when you had her attention, good or bad. He knew that personally.

“Yo! Slyder! I need a book.”

Ryder bit back a sigh, put on his best employee smile- which was terrible- and turned to face the bane of his life- Maxine Wrangler, Canalave Pokémon Academy's star pupil.

“You know that's not my name, Max.”

The girl striding up to the counter- jogging really, her freckled skin still encased by sweat and a thin layer of sportswear- sneered with no affection in her large emerald eyes. “Should be.”

Maxine was a tall girl- not Amazonian, but at least a couple of inches above the other girls at the Academy, although she was not quite able to look Ryder straight in the eyes. She was also thinner and more well muscled that most of the other students, excluding a few dedicated athletes- she ran, but it did not take up the majority of her time. Even Ryder, who was hardly her biggest fan, had to admit that she was quite pretty, with numerous freckles, long golden hair, and big green eyes that shone like emeralds- but he also thought that her looks were spoiled by the near constant scowl she wore. Even a pretty face could be ruined by an ugly look.

Ryder seemed to be the only one that shared this opinion though, because Max was easily one of the most sought after girls at the Academy. No one had ever managed to keep up with her though. She required that anyone close to her, friend or more, had to come at least close to matching her academically.

So, as the unquestioned top of her class, Max had no friends.

But she sure loved to torment Ryder.

The blonde teen struggled to maintain his forced smile. “And why is that?”

“Because you're always sliding back in the class ranks. You know that there are first-years doing better than you, right?”

Ryder's smile fell and he felt his face grow warm. He tried to avert his eyes, but Max's were locked aggressively onto his. He coughed. “Yeah, I... I know that.”

Max practically hissed at him. “Course you do. Whatever. Look, I need a book. It's called-”

Advanced Battle Tactic and Predictions. Here.” He shoved the large green volume towards her. She seemed startled.

“How did you-”

“You come by and pick it up every other week, then drop it off the next. How could I not?”

Scowling at him, Max snatched the book from his hands. He winced as dark stains spread across its cover from her sweaty palms. “That's because I actually care about doing well at the Academy!”

“You care about doing the best.”

“I'm the best because I work the hardest, Slyder. Something you wouldn’t know about.”

“I work!” Ryder protested, red-faced and angry. “I put in more hours here at the library than anyone but Lucian!”

“That's not what I meant and you know it! I meant at the Academy! You do nothing but slack off there.” Max glared at him for a few seconds longer, then her big green eyes grew softer. “But, uh... is he here today then?”

Ryder rolled his eyes. “No, Lucian isn't here today. He's a busy guy, okay?”

“I know that! He used to be part of the Elite Four for crying out loud! He's an amazing trainer!”

Ryder threw a challenge at her with his eyes. “Better than you?”

She met it in full. “For now.”

The two squared off for a moment- then, in a surprising turn, it was Max who broke it off.

“Well, whatever. Look, when he comes back around, tell him I'm looking for him, okay? I've read all his books on battling and training. All that's left is to meet him in real life!”

Her glittering eyes, which stared straight ahead and shone intently, barely seemed to notice him, and a small blush possessed her freckled cheeks.

“Yeah, sure,” Ryder mumbled, a bit embarrassed by her fanfare. He was sure that he was blushing now too. “I'll be sure to give him a heads up. I'm sure he'd love to meet such a big fan.”

“He'd sure appreciate it more than working with a slacker like you.”

Ryder stiffened and grew hot in the face- this time, with anger. “What?”

“You heard me.” Max was in full hostile engagement mode now. “I can't imagine what it's like for one of the world’s best trainers to have to sit around and deal with a motiveless do-nothing that can't even get into the Practical Battle stage in school.”

“You know he doesn't even battle anymore, right? There's more to him than that!”

“That doesn't mean he doesn't remember what it's like! I know your mom does- she tells stories from her days as a trainer all the time.”

Ryder almost looked like a human tomato at this point. “My mom is a cook now!”

“But she used to be a trainer! And she'll always have that! All you'll have is a few souvenirs for attending the Academy and a library card!”

Ryder bit his tongue. He wanted to tell her that he was close friends with Lucian. He wanted to scream at her that Lucian didn't care that he didn't battle. He wanted to rub it in by saying that he supported his choice not to become a trainer.

But to say any of that would be to betray Lucian. So, instead, he yelled the next best thing.

“I'm gonna have more than that, because I'm leaving on my own Pokémon journey tomorrow!”

For one long, delectable moment that Ryder plucked from time and stored away in his heart forever, Max looked stunned. Flabbergasted. Her eyes were stretched wide and her mouth hung open.

Then she grinned. She parted her lips and smiled from ear to ear- and not in a nice way.

Oh crap.

“That's... that's perfect, Slyder. Because so am I!”

Oh no. Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no, oh no.

“Then I guess we'll be leaving together!” she laughed. “Or we would be, if I weren't going to send you home before you even set foot outside of town!”

Great Arceus, why had he said that?

Clutching Advance Battle Tactic and Predictions close to her chest and dropper her cruel grin altogether, Max glared at him outright. She began moving towards the door. “Enjoy your one day as a trainer, Slyder. 'Cause I'm gonna make you regret it.”

She stepped out of the library and into a brisk jog.

Ryder sunk his head into his arms and ruffled his blonde hair angrily. That had been an awful idea. The worst of his life. He never should have said that. Now his Pokémon journey would be just as miserable as his time as the Academy- and all because he had been too puffed up to stay quiet.

“My, my,” came Lucian's soft voice as he materialized at Ryder's side. “She is quite unkind to you, isn't she? And I'm surprised, Ryder- you never told me that you would be leaving on your own journey. And so soon too.”

“It was 'spose to be a secret.” Ryder's voice was muffled. “I didn't want her to know.”

“Oh. Not very successful in that regard then, were we?”

Ryder gave a long, rueful sigh, then removed his head from the cup of his arms. “Nope.”

Lucian nodded, then clucked his tongue thoughtfully. He looked Ryder up and down- blonde hair pushed into messy spires, cheeks stained a furious red like paint, spine sagged forward miserably- and he frowned. “You didn't let yourself be bullied into this, did you? By her or anyone else? A trainer's journey is a very special thing and I would be thrilled for you to have one, but it is not something that you should do simply because someone else thinks you should.”

“No, no,” moaned Ryder- a clear indication that he'd heard the same thing before. “That's not why I'm doing it. I'm doing because I want to. I want to prove that I can. I want to show people like Max that just because I don't want to become a Pokémon master doesn't mean I can't.”

“I suppose that's a reason noble as any other. Just be careful though- you never want to find yourself living a life that you didn't chose for yourself. Believe me.” A beat. “I assume your mother knows?”

“Yeah, she was the one who set it up. Professor Rowan owes her a favor for helping fill up a Pokèdex way back when she was a trainer.”

Lucian chuckled. “The story of so many- from the freshest rookie to our own Champion.”

Ryder nodded. “He's coming to the harbor tomorrow morning to give me my first Pokémon.”

“Well, I look forward to being there then! Don't look so down, Ryder. I promise you, this will be good for you. Mine was, as many years ago as it was. You could say that it made me into the man I am today.” The bookish man smiled fondly, then laid his hand on Ryder's shoulder. “Trust me. You'll enjoy it.”

Ryder sighed. “I hope so.”

-

The Smith Household
Harborside Canalave



“Mom!” Ryder called as he pushed open the door to his bayside home. “I'm home!”

An excited red-haired figure wearing a pink cooking apron launched itself from the kitchen and wrapped him in a monstrous hug. Ryder's feet actually left the ground as all the air was squeezed from his lungs in a grip that would leave even an Arbok envious. He struggled to speak as his ribs were ground together.

“Vulcan!” gasped Ryder, his voice a high squeal as it was filtered through the crushing grip on his chest and arms. “Le' go! Can't breath!”

The creature hugging him was, of course, not his mother, but her Infernape- Vulcan.

Dropping Ryder with an embarrassed hoop, Vulcan picked him up from where he had collapsed, brushed him off carefully, and then tiptoed back into the kitchen, apron swaying at his waist like a cape worn the wrong way. Ryder shot a frown after the affectionate ape.

“Mom. I thought you were gonna start being harder on him with stuff like that.”

“But, honey,” cooed a musical voice from within the kitchen. “He's just such a sweetheart!”

“Exactly. He nearly squeezed the life from me!”

“Oh, that just means he likes you!”

“He likes everyone, Mom.”

“And why would I want to change that?”

Rolling his eyes even as he grinned, Ryder strolled into the kitchen and took a deep breath, his chest swelling greedily with the warm air that wafted from the stove. He exhaled with a hungry grin that rivaled a Krookodile's. Arceus, that smelled good!

“Did you have a good day sweetie?” The stocky woman at the stove, her hands busy and her thick auburn hair tied into a bun to avoid dirtying the food, did not look at him as she spoke, but he knew that his mother did not mean to be rude- she was simple too far into 'the process.'

“Yeah, it was okay.” Ryder did not feel like telling her about his heated encounter with Max. He could never quite figure out whether she wanted to fight the young girl that endlessly tormented him or set them up on a date. Ryder did not like either option.

“That's good! It'll be your last time working at the library for a while after all.” She practically squawked with excitement. “I can't believe that tomorrow is the big day! Oh, I'm so happy for you, sweetie. I know you're not exactly thrilled about doing this, but I swear you'll love it.”

Ryder could not help but chuckle. “Lucian said just about the same thing.”

“He's a very smart man!”

“Or maybe you're both just old and nostalgic.”

His mother huffed in faux anger, but could not hide the giggle that escaped the insincere breathe. “Oh, shush you!”

Ryder laughed alongside his mother. He lingered in the kitchen while she worked, playing with Vulcan for a few minutes and then simply sitting in silence and enjoying the busy sounds and smells of his mother's workplace. She was more of an artist that most people with brushes and pens. Even though the meal she was making did not take long to prepare, she stretched out the task, using the extended minutes to add extra spices and allow the food to simmer a hint longer than noted so that it was just right. To her, a recipe was merely a helpful guideline- never a rule.

Once she had finished the meal- an old Hoenn specialty that Ryder had never heard of- the two sat down and ate together despite the fact that it was well past the time when most families had dinner- a long standing tradition of theirs. Ryder nodded politely and delivered the occasional verbal jab as his mother reminisced about her own Pokémon journey in anticipation of her son's. Vulcan hovered by the table restlessly, his blue eyes sparkling every time he was mentioned in the story. By the time she was at their challenge to the Elite Four- a run that eventually ended in failure- his eyes were all but ablaze with memories.

Once he was done eating, Ryder excused himself from the table and made the trek upstairs to his room. It wasn't terribly late, an hour or so before he usually retired, but he would need a good night's sleep.

Tomorrow, whether he liked it or not, would be one of the most important days of his life.

