章 1211: 5
!
The flight was pleasant, and quicker than I expected.
Winter was good. He kept a sedate pace, but with the addition of the Rider's Seat, he didn't have to worry about going too fast. With that in mind, his sedate pace was still faster than I would go on a freeway pass in a corvette. And I had a lead foot.
So, not really as sedate as he thought it was.
It was interesting, noting what he considered fast when compared to what I considered fast. Pidgeot's were speed kings, naturally able to go at speeds of over 250 miles an hour, though such an excursion would leave them in need of rest. When trained, they could go into the 300's. They were like cheetah's, able to go fast, but not for very long. However, they could cruise for hours without issue if they paced themselves properly.
Fearow's, when compared to a Pidgeot, couldn't match their top speed. But they had an added advantage; a Fearow could fly at its top speed of 210 mph for almost an entire day. Where Pidgeots were speed kings, Fearows were stamina kings.
It made sense to think about how Tobias was able to deliver so easily with his Fearow. Sure, it might have been boring, but that bird could have travelled the whole of the Orange Archipelago, each island and each stopgap, in one sitting if it were so inclined. Almost makes me jealous.
Meh, almost. Winter is a badass, and due to his lineage as a former denizen of Fairchild Island, home to the pinnacle of his species, he's got the chance to break those natural records, into realms beyond the written word.
Ahem. Anywho.
The flight didn't take long. Kumquat Island was a little under ninety miles to the north of Shamouti, and with Winters speed, we made it there in just over forty minutes. It was a tropical island, same as Shamouti, though it was far more industrialized. There were sky scrapers and building crews abound, with an added uniqueness of Pokémon. No, really, they were everywhere, wild ones prowling the alleyways, baby ones in the arms of children, hell there was a Venusaur giving a small family a ride. Interesting and unique though it was, that wasn't what I was after; I wanted to find the Pokémon Center. The trick was actually finding said Pokémon Center. We had to circle the city multiple times, weaving through the various buildings that were readily available, before eventually finding the red roofed facility. It took longer to find the Pokémon Center than it did to reach the island.
Winter landed in the front veranda area, startling an older man holding a Pichu. I removed the seatbelt and hopped off, clicking the [-] on the remote. The Rider's Seat bulged with air and then promptly deflated, beginning the process of being sucked back into the base collar on Winters neck.
So cool.
Winter stayed outside, preening his feathers. The older man and his Pichu watched him curiously. I entered the building, noting that, for once, I wasn't its only customer. There were a few other people, two older girls carrying a pair of Oddish in their arms, and a kid that looked even younger than me, cheerfully pushing a Sandshrew to the ground, laughing as tucked itself into a ball and rolled around before returning to the kids' side, tail wagging happily.
I made my way to the counter, noting the Nurse Joy in front of me was very similar to my own. However, the Joy in Shamouti was noticeably younger, and had a lighter skin tone.
"Hello, welcome to the Pokémon Center," she said, bowing shortly. The Chansey at her side mimicked her action. "Are your Pokémon in need of healing?"
Shaking my head, I hitched my thumb over my shoulder. "I'm delivering a package from Tobias Brinks of Shamouti. Berries."
She nodded, smiling, and made her way to the front, Chansey following. Winter had moved from preening his belly to trying to preen his ruffled back feathers, showing minimal success. The older guy was gone now.
Joy walked up to Winter and placed a hand on his back, sedately removing feathers and patting down other ones. He trilled at her, nipping at a bun of pink hair happily. Winter liked the Shamouti Joy quite a lot and seemed to be similarly affectionate with her relative.
"A magnificent breed," she commented, giving him one final pat. She than bent down and untied the package, where Chansey then took the item inside the Center.
Joy dug through her front pouch and retrieved a handful of blue wads of paper, handing them to me. I counted them, noting that there were four bills with a 25 on them. A hundred bucks for only a little bit of work?
Hell yeah.
Though I could see where Carol was coming from. If this was the standard fare for what we were to get, then with the difficulty that Fearow gave on the regular added on, her complaints held merit. Luckily, none of that mattered to me.
"Is there anything else you need?"
I snapped my attention back towards her, idly stuffing the money into the front pouch of my tattered backpack. I'm sure I looked strange to Joy, what with my oversized clothes and ratty apparel. But then again, she probably saw all sorts of people, and she was professional enough not to speak about my shabbiness.
"Yeah, actually. Do you have a map? I need to head to Navel Island next." I pulled at my clothes, grimacing. "And, maybe- do you know where I can find a thrift store or something?"
It wasn't that I didn't like my clothes, it was that I didn't like having only one set of clothes.
In this world, it was standard for people to only have a few sets of clothes. This was because, with water being easily accessed with Water Types and electricity being just an angry mouse away, washing machines could be much more precise. They could and would wash and dry their clothes in only a couple minutes, so with that mindset, why buy more?
Sure, there were exceptions. People needed formal wear for certain occasions, and options begot interest, but trainers didn't have the funds for that most of the time, so they stuck to the one-and-done rule. All Pokémon Centers had these quick washing machines available for use, so it wasn't like they needed to go anywhere fancy.
Joy smiled at me and brought me back inside. This time, I returned Winter. She showed me the map of the Archipelago, telling me where I should depart. Navel Island was to the South-East of Kumquat, with Cleopatra Island just between them. Then, directly south of Navel Island were the Seven Grapefruit Islands, of which the western most island on that chain was located directly to the north of Moro Island.