-

Canalave Harbor
8 AM



Ryder yawned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. The tall teen was waiting at the docks of his hometown's famous harbor for Professor Rowan- and his first Pokémon. One might think that such a huge prospect would keep anyone wide awake, but the waves and briny air argued otherwise. Ryder had lived by the sea his whole life, so the sounds and smell of the ocean were home to him almost as much as his mother's cooking. And at an hour so much earlier than when he usually woke- he held an afternoon shift at the library- home meant sleep.

“Hello, hello, traveler!”

Blinking his tired eyes, Ryder smiled and turned his head lazily to greet Lucian, who strode down the dock towards him like it was a corridor of books rather than a slippery maze of fish guts and moldy old ropes. Ryder shook his head- that man could be graceful anywhere.

“Hey, Lucian,” he mumbled, not realizing how closed his throat was. After clearing his windpipe with a few loud grunts, he tried again. “How's it going?”

“Oh,” Lucian sang with a wave of his hand. “Not bad at all. And how are you feeling? Excited? Nervous? Arceus knows I was when I received my first Pokémon partner.”

“I feel like I need a nap.”

Laughter. “Well, I suppose there's a good reason you schedule coming into work so late.”

“Yeah, there's no good place to catch Zs at that place.”

“Oh, I don't know about that,” winked Lucian mischievously. “The storage room in the upper level is rarely disturbed, especially when you stay after hours.”

A hopeless sigh. “Only you would sleep in a library.”

“Your Battle Simulation professor says otherwise.”

“Shut up.”

The two friends dwelt in silence for a few moments, one swaying as sleep tempted him on his feet and one absent mindedly checking his fingernails, but then the man in the silken purple suit spoke up again.

“When did the Professor intend to arrive?”

“Any minute now. His ferry shouldn't be long.”

“And are we expecting any other guests?”

Ryder raised his eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

“If I recall correctly,” Lucian twittered with a twirl of his finger. “Your intensive little friend was quite looking forward to today as well. Any chance she'll be dropping by? Does she, by chance, have a similar arrangement with the Professor?”

“Max? Nah, she already has a Pokémon. Got it from her parents before she even entered Trainer School. Forget what it was, but she's always bragging about it.”

“Well, I do remember it being hard to avoid boast about my first partner too.”

“Not for seven years straight.”

The rolling horn of a boat interrupted Lucian's reply.

A sleek fiberglass craft, alabaster white and nearly thirty feet long, carved smoothly through the waters of Canalave Bay. The city's drawbridge lifted seamlessly as the craft sailed underneath, the rich blue salt water turning choppy and white in its wake, and soon it was pulling up to the dock that Ryder and Lucian occupied. A few sailors scuttled from the interior of the boat and began roving across its deck like ants, tying the ship off and tugging open the door to the craft's cabin.

Even though he had done his best to display nothing but disinterest this whole tine, Ryder found that his heart was beating hard in his chest as footsteps echoed from within the interior of the ship. This was it. He was about to meet Professor Rowan and his very first Pokémon.

He was surprised when, instead of the white whiskered Professor he had been told to expect, a young lady with a knitted white cap and shoulder length blue hair stepped from the bowels of the boat. She stumbled a bit as she exited the ship, taking a moment to steady herself and flatten the folds of the coat that draped around her, but she wore a warm smile as she raised her head to address the two males standing on the dock.

“Hello,” she sang in a voice strewn with numerous low tones of happiness and joy. “I'm Dawn.”

HayesAJones
Keizer
Posts: 9200
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2010 8:19 pm

Re: Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

Post by HayesAJones »

CHAPTER TWO
Face Off
--

“Are you Ryder?” the blue haired woman asked with a doggedly cheerful smile. She looked him in the eye as she spoke.

“Uh,” Ryder stammered uncomfortable as he tried to match her gaze. “Y-yeah, that's me.”

Lucian saved him further embarrassment by speaking up at his side. “Miss Dawn, it's lovely to see you again, but I must confess that I'm surprised. We were expecting Professor Rowan.”

“Lucian!” The blue haired girl stepped forward to give him a one armed hug. She was holding a leather briefcase in her other hand, one marked with a silvery cursive initials- W.N.R.

She chuckled as she withdrew from the embrace. “Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you then. You of all people know how... abrasive the Professor can be and I'm afraid that his age is beginning to catch up with him.”

Lucian smirked. “Has the old man's patience finally worn away?”

Dawn huffed. “Yes. He refuses to leave the lab now. You'd think that I was his spare set of hands instead of his assistance the way he sends me around to do all his chores. Speaking of...”

She turned to Ryder with a grin. “You wanted the Water-type starter, right?”

The blonde teen smiled back. He found it easier to meet her eyes now. “Yeah.”

“You were lucky! Two kids named Jake and C.C. grabbed the other starters just this morning.”

Lucian nudged Ryder as Dawn picked at the latch of the briefcase. “Fated, perhaps?”

Ryder rolled his eyes. “Sure was funny of fate to chose a library as my waiting room.”

“I can't think of any place as pleasant.”

“Shush.”

“Why? We're not in the library now, are we?”

“...”

Lucian only laughed at Ryder's flustered silence.

“Okay, here we go!” Dawn had something cupped in her gloved hands. Her gray eyes twinkled mischievously. “Ryder, put out your hands.”

The tall teen gulped and stepped forward, stretching out his arms and flattening his hands.

This is it, he thought to himself. I'm getting my first Pokémon this very moment.

Ryder only realized that Dawn had handed over whatever she had when he felt its weight drop into his palm. His eyes were squeezed tightly shut. His breaths came a bit more rapidly as he wrapped his fingers around it and felt its spherical shape. He cracked his eyes open.

I'm excited, not scared. Not scared at all.

The unmistakable red-and-white face of a Poké Ball stared up at him from the trough of his trembling hands. Three shiny blue bubbles were carved into the upper section of the split orb.

I'm only being handed a living creature that I'm expected to love and take good care of.

His thumb nudged clumsily at the circular release button.

No pressure.

The trigger gave with a tiny click! and the Poké Ball sprang open with a blinding white streak of light. The glowing halo arced up into the air then harpooned into the ground like a tiny divine javelin. It quickly took on a tangible living shape as its glaring shine battered the damp dock.

Ryder's eyes widened as the glow diminished. A miniscule figure was left standing tall on the moldy boards, its back- which appeared to be covered in a short cape of dark feathers- facing towards him. The little creature stretched itself high as if it towered over the world instead of looked up at it. Its narrow chest was puffed up proudly and its flipperlike arms sat square on its hips. Its nose- or, rather, its beak- was pointed nobly towards the sky.

Dawn giggled from somewhere behind Ryder's shoulder and he though he heard an amused rush of air from Lucian's nostrils. The small Pokémon warbled sharply. It craned its neck- half curious, half infuriated. Its tufted cape spiked up like hackles. All it could see was a grimy bundle of docking rope and a few rolling waves. What was laughing at it? Slowly, the small Water-type began turning around, shuffling one foot over the other as it tried to stay upright. Its flattened forelimbs batted at the air for balance. It was obviously not a very elegant walker, though it still held its head high.

“Ryder,” said Dawn quietly. “Meet Piplup.”

The Penguin Pokémon poked its head up at the mention of its name, but this caused it to lose its footing and it toppled straight onto its bottom with a squeak.

Pursing his lips in concern, Ryder dropped into a squat and offered the Water-type his hand. The proud little Pokémon regarded him with narrowed eyes for a moment- sizing him up, Ryder realized with a silent laugh- and apparently concluded that his intentions were true, because it then curled its pinched beak into a smile and accepted the helping hand to pull itself onto its feet.

As the Penguin Pokémon dusted itself off, Ryder could not help but smile. Maybe his journey would not be so bad. Not if he had good company.

“Aw,” Dawn cooed. “You two get along so well already!”

Both Ryder and the Water-type blushed. They turned their backs to each other self consciously and pretended not to know what she was talking about. She only laughed as if more convinced than before.

“Well,” mumbled Ryder with a lopsided grin. “I guess he's okay.”

“He's certainly quite happy with himself,” noted Lucian with a bemused shine behind his lidded eyes.

Piplup had his skull hoisted so high in the air, it seemed like he was trying to poke a hole in the clouds with his beak.

Dawn, busy watching the bird Pokémon's antics, spoke to Ryder for the first time without making eye contact. “So are you going to nickname him?”

“A nickname?”

Professor Rowan's assistant nodded. “Many trainers give their partners nicknames to tighten their bonds. Some trainers only nickname the team they use, while other nickname every Pokémon they catch.”

“Huh,” murmured Ryder, genuinely unsure of what to call his first Pokémon partner. The little Water-type seemed to respond to “Piplup” just fine, but it seemed a bit cruel to only refer to him by his species's name. He knelt down close to the Penguin Pokémon. “Hey there, partner. How would you like to be called... uh... Glacier?”

It was the first thing that had come to mind.

Piplup cocked his head and tapped a tiny flipper to his chin, apparently considering the choice thoroughly. Something in its onyx eyes lit up like a tiny candle flame, and the bird Pokémon nodded.

Ryder smiled at the Piplup. “Okay, Glacier it is then.”

“It was very good of you to ask your Pokémon what it thought.” Ryder rose off his knees with flushed cheeks to accept Dawn's compliment with a weak nod. She smiled at him warmly. “You'll make a great trainer.”

“I sure hope so.”

A hand grasped Ryder's should. When he turned his head, Lucian was also smiling gently at him- violet eyes looking straight through his glasses and into Ryder's. He did not look away. “Trust me. You will. There is more to battling than tactic and strategy. Heart means more than anything else, and I know that you have a lot of it. So, please, trust me about this- trust yourself.” His smile became more mischievous. “Honestly, you could learn a lot from your new friend here.”

At their feet, Piplup- Glacier- nodded in enthusiastic agreement, his arms crossed and eyes shut in supreme self satisfaction.

Ryder's cheeks grew red, but the grin he wore did not fade. “Thank you. Both of you.”

Dawn answered with a smile and Lucian a dismissing wave of his hand.

“You can thanks us after you've come back with your Gym Badges,” said Lucian.

Ryder nodded. “I think I'll try for five.”

Dawn giggled. “Five out of eight? A majority then?”

“Scraping by with the lowest passing grade.” Lucian smirked. “I should have known.”

Ryder rubbed the back of his skull sheepishly. “Well, don't wanna aim too high.”

Lucian grunted mildly as if in agreement, but he did not look convinced. Still, he did not press the issue any further asides from briefly saying, “Remember- the lowest ocean trenches are just as dangerous to the human body as the most towering heights.”

“It was good to meet you!” said Dawn as she seized Ryder's hand and then whipped it up and down gleefully. He grinned halfheartedly and tried his best to match her rapid undulations, but all he succeeded in doing was making his arm sockets sore. “Lucian? Would you like to accompany me to the library? Professor Rowan asked me to check up on a bit of research that he was doing while I'm here.”

Lucian's eyes lit like sparklers. “Why, I'd like nothing better! Ryder, I'll try my best to see you off this afternoon. Until then, you should really say goodbye to your mother.”

“That was my plan,” countered Ryder with a friendly tone of challenge to his voice. “And don't think that it wasn't.”

“Of course, Mr. Responsible. Perhaps you should kiss your intensive girlfriend goodbye too.”

Ryder rolled his eyes as the three of them parted ways, one party heading towards the library and the other towards the harborside residency. “Shut up, Lucian.”

“I think I'll miss that snark most of all while you're away.”

“Don't worry, I'm sure that you can find a properly sharp tongued replacement in some book.”

“Yes!” called Lucian over his shoulder as they began leaving earshot of one another. “You're right! No need to mourn at all then!”

Only answering with a smirk, Ryder picked up his partner, who protested with an angry chirp, and began walking home, his head shaking affectionately.

I'm going to miss that man.

-

The Smith Household
Harborside Canalave


Ryder's mother giggled loudly as Vulcan flinched away from the chattering Piplup fussing at his feet. The fiery ape tried to prance away, but the bird Pokémon scrambled after him with his beak and forearms flapping. Glacier had quickly discovered that his mother's Pokémon did not have a staunch spirit and had immediately taken advantage of that fact to start bullying him.

Ryder was red faced with embarrassment about the whole thing, but apparent his mother found it hysterical.

“Oh!” she squealed lovingly. “He's such a sassy little patootie! He reminds me of you when you were little.”

“Mom!”

“What? He does! Even the way he wobbles everywhere.” She leaned over and poked a finger into the Piplup's soft stomach. She scrunched up her lips and baby talked the starter as she waggled the finger into plump, feather flesh. The usually brash Water-type toppled over without protest and began chirping happily as he was tickled.

Ryder could only glare at the travesty spooling out before him.

Traitor.

“I think you two will be great friends.” She scooped Glacier up and transferred him to Ryder's arms. The Piplup stopped its cooing and trashed angrily, slapping at Ryder with its stubby flippers.

“Great, you've got him all worked up now!”

She waved a hand at him and laughed. “Stop being such a spoil sport, son. Enjoy the cuddling and playtime while you can. I hear his kind gets tough when they evolve.”

Ryder rolled his eyes. “Isn't that what they told you about Vulcan too?”

The Infernape waved merrily from where he was heating leftovers on the stove, apron swaying at his feet.

“Okay, maybe you're right, but still. Have fun while you can.”

“You know,” Ryder said as he tried to calm Glacier down. “Most parents are discouraging their kids from having fun at this point in their lives.”

“Most kids don't hole themselves up in libraries on weekdays.”

“You should just be happy that I have a job at all. I know that- ow!”

Glacier had jabbed him in the eye with a flipper.

His mother giggled. “Well, now your job is go out and have fun for once. So shoo! You won't make it to Jubilife City by sundown if you don't start moving now.”

“But, Mom-”

Ryder's mother shushed him with a fingertip. “No excuses! I know you, Ryder. You'll try to draw this out so that it gets too late for you to leave today. And that's not gonna work this time!”

Ryder huffed indignantly, but smirked in spite of himself. “Since when has it ever?”

His mother smiled and gave him a quick hug, which he returned after only a brief moment of hesitation. It was the last time he was going to see her for a while, so he at least owed her a mutual hug.

“I'll going to miss you,” she said into his shoulder. “Promise you'll call me with the public PC in the Pokémon Center of every town you visit!”

“I promise, Mom.”

“And promise that you'll take care of this little guy,” she added, scratching under Glacier's chin as she did. His head rolled back and his mouth opened to let out a shrill squeak of pleasure.

“Right.”

“And don't try too hard! Take things slow. You don't want to end up in over your head.”

Ryder pulled away, trying to escape the hug. His mother held tight. “R-right, Mom. I got it.”

“Oh, oh! And promise that you'll-”

“Mom, I'll be fine. I'm not the only person in the world to ever do this. Everything's going to be fine, okay?”

He was released. “O-okay. Just be careful, okay? And watch out for your partner. He'll do the same for you.” She pushes him towards the door. “Now shoo! Go on! Before I change me mind and throw you into your room for another five years.”

This time it was Ryder who hugged his mother, though only with one arm. Glacier was wrapped by the other.

“Thanks, Mom. Bye.”

Taking a deep breath, hoisting his partner into his shoulders, and opening the door, Ryder took a step outside and into his Pokémon journey.

-

Outer Canalave City
Near Route 218



Despite leading his mother to believe that he would leave for Jubilife City immediately, Ryder lingered around the outskirts of the city he was born in for quite some time.

For a long while, he disguised his procrastination by weaving back and forth across the drawbridge to take a few final strolls through some of his favorite places and building of his birthplace or chat with neighbors that he would not see again until he returned, but now the mask was off and he simply walked a mindless circle through the grassy stretch of trail that connected his home city to the next. He told himself, as well as anyone who happened by and asked, that he was waiting for Lucian and his promised sendoff, but the truth was that he was simply anxious.

As soon as he set foot outside the city limits, only mere feet away, he would have left his home for the first time without the intent to come back after no more than a few hours. In fact, he had no idea how long he would be gone at all. He did not know how long it would take to get five Gym Badges- or if he could even manage to get one for that matter! It was all guess work from here. Nothing was a given anymore.

“Slyder!”

Battling, traveling, training... it would all be a whole new world for him.

Slyder!”

And, as much as he disliked admitting it, that scared him.

Slyder!”

“Gah!”

Ryder had launched two feet straight into the air and come down like a spooked Tauros- all toes and ready to bolt. The voice, shouted with a volume and intensity usually reserved for a serious offense against one's honor or morals, had interrupted his thoughts and snapped him back to reality.

A reality where Max stood puffed up and glaring directly in front of him.

“Uh,” he stammered quietly, half startled, half embarrassed. “Yes?”

His cheeks burned red without check. Just how long had been standing there?

The disdain in her eyes told him- long enough.

“You gonna pace forever or actually go somewhere?”

“I'm waiting for Lucian,” Ryder retorted, trying not to sound like he felt- awful and humiliated.

Max sneered. “Pfft. Story of my life. That guy is never around, is he?”

Ryder felt a twinge of anger in his temple. He wanted to shout, but restrained himself. “He said that he wanted to see me off. And he doesn’t break promises.”

He met her eyes full on as he spoke, and he could see that she was not convinced. “Yeah, well, we'll see then. If he's coming here, then I'm staying put and finally meeting him! And since I don't like to be idle...”

Her emerald eyes glittered cruelly.

“Why don't we have a little Pokémon battle?”

Ryder felt his heart drop into his stomach.

“Uh, I-I don't think that's such a good idea.”

A Pokémon battle? Right now? He had just gotten his first Pokémon!

“Course it's not. Not for you anyway.”

A battle so soon would be terrible no matter the circumstances, but against Max? It was going to be murder, not sport!

“So go on, Smith,” growled Maxine as she pluck a Great Ball from her belt- one with a golden lightning bolt emblazoned on its sides. In his quiet, stupefied, time-slowing dread, Ryder noticed that there were two Poké Balls on her waist as well, each on marked with an assortment of stickers. “Take out your Pokémon. You got one, right?”

She curled her lips at him and hissed through her teeth. “Or did you come out here planning to bore your opponents into submission with that dumb, empty stare of your?”

That did it.

Ryder snapped from being stunned to being furious in a second and fixed Max with a glare of his own. The corners of her mouth pulled back for a moment as he grabbed at his bag and pulled out Glacier's Poké Ball, as if she had not expected him to actually take up her challenge, then her lips stretched into a mean grin.

“Yeah,” Ryder gritted through clenched jaws. “I do.” He knew that he was probably going to be crushed, but he would at least try to show her that he was capable. It was all he could do really.

She cocked her head and smiled with sarcastic consideration. “On three then?”

He matched her grin with a flat stare and a deadpan reply. “Fine by me.”

“Then here we go,” she breathed restlessly, sliding her legs into a splayed stance and drawing her arm back like a pitcher or martial artist readying a blow.

Ryder only winded his arm up awkwardly, his other hand shoved deep into his pocket.

“One.”

His grip tightened on Glacier's Poké Ball.

“Two.”

I'm sorry about this in advance, buddy.

“Three.”

Two Poké Balls soared into the air. One split open with a rush of foamy bubbles, the other with a crack of thunder. Two arcs of white light pounded the earth. In front of Max, a hovering, almost alien being took form.

Magnemite.

In front of Ryder, Glacier materialized with his head raised high and his feathery cape spiked excitedly. The little bird Pokémon pumped his forearm and gave the toughest squeak he could.

Max laughed. “Of course I'd have a type advantage over you!”

Although Glacier did not seem discouraged by the disadvantage that he was at, Ryder ground his teeth. Crap! He had forgotten that Max's Pokémon was an Electric-type. He eyed Glacier sadly.

I'm sorry, buddy.

“Crosshair!” barked Max, her fist clenched tight and arm curled triumphantly, as if she had already won- which made her, as far as Ryder was concerned, totally right. There was no chance of him even giving her a good fight with this matchup.

The Magnemite, which had been buzzing curiously- almost friendlily- at Glacier, perked at at the mention of its nickname, its horseshoe shaped 'arms' dancing. They sparked dangerously, though even this did not deter Glacier, who merely puffed up his chest and squeaked louder.

“Let's end this quickly. Thunder Shock!”

“Excuse me, young lady!”

Lucian stepped between the two Pokémon, his stance straight and disproving and the line of his mouth stern. He looked hard at Max, whose eyes were wide as saucers. Dawn appeared behind him, her posture less firm, but still defensive. She seemed more confused than anything else.

Lucian inclined his head. “Young miss,” he said without a hint of amusement in his voice. “It is considered extremely rude among trainers to challenge someone who you know for a fact is below your level of experience. It is little more than bullying if you ask me, so I would suggest that you postpone this match until your opponent has had the chance to properly prepare both himself and his team.”

Max opened her mouth as if she were about to talk back to even one of her idles, but eventually she relented. Her arm lifted, and a red beam of light shot out and retrieved Crosshair from where he hovered in the air. The Steel-type seemed to wave to a baffled Glacier as he was withdrawn.

“Fine. I'm...” She seemed to struggle to say the next part. “I'm sorry.”

“Good. You are still young, you will make mistakes. But don't make a habit of letting your biases decided your battles, not your sense of sportsmanship.”

“Y-yes, sir.”

Max cast her eyes down and silently replaced Crosshair's Great Ball on her belt. She began to slink away, but not before shooting a vehement look over her shoulder. “This isn't over, Smith. You can't dodge me forever. As soon as you start to even resemble a competent trainer, I'm going to knock you all the way back into the house were you were born.”

She stopped to let her glare linger, burning his cheeks and heating the back of his neck.

“And that's a promise, Slyder.”

Lucian made a small tsk tsk sound against the roof of his mouth as Max disappeared.

“My, my, that was quite vicious of her. I suppose I owe you an apology then, Ryder. You were right.” He looked back at him with an eyebrow raised. “I hope you don't take offense to the fact that I cut your little spat short. In all honesty and because of no fault of your own, it would have been a very brief battle.”

Ryder shook his head. “No, I should be thanking you. That would have been a massacre.”

“It's a good thing we arrived at the very moment.” He adjusted his glasses. “And as for what we came here to do...”

He extended a hand.

“Good luck.”

Taking the hand, Ryder gave it a swift shake. “Thanks, Lucian. For more than just stopping the battle.”

He smiled thinly. “Anytime, friend. Anytime.” The former member of the Elite Four pushed his bangs from his eyes. “I assume you'll be wanting to get to Jubilife city before dark, yes?”

“Yeah.”

“You'd best be off then. I shall not hold you back. Better to give decisive goodbyes than long ones. So... good bye.”

The two friend, one a rookie taking his first steps, one a retired master, shared a smile.

Dawn approached from behind, Glacier in her arms. “If you're heading to Jubilife City, then I can go with you. I didn't book another boat and it's on the way back to the lab. Besides, you'll be needing a Pokémon that can Surf you over Route 218, right?”

Ryder cocked his head. “Er, what?”

The professor's assistant stepped aside to reveal a large expanse of water that Ryder had not noticed while he paced worriedly. Across its placid surface, the glow of Jubilife City in the fading daylight. He felt his face go red, though the tinted sunlight helped cover it up as the sun sunk.

“Route 218. Unless you plan on swimming, you need a Pokémon strong enough to surf you across. And as cute as he is-” She scratched Glacier under the chin. “This little guy won't cut it.”

“Oh. Right. I, uh... I knew that.”

There was not a hint of malice or mockery in the smile Dawn gave him. “Of course!”

Handing Glacier to his trainer, the blue haired woman produced a Poké Ball from her coat and tossed it into the air. The red-and-white orb split open and a large brown Pokémon constituted itself from the brilliant glow that escaped.

“Bibarel! Surf!”

A blue glow engulfed the large Water/Normal-type, and the resulting swell of water plucked him from the shore and hoisted him high into the air like a surfer suspended in time. The great brown Pokémon waved its flattened tail to signal that it was ready for its trainer and her guest.

“Come on, Ryder,” Dawn called to him as she trotted towards her Pokémon. “Nightfall isn't that far off, and stronger wilder Pokémon tend to wander around after dark.”

“R-right.”

Returning Glacier to his Poké Ball with a flash of red light, Ryder pocketed his partner and followed his guide to Jubilife City.

HayesAJones
Keizer
Posts: 9200
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2010 8:19 pm

Re: Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

Post by HayesAJones »

CHAPTER THREE
Unexpected Encounter
---

International Police Headquarters
Undisclosed region


-

Looker whistled a cheery tune as he walked to deliver Charon's first meal of the day, delving deep into the Toyshop with a motivated spring in his step. He moved briskly, as not to allow the meal to become cold, but also because he was simply in a good mood. This was his last week of service before being granted a twelve day vacation. It was rare of the dedicated agent to take time off, but his time in Lumiose City had made him realize that number of incredible places he had traveled to without ever taking in the sights.

Now he aimed to fix that though, starting with a few prime locations in the Kanto region. He had not taken the chance to look around during any of his missions in Saffron City- back when there had still been worries about a Team Rocket reform- so that would be a good place to begin.

“Good morning, my friends! How is the old man toda-”

The tray of food crashed to the ground.

Charon stood casually in the open doorway of his armored cell, the agents assigned to guard him sprawled unconscious on either side of him. He glanced up at Looker with bored eyes.

“Ah. You were late with my food, so I decided to begin without you. Glad to catch you on the way out though. It saves me a lot of trouble.”

“What are you doing out of your cell? What did you do to them!”

“Them?” Charon looked innocently at the men laid across his feet. “Hm. Well, nothing that's permanent I assure you. They'll be back on their feet in a week. Probably. Maybe.”

While the former Galactic scientist talked, his tone quite conversational, Looker bundled the corner of his trench coat in his fist and shattered the glass casing of a large red button labeled 'FOR EMERGENCY USE ONLY.'

“I do not know how you got out,” growled Looker as he applied pressure to the broad plastic dome and triggered a shrill alarm. “But you will not be leaving this building!”

“Oh, getting out was easy. All it took was help from a friend.” The metallic doors of his cell crackled and spat like something in the aftermath of a lightning strike, forming a small orange Ghost Pokémon that surged with electricity like a shroud. It circled around Charon and purred happily with static. “Really, you shouldn't have relied on an electronic system to keep me locked up. A mechanical system is much more reliable.” Charon waggled a finger. “Convenience ought not be considered over effectiveness, dear Looker.”

“Then why?” Looker shouted. He counted in his head the time it would take for more agents to arrive on the scene. “Have we not treated you well?”

Charon laughed mockingly. “I think the degree to which a prisoner is treated well is rather moot, no? Rose scented shackles bite into the flesh no less.”

The old man's sneering smile faded and he let out a sigh. “Let me be honest, Looker. I like you. You have been kind to me, more so than the others. So please listen when I say: stay out of this. If you and your little organization here cast a blind eye on my actions, you will be spared the worst of what is to come. And believe me, what is to come will be most grievous. Especially to those who attempt to stop me.” There was a distance threat in that last sentence.

“As a member of the International Police, you know I cannot do that!” The sound of squeaking boot filled the narrow corridor and a mass of agents armed with Poké Balls swelled on either side of Looker, who merely crossed his arms. The countdown in his head had ended perfectly. “And neither can they. I am sorry, Charon, but whatever this is, it ends here.”

The former Galactic admin smiled thinly. “Then you have both my apologies and sympathies, for you see...”

A small cylindrical device marked by a bright yellow trigger was produced from his pocket.

“I have not been entirely honest about the purpose of our tradition of exchanging components and finished products. Good night, gentlemen.”

His thumb pressed down on the trigger, and the pocket of every agent standing before him came alive with electricity. The Ghost-type that hovered around him purred and shrieked as they danced for its master and it, electrified by the devices that they had accepted from the old man. Charon smirked and began to stride forward as they hit the ground at his feet, paralyzed, unconscious, or worse.

Looker, perhaps insulated by his layered outfit, tried to grab at Charon's ankles as he walked by, but the Ghost-type materialized in front of him with an aggressive electronic tone.

“Rotom.”

The hair-raising ring of electricity around the floating Pokémon dissipated.

“This could have ended differently, you know,” said Charon softly as he spared a moment for the elite agent of the International Police.

“No,” coughed Looker as his vision began to swim. “It could not have.”

Charon merely grunted. “Perhaps you're right. Whatever the case, I bid you adieu.”

Look's head dipped as he blacked out.

Sweeping through the building and over collapsed bodies, Charon soon found himself at the entrance to the headquarters of the International Police. Rotom had lead him there of course, as he was only familiar with the most unkind feature of the structure- his cell- and could not have otherwise found his way out before someone awoke or a new shift arrived.

After just a brief moment of consideration- some might have mistook it for guilt, but, as anyone that truly know him would tell, that certainly was not the case- he stepped into the open air for the first time in nearly a decade. He emptied his lung of the fowl air from his imprisonment then breathed in the chilly sky deeply, not opening his eyes even as a tall woman with deep red robes and long, braided purple hair offered him a coat.

“Andromeda,” he droned with his eyes still closed. “I have lived in a drafty prison cell for nine years. I believe that I can withstand a few minutes in the cold. I welcome it in fact.” He spread his air and exhaled forcefully. “This is freedom, girl!”

“As you wish, Commander Charon,” the woman answered in a low, monotone voice. “Shall we begin operations?”

Charon was still for a moment, perhaps contemplating for a second time, then began walking towards where a long black vehicle idled patiently. He relished the crunch of frozen vegetation underneath his feet. “Yes. But all operatives in the field are to remain out of uniform.”

“But, sir, does that not-?”

“They are to remain out of uniform. I do not want any law enforcement or, Arceus forbid, some brat trainer who hasn't even worn in his Running Shows yet to come sniffing around because they've seen a group of criminals in identical dress wandering about. Do you realize how easily men like Giovanni or Lysandre could have succeeded if they had only kept their operations secretive?”

Andromeda, either realizing the logic of what he proposed or simply complying out of obedience, nodded and opened the hindmost door of the vehicle.

“Good.” He shuffled into the dark leather seat. “Then off we go. We have many things to do. All of us. Nova, Nebula, and I shall return to Sinnoh. That is where ours tasks lie. And you...”

The robed woman stood tall and receptive.

“You'll be off to the Sky Pillar in the Hoenn region.”

-

Route 218

Dawn's Bibarel crashed through the water like a bucktoothed cruise liner, its broad back easily housing both Ryder and its trainer. Ryder shivered as cold water kicked up by the Pokémon's Water-type move sprayed him, prickling his skin with its frigidness. He was beginning to wish that he had a heavy coat like Dawn's instead of the thin jacket that he usually sported.

“So,” Dawn began, her mouth contorted uncomfortably. “What was that all about?”

“Huh?”

“That girl? Why was she so eager to battle you?”

“Oh.” He had hoped that she would not ask. “That was... someone I know from the Trainer Academy. She really doesn't like me.”

The blue haired woman frowned. “Why? What did you ever do to her?”

Ryder snorted bitterly. “Not be as good as her.”

“Ah.” Ryder was surprised to see that she was smiling again. Her eyes glistened as if she were recalling something. “An overachiever- she thinks that she has to be the absolutely best, right?”

“Right.”

“I know someone who used to be like that. He's actually part of the Elite Four now! Though he didn't get in until after he realized that being a trainer isn't about being the greatest there is. Your friend will realize that too.”

Ryder bite his tongue and refrained from clarifying that Max was not his friend.

“If she's just started her journey too, then she'll find out really soon that there are other good trainers around. Plenty of them in fact! Trainer Schools are an important institution and help kids learn about themselves and Pokémon, but they're also small. They don't let students realize that there are all types of trainers and that there's no one kind that's better than the rest. Don't worry- after a few losses, she'll calm down and see that being a great trainer isn't the same as being the greatest. That goes for you too! Being the best trainer that you can be is the important part, not winning every battle.”

She turned around and smiled at him. “Don't let people like her get you down. The best trainers in the world- people like Gym Leaders and Champions- have suffered just as many losses as they have victories. And they're stronger for it too.”

“... so you're basically telling me that I'm going to lose a lot?”

Dawn laughed. “Yeah, and you're going to be thankful for it one day!”

Though Ryder did not want to grin with her, he was pretty sure that he did anyway. Forward as she was, her cheeriness was quite contagious. “Yeah, well, we'll see. Though I hope you're not offended if I try to lose as little as possible.”

She giggled, then turned back around. There was a moment of silence until she spoke again.

“We're almost to the opposite shore now. Careful though. Bibarel's landings can be a bit rough.”

“Landings?”

Without explaining, Dawn wrapped her arms around the neck of her Pokémon and shouted, “Hold on tight!”

The Normal/Water-type launched itself from the water and crashed onto the ground with all four legs spread wide. Ryder, who had not had time to anchor himself to the back of the big Pokémon, was promptly thrown off.

“Wah!”

Thump.

“Are you alright?” Dawn asked as she hopped off her Pokémon. Bibarel chattered sheepishly behind her, as if apologizing. “I did tell you to hold on...”

Ryder groaned and picked himself up off the ground. Dirt and mud clung to the front of his jacket. “Yeah. Yeah, you did. Thanks for that by the way, though knowing earlier would have been nice. Real nice even. So, again, thanks.”

She gave him a guilty smile and wiped a few blades of grass from his chest. “Right. Sorry.”

“It's alright. And, uh, I'm sorry too... I didn't need to get so snappy about it...”

“Oh, it's fine! Between Professor Rowan and another old friend of mine, I'm used to that sort of thing.” She checked her Pokétch and pursed her lips worriedly. “Hm. It's late. The Professor is going to be cross with me if I'm not back soon.”

She gave Ryder an apologetic look. “I hope you'll forgive me, but I'm afraid I won't be able to accompany you all the way to Jubilife City.”

He shrugged. “It's fine. It was more than enough for you to Surf me across the water. So thank you for that.” His thanks was genuine this time. “Really.”

“No problem!” Dawn chirped as she produced a second Poké Ball and returned Bibarel to his own personalized orb. She tossed the Poké Ball up and a winged shape took form from the uncanned aurora. “Actually, I may be able to do more than that. An old friend of mine- the second one, not the first one I talked about- visited a few days ago. He should still be in Jubilife City, so look around for him. He's a little guy in a dark coat. Probably has an Ice-type with him. He's been traveling for a long time now. He can definitely help show you around!”

“Sure. And you're sure that he's still gonna be there?”

“Pretty sure! Just ask for 'Hayden.' Someone there will know him.”

“Hayden.” Ryder locked the name in memory. “Right. Thanks a lot for all your help.”

“It's my pleasure. Visit the lab in Sandgem Town sometime if you get the chance. Until then, so long! Togekiss! Use Fly!”

The broad Fairy/Flying-type swopped down, allowing its trainer to leap onto its back.

“Bye, Ryder!” Dawn's voice echoed from the distance as her Pokémon whisked her away.

He tried to wave to her, but the fused figure of her and her Pokémon was quickly lost to the dying sunlight, so he could only drop his hand back down and start walking towards Jubilife City as she became nothing more than a dark smudge in the sky.

It was getting dark, dusk pressing down around him like a light blanket, but he could almost definitely make it to the city before dark if he walked straight there with. Which should not be hard, considering that there was not a person or Pokémon in sight to distract him.

“Snee!”

A dark shape shot across the path, startling Ryder. It scrambled up a tree and stopped on a low hanging branch to eye him with with the two glowing pits in its oval head. As his eyes adjusted to the dimming light, Ryder recognized it as a Sneasel, a Dark/Ice-type Pokémon found in the distant north of Sinnoh.

He craned his head quizzically. What was a Sneasel doing way down here? It didn't seem to be scared of him. It merely sat on its branch and stared at him challengingly, its claws gleaming against the low sunlight. There was not a trainer around either, so it probably did not belong to anyone.

Ryder felt an itch in his fingers. A wild Pokémon that should not be here.

He should catch it.

“Alright!” he cried, tossing a Poké Ball high into the air and unleashing Glacier with a burst of light. “Let's do this, bud! Our first catch!”

Hopefully, he added in his head, though he did not share his doubts aloud.

“Piplup!” shrilled Glacier, stomping his tiny feet and balling his flippers.

The Sneasel merely looked amused, watching them with one narrowed eye and teasing the short red feather on its head with a clawtip. Its catlike mouth was curled into a smirk. It reminded Ryder a bit of Maxine.

Heh, he laughed to himself. Wouldn't that be fun? Catching that thing and nicknaming it Max.

“Glacier! Use... uh... Bubble!”

That's a move he knows, right?

Fortunately for Ryder, the little bird Pokémon had no such hesitation. It launched itself high into the air and unleashed a flurry of glowing spheres from its beak. The mass of luminous bubbles smashed into the branch that the Sneasel lounged on with surprising power, bursting into foam and shattering the thin limbs, but the Ice-type had vanished an instant before the impact, moving so fast that neither Ryder or Glacier could track its movement.

“Pip!” Glacier squeaked in alarm.

No sooner than the high pitched squawk had left his beak, a dark blur crossed behind him and struck with wicked claws. Glacier cried out as it was knocked from the air, two visible swatches of plumage carved from its puffed up cape.

Ryder gasped and rushed towards the growing shadow of his falling partner. “Glacier!”

A weight struck Ryder between the shoulder blades. Two sharp points hooked his hood and jerked it over his head, blinding him. Flailing his arms and letting out a muffled yell, the sightless trainer barreled straight into his Pokémon. He managed to warp his arm tight around Glacier before they toppled, protecting the small Water-type. The two flopped onto the ground in a heap to the sound of shrill, metallic giggles. A weight greater than that of Glacier's, but still not tremendously hefty, leapt from his shoulders and landed on Ryder's back with a grunt. The hard tip of a razor sharp claw jabbed painfully into his spine, though the touch of the opposing Pokémon was truthfully nothing more than a poke.

“Sneasel?”

“Ugh...”

The weight jumped off when Ryder's body shifted. He groaned into the dark fabric and wet grim that covered his face. “Glacier? Bud? You alright?”

“Pip!”

“Good. You still wanna go after this guy then?”

“Pip-lup!”

“Great.” Ryder staggered to his feet and flipped his hood back from his face. He used his already dirty jacket sleeve to wipe the filth from his face. “Then let's do this.”

Getting to their feet- or flippers in Glacier's case- trainer and Pokémon gathered themselves and stared down their foe. The Sneasel stood in the center of the city light illuminated path in front of them, its smug silhouette outlined with arms crossed and slitted eyes gleaming. Glacier's scarred cape spiked up. Ryder gritted his teeth.

“Glacier!” Ryder called out with his arm raised. “Peck!”

The Piplup launched itself at its opponent, its glowing beak extending into something closer to a spear than the stubby cone that he usually spoke out of. The Sneasel arched its thin brows as if shocked by the ferocity of the tiny Pokémon's attack, but the confident sneer soon returned and it raised a pair of hooked claws to counter. The sharp sabers were engulfed by a steely gray glow.

Shining talons and glowing bill clashed with a shower of sparks. The Sneasel was barely pushed back, but Glacier fell onto his bottom with a flustered shriek. Ryder opened his mouth to give another order, but the infuriated Penguin Pokémon did not give him a chance too. Leaping up without regard for its trainer's wishes, the furious little Pokémon began wheeling its arms in an attempt to avenge its wounded pride. Each Pound was easily parried by the Dark/Ice-type's Metal Claw move without sign of wear. In fact, it seemed as if it was Glacier who was coming off worse, its flattened paddle like forearms beginning to bruise as its Normal-type move collided with the Steel-type attack.

Ryder called out to his Pokémon. “Glacier! Stop! That isn't working!”

The Piplup broke off its blind assault and turned to chatter angrily at Ryder, but the wedge shaped eyes of the Sneasel gleamed dangerously as it took the opening that the rash little Pokémon had given it. Glowing claws raked across Glacier's exposed back and propelled him forward. The young Water-type was sent tumbling straight to his trainer's feet. Ryder tried to take a knee and hold the injured starter, but it angrily waved him off and stood up on its own- the damage it had took was minimal. But, Ryder realized as the Sneasel caught his eye and made the metallic glow of its claws become a bubbling purple sheath, it could have turned out differently if their foe so wished.

The Sneasel was toying with them, he concluded with a bolt of anger. It was flaunting the neutral Poison-type attack it could have used in place of the ineffective Steel-type move it had.

Ryder bristled. This thing was so giving him Maxine-vibes.

With one eye on the Sneasel as it boasted and the other on his puffed up starter, he racked his brain for a way to win. They were outmatched here, that much was clear, but he refused to give in and let Max be right about him. This things was way too fast for his over eager partner, so what he needed was a way to slow it down.

He suddenly became very conscious of the mud and dirt that smeared his face like primitive war paint- and not because it shamed him like it might under other circumstances.

Bingo.

Kneeling down, Ryder cupped a hand over his starter’s ear and whispered into it, talking loud enough to where the Sneasel- whose confident smirk suddenly metamorphosed into a paranoid frown- could hear that they were plotting, but not so noisy to where it could actually make out what was said. Glacier seemed skeptical at first, eyeing its trainer with something near contempt, but seemed to elect to go along with the idea after feeling the dull sting of the slashes across its back. It gave Ryder a sharp nod. The Sneasel curled its thin lips at the secret consensus. It was fidgeting now.

Together, Ryder kneeling at his Pokémon's shoulder and Glacier staying loyally in his trainer's shadow, the two partners faced the Dark/Ice-type and carried out their devious plan.

...

They waited.

And waited.

And waited still.

...

The Sneasel narrowed one eye and hissed, barring its teeth. It glared hotly at the pair as they spitefully did nothing at it, but dared not move either. Not first. The low slung sun in the sky above it fell as quickly behind the horizon as its patience did though. It could not stand the lack of activity. Its two-clawed forelimbs fell to its sides and began drumming on its thighs before long, and then it added another hateful eye to its piercing stare. Its foot tapped an impatient beat into the road as it tried to match its foes' insidious inactivity, refusing to move first and forfeit the advantage of counterattack, but it was clearly an uphill battle for the hyperactive Sharp Claw Pokémon. Glacier too struggled to quell his movement, his flippers beginning to sway, but a hand on his shoulder calmed the little Water-type and it fell into motionlessness again. The Sneasel, however, had no such assistance, so its temper soon ran thin. Its catlike lip trembled in rage, revealing its small, shiny fangs, and its vertical pupils quivered maddeningly in small crimson eyes.

Nearly two full minutes had passed, and nobody had done anything at all the whole time.

“Snee!”

The opposing Pokémon's bone white claws suddenly extended to their fullest length with a deadly schwitch! sound as it lunged towards at the pair with a thin, scratchy bellow of rage.

“SNEASEL!”

Ryder leapt to his feet as the berserk Dark-type barreled at them. “Glacier! Now!”

The tiny Water-type Pokémon stepped forward with a fierce speak and spewed a barrage of shiny bubbles from its beak. Instead of pelting the Sneasel, who was still out of range of the low level attack, the bubbles burst against the bare soil in front of it, saturating the cold earth with water. The Ice-type's wedge shaped eyes widened in realization and it slammed its feet into the ground to try and stop itself, but it hit the slick patch of mud anyway. The berserk Pokémon's charge suddenly became a slide as the mud caused it to lose all traction and slip, falling onto its back with a screechy wheeze.

“Okay, now do your thing, Glacier!”

Chirping happily with a smirk on its small beak, Ryder's Pokémon partner pounced onto the Sneasel as it slid haplessly, failing to right itself as it beat the muddy ground with dirtied limbs. The Ice-type cried out, more in anger than pain, as a series of Pound attacks fell upon it, battering its torso and raised forearms. The toppled northern Pokémon seemed content to simply weather the strikes until one glanced off its species's signature red feather, cracking the shaft of the short projection. Wincing in pain, the Sneasel became enraged again and kicked Glacier from its chest. The Piplup fell onto its head and squeaked indignantly. Spraying mud into the Water-type's eyes with a sweep of its leg, the angry Dark-type used the opportunity to vanish into the foliage as Glacier rubbed the filth his eyes.

But this time, Ryder though with a small smile, we'll know where you are.

While they still could not track the lightning fast Pokémon by sight, now they could trace its progress by sound. The mud falling from its body splattered and splashed off of tree branches noisily, giving away its position directly adjacent to him.

“Glacier!” Ryder pointed triumphantly to where the slathering of mud was loudest. “Blast it!”

A broad cloud of bubbles slammed into the forested edge of the path, each bursting with a small ring of destroyed bark and plant matter as it struck something solid. Its cover torn apart, the Sneasel hung wide eyed in the air and was pummeled by the next wave of bubbles from Glacier's beak.

Ryder laughed. “Yeah! They don't teach that in the Academy!”

Thoroughly battered by the exploding spheres of water and mist, the Sneasel fell to the ground with a groan, its damaged form partially buried under a damp mass of destroyed foliage and snapped branches. Grinning, Ryder reached into his bag and produced a Poké Ball- one of two dozen given to him by his mother before he left. Sending a silent prayer to Arceus, the rookie trainer winded back his arm and hurled the plastic orb with all his might.

The trapped Sneasel's eyes squeezed together dangerously.

Its trio of tail feathers lighting up like celestial sabers, the glaring Sharp Claw Pokémon whirled from the ground in an aerial somersault, simultaneously freeing itself and striking the incoming Poké Ball like a base ball bat hammering a ball. The Iron Tail attack launched the Poké Ball back at Ryder, who instinctively raised up his palm to catch the blazing sphere of red-and-white plastic only to fall back with a sharp yelp as it slapped hard into his hand, nearly splitting the skin.

“Pi-pip!”Glacier squeaked as it rushed to defend its trainer.

The Sneasel materialized before the Penguin Pokémon like a blur, pausing the Water-type with a gasp. It raised its paddle shaped forearm and tried to deliver a Pound to the forehead of the offending Ice-type, but its flipper was caught between two claws and Glacier was hoisted into the air.

Ryder, who pushed himself into a seated position while shaking away the pain radiating from his palm, saw his Pokémon being threatened by a bubbling Poison Jab and gaped.

“No!” he shouted trying to deter the furious Dark-type from harming his partner.

Snatching up the Poké Ball that had imprinted its face into his hand, Ryder whirled and tossed the synthetic sphere blindly. By sheer luck or divine intervention, the red-and-white orb flew true and struck the Sneasel square in the skull. It deflected with a blue-green flash that hurt Ryder's eyes in the newborn darkness of the night, but knocked the short Pokémon over and left a nasty bruise on its head.

Though he was relieved when Glacier, who had been dropped from the Ice-type's grip when it was struck by the Poké Ball, scrambled into his arms, Ryder flushed hotly as he recalled what the flash of light protecting the Sneasel meant. He had just spent his first “wild” encounter trying to catch a Pokémon that belonged to another trainer.

Whoops.

“S-sneeeee,” growled the Dark/Ice-type slowly as it got to its feet. It picked up the Poké Ball that had made the ugly purple lump of its forehead. Its squeezed hard on the sphere and the red-and-white orb actually shattered into a glittering shower of plastic shards.

“Uh oh,” Ryder said as the Sneasel fixed them with a death glare.

“P-pip,” a pale Glacier agreed. “Pi-pip-pip.”

Though he was only starting to grasp the intricacies of his partner’s language, Ryder wise took the weak squeak to mean 'run.'

-

Jubilife City Pokémon Center
Jubilife City


Ryder groaned as he pushed open the doors of the Pokémon Center. A few trainers lounging within the pristine white building turned to give him odds looks, but he did not pay them any mind. He was too tired and covered with too many cuts and scrapes to care what they thought. He just wanted to heal his partner and then sleep for a few days.

The Sneasel- whether it had been lost, abandoned, or perhaps even one of the rarely seen rogue Pokémon he had heard to have deserted their trainers and terrorize people- had pursued him right to the edge of the city before growing bored or simply giving up the chase in light of the fact that they were no longer away from other trainers. That had not stopped it from giving him a few good wallops over the head before it broke away though. Ryder hissed in pain as he ran a hand over the lumps on his skull, but he supposed he was lucky in the end. If it had been a further journey to Jubilife City, then he might have had to begin seriously worrying about his safety.

“Hello,” slurred Ryder from a mixture of exhaustion and injury as he walked up to the counter of the Pokémon Center. The pink haired woman behind the counter, despite pursing her lips in concern at the sight of his condition, merely nodded in acknowledgment of him. “Could I get my Pokémon healed?”

“Of course. That is what Pokémon Centers are for after all.”

“Thanks.”

As she took Glacier's Poké Ball and placed it into one of the many recuperation receptacles that laid behind her, the nurse gave him a worried look. “Are you sure that you don't need some medical attention yourself?”

Ryder shook his head. “No, I'll be fine. Just ran into a very, very angry Pokémon on the way here and couldn't manage to catch it.” He tactically avoided revealing that it had been someone else's Pokémon. “Thanks for asking though.”

She smiled. “Being concerned is what I do for a living. Anyway, here's your Pokémon back. He should be right as rain now!”

“Thank you,” Ryder replied as he took back the Poké Ball. He began to wander away, but stopped when he remembered something important.

“Oh, and do you know if a trainer called 'Hayden' is still in in town?”

“Hayden? Why, yes! You're in luck. He's just over there.”

She pointed to a small trainer in a black coat and fedora that was chatting with a female Ace Trainer in the corner. Ryder was surprised. He only looked to be few years older than him. He was expecting a full fledged Veteran or something similar, not another kid.

A dark shape clung to the other trainer's head, glaring jealously at the Ace Trainer and drawing her eyes towards it nervously. She looked uncomfortable under he scrutinizing stare, though Hayden either did not notice or did not care.

The shape perched atop his head huffed loudly turned its head towards Ryder and he recognized the very familiar red eyes and a shiny purple bruise.

Oh Arceus no. Am I going to have gotten on the bad side of my supposed guide to the Pokémon world before I even met him?

Curling its catlike muzzle into a smirk, the Sneasel tugged on its trainer's hat, then threatened to do the same the to curly lock hair that hung over his eyes. While he tried to keep his headwear in place, the female Ace took the chance to escape and fled after a brief goodbye. He called out after her and took a few step towards her fleeing form in pursuit, but she was out of the door before he could truly begin the chase.

“Aw, come on!” Ryder heard him shout at the snickering Ice-type on his head. “What? What is it? And it better be good for you to chase her off like that, you little sneak.”

The Sneasel gestured towards its wounded skull, then pointed a claw square at Ryder.

Oh no no no no nonono nononononono nonono no non no.

“Oh, it was him then?” He rolled the word 'him' around his mouth as if he were tasting it. His eyes were thoughtful, which was a relief, as Ryder would expect him to be mad. “Hn. Alright then.”

The slim trainer began moving towards Ryder, eying him closely as he did. Ryder, too timid to take the initiative and move to meet him, but too prideful to give into his nerves and run away, settled on awkwardly making eye contact and hoping that it did not seem aggressive or strange.

“A-are you Hayden?” he asked as the black-clad trainer drew near.

“Yep, that's me,” the older trainer confirmed with a bit of a twirl to his step. “And you are?”

“Ryder. Ryder Smith.”

“Hm. Ryder, eh?” The more experienced trainer let one of his eyes sink shut and reached both hands over his head to massage the scalp of his Sneasel. The Dark/Ice-type purred. “The snitch here has been trying to tell me that someone tried to cap her with a Poké Ball. That you?”

“Y-yeah, that was me. Look, I'm really sorry, I didn't realize that-”

Hayden silenced him with a laugh. “Don't worry about it! Whatever happened, I'm sure she brought in on herself. Probably deserved it too. She's a little brat.”

The Sneasel stopped purring and spat in betrayal. She yanked on her trainer's hair vengefully.

“Ow! See that? She's a brat.” He tried to shoo the Sneasel from the top of his head, but she defied him and dropped only onto his shoulders, clinging to the back of his skull like a stubborn child. He rolled his eyes and returned his attention to Ryder. “So how'd you know my name, kid?”

Ryder resisted the urge to point out that he was only a couple of years older than him at most when he answered. “Dawn told me that you could help me out. I've just started my journey.”

Jealous eyes had flashed from behind Hayden's head when Ryder mentioned Dawn's name, but Hayden himself had only smirked. “Ah. That would explain it. Well, I'm going to be wandering around here for a few months anyway, so I suppose that you could tag along while I show you the ropes.”

A few months?

“I, uh, don't need that much help.” He did not intend to have a traveling companion.

The other trainer raised an eyebrow. “You got a Town Map?”

“No.” An admittedly large oversight on his part.

“Then you need that much help.”

“Oh. Alright.”

“Oy, don't look so down! We're probably going to be moving along the same line anyways. I'm just tracing my steps from when I took my first journey as a trainer, so unless you're really looking to change up the status quo, we'll be working the same route. All this does is take away the surprise of meeting up in every town we visit.” He smirked. “Unless you're looking forward to more surprises from me and me team.”

Ryder shuddered as Hayden's Sneasel, its frame cast in shadows by the cover of his fedora, leered at him with glowing eyes.

“I'll take that as a 'yes!' We'll leave first thing in the morning for Oreburgh City then.”

“O-okay.”

He started to move away, but apparently reconsidered and turned back towards Ryder. “Before I forget, what starter d'you choose?”

Instead of giving a verbal answer, Ryder removed Glacier's Poké Ball from his belt and pressed the release. The Piplup materialized in a flash of light. The little Water-type looked about, bristling when it spotted the Sneasel that it had battled, but Ryder calmed it with a few soft words and a hand draped over its head.

“Ah, the Water-type. Good. That'll help when you go up against the first gym. Any other Pokémon? Or did you waste all your time trying to catch other people's?”

Ryder's cheeks grew hit as he shook his head.

“We can work on that tomorrow.” He motioned towards Glacier. “He got a nickname?”

“Glacier.”

Hayden chuckled. “Really now. Funny, since he's not much more than an ice flow now.”

Piplup cocked his head at the other trainer and puffed up its chest indignantly, but it deflated as a shadow fell over it from Hayden’s Sneasel. She loomed over the smaller Pokémon with a mean glint in her eyes and on the tips of her bared fangs.

Hayden pulled back his aggressive partner. “I'm sorry, she tends to get jealous.”

“Of what?”

“Well, their names are pretty similar. Ryder, Glacier,” he said with a small wave towards the pouting Sneasel held restrained in his other arm. “Meet Glaslieyer.”

“...”

“You know, like 'glacier' and 'slayer.' And maybe 'sleigh' too.”

“...”

“Look, I didn't give her the name, alright? She came with it.” He scratched behind the Sneasel's ear affectionately, making her giggle and coo happily. “Not that I'd ever change it though, huh, girl?”

Covering the catlike ear of the Ice-type, he quickly added, “She stopped answering me the one time I tried,” under his breath. The feather on the lithe Pokémon's head twitched irritably, indicating that she had heard him nevertheless.

As Glaslieyer batted away her trainer's hands, Ryder looked to him questioningly. “You said that we'll be heading to Oreburgh tomorrow.” He rubbed the back of his head. He had never heard of the place. “And that is...?”

“East of here. Big mining operation disguised as a town. Can't miss it. It'll be a bit of work to get to because of the- Glase, where on earth did you get that apple? I swear to Arceus, if you stole that again... ugh.” He shot an apologetic look at Ryder. “Sorry, kid. We'll talk details later. I gotta go pay someone for an apple.”

Gathering the Sneasel- who made sure to tilt her head and bat her eyes endearingly even as she sported a barely concealed smirk- as well as the stolen fruit, Hayden walked out of the lobby area and from the Pokémon Center. In almost the same instant that he left, a slender, scowling trainer with dark hair and darker eyes entered. The trainer looked around the Pokémon Center, judging the ones who inhabited it at the moment, then let his gaze settle on Ryder and Glacier.

“You,” said the trainer with a definite tone to his voice. “Battle me.”

Ryder gulped. Lucian definitely would not save him this time.

HayesAJones
Keizer
Posts: 9200
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2010 8:19 pm

Re: Return to Sinnoh: The Cosmic Comeback

Post by HayesAJones »

CHAPTER FOUR
First Bout
...

Jubilife City Pokémon Center
Jubilife City



“B-but,” stammered Ryder, unnerved by the other trainer's dark eyes and cruel jeer. “I only have one Pokémon.”

The other trainer curled his lips derisively. “Seriously? Did you just start up or something?” His dark eyes looked Ryder up and down. “I hope not. You're way too old to start training now.”

Anger flared in Ryder's chest. Glacier swelled up in his lap like an indignant balloon. “Lucian of the old Elite Four didn't start training until he was nearly twenty.”

“Oh, great- a late bloomer and a trivia book.”

“Where?” asked Ryder through gritted teeth.

The other trainer arched a thin brow. “Hm?”

“Where are we going to battle?”

A mean grin. “Heh, so you wanna do this after all, huh? You're gonna regret it.”

Probably, noted Ryder in the back of his mind, but he responded with all the gal he could muster. “If you don't tell me where we're doing this, then I'm not going to be able to show you how wrong you are.”

“Fine, we'll battle-”

“Oh, boys,” interrupted a sweet voice. From her perch behind the main counter of the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy smiled gently at Ryder and the challenging trainer. Her smile was professional and showed no malice, but behind her eyes burned an eternity of despair that no one should ever have to suffer. “If you two want to have a trainer battle, please take it outside or I'll be forced to ask you to leave.”

Paling immensely, Ryder and the other trainer answered as one.

“Y-yes, ma'am.”

-

Recreational area outside of the Jubilife City Pokémon Center
Jubilife City



“Okay,” sneered the trainer, his arrogant demeanor returned practically as soon as they were outside the all seeing gaze of Nurse Joy. “Since you only have one measly Pokémon, then I'll only be using one of mine too.” He smirked. “Not that I would have needed more even if you had a full team.”

“Whatever,” muttered Ryder. This one was almost as bad as Max. “Sounds fair to me.”

“Okay, then,” said the other trainer as he unlatched a Poké Ball from his belt. “Let's do this.”

A searing bolt of whitish energy seared the ground as soon as the dark-eyed trainer clicked the release on his Poké Ball, and a serpentine shape materialized from the pale blaze. A small Dragon-type Pokémon with a bulbous nose and finned ears coiled in the soft dirt outside the Pokémon Center when the light faded. Raising it beaded head and narrowing its large, violet eyes in aggression when it caught sight of Glacier, the little Pokémon- a Dratini- howled thinly into the sky, obviously eager for combat.

“Before we get started,” sneered the tall, thin trainer. “I figure that you should know the names of the ones who are about to cream you! So listen up, chump: I'm Jeremy and this here is Alduin. And we're about to crush you! So get ready!”

Ryder glowered at the other trainer and tugged at the Lunar Wing that hung around his neck, twirling the glistening feather between his finger. “Glacier,” muttered the rookie trainer. “You okay to go?”

The little Water-type nodded with- ironically enough- fire in its eyes. “Pip!”

“Okay then. Let's do this. We probably won't win, but we can still try our hardest, right?”

The other trainer laughed meanly. “You can bet you won't win! You're not a real trainer, I can tell! Whichever second-rate academy mistakenly graduated you is probably just glad to be rid of you!”

Ryder's brows knitted angrily. “Okay, Glaice. Forget that. We have to take this guy down.”

“Pi!” chirped the bird Pokémon fiercely in agreement. Its thick coat of feathers was spiked up.

A little ways from where the two rookies and their Pokémon stood, glaring at each other as they prepared to clash, Hayden strolled into sight fresh from the local marketplace and now short one apple's price. The older trainer raised a brow at the scene in front of him before shrugging and finding a tree to lean his back against. If he was going to be traveling with this 'Ryder' and his Piplup, he might as well try to scope out what kind of team they were. And there was no quicker way to do that than a battle.

A gentle breeze curled between Alduin and Glacier as the two small Pokémon stood taunt and puffed up, each trying to intimidate the other- the Dragon-type be rearing to his maximum height and the Water-type by filling its plumed chest with air. Neither gave any sign of falling for the other tactic, so soon they fell loose and ready to react. Taking a cue from their partners, the two fresh trainers gave their first orders- Jeremy faster than Ryder.

“Extreme Speed!” shouted the dark-eyed trainer, and Alduin vanished from sight in a blur of motion in response.

“Bubble!” cried Ryder just a moment later, only realizing the futility of what he had order the moment it left his mouth. Glacier paused, confused by the order, until he was slammed by an invisible force and sent sprawling across the ground. Ryder gritted his teeth as he watched his Pokémon fall and skid across the ground like a soccer ball, his feathery coat becoming dirty as he rolled. Alduin appeared where the Water-type had stood with its finned head held high and a satisfied gleam in its purple eyes.

“Hah!” crowed Jeremy. “Straight from the Dragon's Den! Johto Trading Services doesn't mess around and neither do I!”

Hayden watched Ryder's reaction carefully as the young trainer racked his brain for a way to give Glacier a chance. The older boy reached down to stroke the head of his Sneasel as she poked it up from the inside of his jacket. The spoiled Dark-type purred as he scratched behind her ear, though she too kept one eye on the battle. The way she looked at the conflict was almost hungry.

“Glaice!” shouted Ryder suddenly. The young trainer was wearing a determined scowl.

“Oy,” murmured Hayden absentmindedly as he watched with interest. Just what was the rookie up to? “He's gone and stolen your nickname, huh, girl?”

The Sneasel hissed in agreement, her ears pinned back against her skull. Her long, clawed arms crossed sourly as she pouted. She was Glase, not this overblown puffball of a bird.

“Glacier, I need you to use Bubble again!” The Water-type starter paused, seemingly confused at the counterintuitive order. He looked back at his owner. “Just trust me, alright?”

The little bird Pokémon nodded after only a moment of hesitation. Opening its tiny conical beak wide, the Water-type began to spew a stream of energized spheres at Alduin, who evaded them easily.

Jeremy sneered. “Wow. You're even worse than I thought. Ald, knock him down again. Extreme Speed!”

As the Dragon-type dematerialized at light speed, Ryder smirked. “Okay, now spin, Galice!”

Lifting up on its webbed toes, the Penguin Pokémon twirled like a miniscule ballet dancer and spun a broad vortex of bubbles around itself. A second later, Alduin collided with the spiraling tower of energy orbs and was rebounded with a large burst of vapor and force. The small Dragon-type crashed to the ground and bounced before coming to a grinding halt with its round nose buried in the dirt. As the downed Dragon groaned into the soil, a bump on its head and numerous bruises forming across its scaly hide, Ryder cheered. Jeremy snarled. Hayden and Sneasel hid their smirks.

“Nice,” said the older trainer softly so that only his Sneasel would hear. The childish Dark-type tried to look unimpressed, but amusement glittered brightly in her violet eyes. Her sharp fangs flashed in a brief smile as she watched Alduin staggered upright.

Jeremy, hot anger smoldering behind his dark eyes, punched a fist forward and roared, “Dragon Rage!”

Bluish flames swirled in the back of Alduin's open mouth before spewing out in the shape of a howling dragon. The roaring blast of energy slammed into the ground at Glacier's feet, who had only just avoided being hit directly by leaping backwards at the last second, and detonated, sending the Penguin Pokémon tumbling backwards.

“Again!” roared Jeremy.

“Glacier, Bubble!”

Throwing his head up before he was struck by the blast of fire, the Water-type belched another barrage of bubbles, which collided with the fiery beam and burst into a huge cloud of steam. Chirping happily, Glacier hopped to his feet and began pumping his arms, battering the air with his flippers. As sweat ran down the bird Pokémon's face and his feet raised just a hair off the ground from his furious flapping, the billowing mass of water vapor was sent hurtling at Alduin and engulfed him. Blinded by the hot, humid smog, the enraged Dragon-type spat fire erratically, smoking craters appearing around him in a broad circle.

“Clear it with Twister!” shouted Jermeny, his fists clenched tight.

A small whirlwind dispersed the cloud and freed the serpentine Dragon-type, but the panting Alduin was only greeted by a glowing beak colliding his his forehead as he emerged from the steam.

“Peck!” howled Ryder as his partner sent the Dragon-type flying, a new bruise on his brow.

“That's it!” screamed Jeremy. His partner rose from the ground, its teeth clenched and its body battered, but determination still lurking in its eyes. “Just spam Extreme Speed until he goes down! I'm tired of messing around with this joker! Finish it, Ald!”

Growling his approval, Alduin shot forward and vanished, only to rematerialized and slam into Glacier's left side. The little Penguin Pokémon was sent tumbling, but quickly steadied himself with his flippers by digging them into the ground. His efforts were for naught though, because Alduin appeared to his right and bowled him over again. Glacier rose to his feet with haste once again, but the Dragon-type was relentless. Glacier was knocked onto his face by a force from behind. This time, it took a moment for the Water-type to get up.

“Glaicer...” muttered Ryder softly as he watched his partner struggle to stand. The Piplup was battered badly, his plumage interpreted by numerous ruffles and knotted spikes of down. He was also breathing heavy. Beads of sweat ran down his forehead as he heaved.

“Okay, okay,” relented the rookie. He couldn't stand to see his Pokémon in such a state. “We give. You win, alright? Let's just end this batt-”

“PIP!”

Both Ryder and Jeremy- who had been grinning victoriously- were startled by the loud squeak from the badly hurt Water-type. The little bird Pokémon was shaking his head furiously, anger burning behind its large, shiny eyes.

“Pip! Pi-pi-pi!”

“A-are you sure?” asked Ryder with a stutter of hesitance to his voice. “You're not in a good way right now and-”

“Pi!”

“... alright then.”

Jeremy sneered and tugged his hat tight over his head. “What? What's going on then? You givin' up or what?”

“No. We're gonna keep going. We can do this.”

“Sure,” chuckled Jeremy. “Whatever. Can't say I think you're right, but I guess sticking to it is admirable. Or something. No more fooling around then, we'll make this quick. Ald?”

The Dratini- who had been breathing fairly raggedly itself- perked up with a trill.

“Do it.”

With a fierce squeal, the snakelike Pokémon launched itself forward and began rushing Glacier at mach speed, dust rising up behind it like a lashing tail as it swerved and curved to confuse its weary opponent. Glacier slowly took a combat stance as the Dragon-type approached, his forearms glowing weakly as he readied them to lash out and a faint blue shine possessing his dark eyes. The little bird Pokémon shot a glance back at his trainer and, although no conversation passed between them, the message was clear as it could possibly be to Ryder.

Trust me.

“Extreme Speed!”

Alduin was lost from sight as he accelerated to the greatest speed a Pokémon cold achieve, but Glacier did not wait for him to strike. Instead, the glowering Penguin Pokémon opened its beak, lifted its head, and- mist spiraling in its gullet- vomited a dancing stream of bubbles at the earth in front of it.

Glaslieyer sat up as the ground turned to mud. Ryder broke out into a broad grin.

Alduin returned to the realm of human sight as he hit the slick of mud. His coils loosing traction as they tried to grip the wet ground, the tiny Dragon-type began to slide uncontrollably. Squeaking with as much fury as he could muster, Glacier lauched himself into the air and began to come down upon the skidding Dragon-type, his flippers shining bright with energy as he swung down.

CRACK!

A tremendous Pound attack connected with Alduin's forehead. Reeling back with a fresh lump on its skull, the Mirage Pokémon cried out on pain and began to waver, its serpentine coils shivering as it teetered and leaned. Jeremy nit his lip and slowly called out to his Dragon-type partner.

“A-ald? Buddy?”

With a high pitched sigh, the Dragon Pokémon deflated. Alduin fell without another sound.

Glacier and Ryder slumped simultaneously in relief. The bird Pokémon fell onto its rump with a relieved chirp as its exhaustion caught up with it. Tilting their heads towards one another, Pokémon and trainer smiled at one another. They had actually won! They're first real battle and they had won!

“You stupid twit...”

Grin vanishing, Ryder looked towards Jeremy. The dark haired boy's cheeks burned scarlet red with anger and Ryder could swear he saw tiny tears in the other trainer's eyes. His shoulders hunched like the arced spine of a cat as he fumed and spat. He looked absolutely livid.

“This is... this is impossible! You couldn't have won! You still only have your starter and I used my best Pokémon! You just started! I've been a trainer for months!”

“Lot of good that did you...” muttered Ryder.

“What was that?” screamed Jeremey. “Are you mocking me now? Getting cocky just because you one one measly battle? I bet this is your first time winning, you rookie!”

“First time battling period, actually,” clarified Ryder with no small amount of satisfaction. He had been wrong before. This one was even worse than Max. At least she had never cried like a baby over losing one match...

The other trainer's face when blank with shock. “Y-your kidding.” Then the rage returned in full force. “No! You're lying! That can't be true!”

“Can and is. Hey, don't you have to give me money or something now?”

“The only thing I'm going to give you,” half-snarled, half-sniffled the dark eyed trainer. “Is a beating! Go, Grymm!”

Jeremy hurled another Poké Ball into the air, where it split open and unleashed a churning mass of glowing white energy that took the form of a green, dinosaur-like bug. Ryder gulped. He recognized this one from the Academy. A rare and lethal Bug-type Pokémon from Kanto: Scyther.

“Scy!” screeched the enormous mantid. “Scy, scy!”

“Grymm,” Jeremy commanded while pointing one damp hand at Ryder. He had just finished wiping his eyes. “Slash! Now!”

The Bug/Flying-type hesitated upon seeing that it was a trainer his master had order him upon and not a Pokémon, but a glance at the downed Alduin reaffirmed its determination at once. The bladed insect carved through the air with its jagged raptotial forelimb. It was time to show the master who was still his premier partner! Ryder gasped as the Scyther shrieked down at him, harm shining in its hard eyes. Glacier tried to hop up and defend his partner, but his weariness caused him to flop back over almost immediately.

“Metal Claw.”

Two glowing talons intercepted and threw down the organic saber of the Bug-type, pinning it to the ground alongside Grymm himself. The saurian mantid thrashed and hissed in distress. No! This was its chance! Its chance to prove itself to its master once again! His struggles were quickly subdued by a bat upside the head by the shimmering, metallic claws of Glaslieyer, who sneered defiantly in the face of the Mantis Pokémon.

Hayden stepped in front of Jeremy. “Enough.” Ryder had seen the older trainer annoyed before, at his Sneasel partner, but now he saw him angry. “You're a trainer, right? Act like it. Losing is part of the game.”

Jeremy growled and matched Hayden's advance, pressing up close against the shorter trainer with a huff of angry air. “Yeah? And who do you think you are to-?”

His dark eyes widened.

“Wait, you're... never mind. Fine. I'll back off. Grymm.” The Bug-type, who had freed himself and now danced in a predatory circle opposite from Glaslieyer, turned. His trainer lifted his Poké Ball expectantly. “Come on. Return.”

With a parting glare at Glaslieyer, the vicious Bug-type dematerialized and was taken back into his Poké Ball by his trainer. The dark haired boy threw one last glance at Ryder and Glacier- not unlike his Pokémon just a moment before- then grudgingly stalked off. Ryder sighed tiredly as he vanished from sight.

“Thanks.”

Though he stared at the ground, what he said was aimed at Hayden, who acknowledged it with a nod. “No problem. You're always going to come across guys like that from time to time, sadly. Just bad luck that you managed to find one for your first battle. Congratulations, by the way.” The older trainer gave him a lopsided smirk. “You two will go far if you keep listen to each other so well.”

“Listening... to each other?”

“Yeah. It might look like Pokémon training is all about giving order to the Pokémon, but trainers have to listen to their partners just as much as they listen to them. Maybe more. You chose to trust in Glacier back then. That was a good move. That's why you won, not because the pair of you was any stronger than the other guy, but because you listened to each other equally, not just in one direction like the the trainer you fought and his Pokémon.”

Hayden stared in the direction that Jeremy had disappeared, tilting his hat from over his eyes and playing with the feather on Glaslieyer's head as she sprung back into his arms. She battered and fussed at him, but with a smile.

“Maybe he'll learn that too one day.”

-

Jubilife Trainer Motel
Jubilife City


“Yo, Ryder!” said Hayden loudly as he overturned the mound of pillows that the rookie trainer had buried himself in for the night. Ryder groaned and shifted sleepily “Rise and shine, Mr. Victor. We got places to be.”

“Just a minute,” murmured Ryder wearily into the sheets.

“Nope!” piped Hayden. “Not a minute. Now. Glase, would you do do the honors?”

Bloodshot eyes shot wide.

“N-no! Wait!”

“Too late!” laughed Hayden.

“Snee!”

Ryder toppled out of bed with a howl of pain as two pairs of sharp claws buried themselves into his bottom. Glaslieyer chittered mischievously from atop his crumpled sheets as she watched him rub his rump and grumbled bitterly at her.

“Whoa!” Hayden crowed. He chuckled sheepishly. “Sorry about that,” he muttered, swatting at Glaslieyer's head. “I wanted you to get him out of bed, not to draw blood, you little brute! Say you're sorry.”

“Snee-snee!”

“Oy, there's no need to get salty with me now.”

“Ugh,” moaned Ryder. “Are you two done yet? I'm dressed, so let's go.”

“Whoa, already?” Hayden wowed. “That was quick.”

“Yeah, well... I don't have a fancy coat and hat to put on, okay? How do you even survive in that thing when it gets warm?”

He shrugged. “I'm from northern Sinnoh. We're hardy up there. I know a girl who pretty much lives in a icebox with nothing but short shorts and a jacket that she doesn't even wear and another who walks through blizzards with bare feet on a regular basis.”

“So you're all crazy, you mean to say?”

Hayden grinned. “Crazy awesome.”

Rolling his eyes, Ryder strolled out of the room, Hayden following close behind. “Well, you did stop me from getting mauled by a giant bug yesterday, so I guess I can't disagree. So... where to? You said something about a town called Oreburgh last night?”

“Yep. It's a town just east of here. But there's a catch.”

“Uh,” wondered Ryder aloud. “A... a catch?”

“Yeah, there's a tunnel- the Oreburgh Gate- that we'll have to go through to get there.”

Ryder lifted a brow. “Why is that a problem?”

Hayden shot the rookie trainer an apologetic look. “Ah. I forgot. You're new to all this. Trust me, by the time you've been training as long as I have, you'll have learned to dread caves and tunnels of all manners.” He smiled suddenly and walked ahead, shouting something over his shoulder as he jogged out of the motel. “Hope you don’t mind Zubats!”

Ryder paled. “D-don't they suck blood? H-hey! Wait!”

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