The distance between Kumquat and Navel was almost four hundred miles, but Cleopatra Island, while deserted, was smack dab in the middle of the two, and Joy recommended I take a break over there. It depended on how Winter was feeling, but it was already nearing the late afternoon stage of the day, and I didn't want to risk night flying just yet. So, I agreed.
The distance between Navel and Moro was less than that of Kumquat and Navel, though still quite far. There was, based on what I could see, just over three hundred miles distance. The best way to deal with the distance was to probably just head to the Grapefruit chain of islands and play it by ear based on how Winter feels.
Joy then gave me directions to a thrift store that was built for travelling trainers, sat on the same block that the Kumquat Gym was hidden.
With thanks, I exited the Center and made my way towards the thrift store, noting the street signs that she wrote down as a guide. It took about ten minutes to find, and I was lucky enough to not have had many issues that a local couldn't answer when asked.
The thrift store was just as one would imagine, a run-down building. It at least made the attempt to not look as bad as it really did. I could tell that they tried but trying wasn't the same as succeeding.
There were racks of clothing, dressers of bags, slots filled with shoes and tables of knick-knacks. I trudged through what seemed to be a maze of randomness, before finally coming across an outfit I could work with. I now sported a slate grey hoodie with a thin, navy-blue long-sleeved shirt underneath. My sweat pants had been replaced by a pair of black joggers that fit me properly, whilst my shoes remained the same, though I did find some insoles to put in them. To finish my look up, I grabbed a white headband that now rested on my forehead, and a pair of tan, fingerless gloves.
The entirety of the outfit only cost me one of my four bills, so I had money left over.
Due to this, I browsed the knick-knack section. Most of it didn't really interest me, but five items managed to catch my eye. One of them was a simple compass attached to a thin chain that could be strapped to one of the belt holes on my joggers and held in a pocket. Another was a leather wallet, which now that I had money, was useful. I found a whistle tied to a string in the corner, which I could see being handy when I wanted to get Winters attention from far away, or when he was flying so fast that I didn't want to risk opening my mouth. There were a pair of clear goggles that, while meant for swimming, could also use for flying; on this quick trip to Kumquat alone I had quite a bit of trouble seeing where I was going due to wind pressure. And the last item of note was a ball belt, a belt with six magnetic strips able to hold shrunken Poké Balls. Necessary.
They cost fifty bucks in total, the compass being only five, the wallet being seven, the goggles being four, the whistle only one and the belt being bargained down to thirty-three. Worth every penny. Now Winter had a home that was more secure than my pocket, I had a place to store my remaining moneys, my eyes wouldn't burn when flying, I had the ability to emulate my old gym teacher – he loved to blow that damn whistle in my ear – and I could now follow the directions of a map.
All in all, it was a good trip.
Upon leaving the store, I released Winter once more, activated his collar and hopped on board. We took to the sky in short order, and after I had adjusted myself so that I was facing the direction of Cleopatra Island through use of my new compass, we set off.
.
It took just over two hours to reach Cleopatra Island. Just as Nurse Joy said, it was abandoned. There were no towns, no people, and as far as I could tell, no Pokémon. Or, at least, if there were, I didn't catch sight of them.
We landed on the western bank of the island, where grass patches grew along a cliffside that faced the calm ocean waters. It was a very pretty view, especially with the sun setting in the distance, mirroring the water and bathing the clouds with golden pink colors.
Winter wanted to continue staying out, and I had no issue with his enjoying his newfound evolution. Even though a lot happened, a full day hadn't even passed yet. He knew where to find me, and he deserved his fun.
While he was away, I took to finding some dinner. As luck would have it, Cleopatra was host to a decent berry and fruit population. There were plenty of Oran and Sitrus berries, with a few oranges and kiwi's to liven the batch.
The berries were Winters, though I did grab a handful for myself, while the rest of the fruits were for me. This wasn't because I wanted to hog them, but because Pokémon like Winter primarily ate from either a manufactured staple called Bird Feed, or a diet of berries and the more numerous pests like Caterpie and Weedle, along with their evolved counterparts. He needed it far more than I did.
Upon finishing our dinner, we just relaxed. It was March in a tropic, so the weather was as perfect as it could be, and there wasn't a better time to go outdoors.
We fell asleep with full belly's and good humor.
.
The alarm on my watch blared at 7:00 in the morning, though we were already in the process of groggily waking up in any case due to the sun having risen, lightening us with its glow.
With a grunt of effort, I sat up and rubbed the crust out of my eyes, going about my morning routine. It wasn't anything fancy, I just ran around and did a few squats, stretching my body when finished. The biggest reason I even had a routine was because of my entrance into this world. The pain in my leg may have been gone, but there was still a stiffness to it that could only be fixed by using it regularly.
Breakfast was a simple affair. I grabbed the leftovers from dinner and distributed the majority of them to Winter. He greedily ate but was kind enough to leave me some of his portion, noting the difference in what we had.
Food eaten and body stretched, we took off. It was another two hours of travel, but Navel Island was quick to be found. And damn was it a sight.
Navel Island was large. Like, massive. Not in size, for the island was actually smaller than Kumquat, but in density. Along its coast were forested trees where a small, quiet little village was barely visible, the trees covering most homes. But that wasn't the part of Navel Island that was noteworthy.
The special part of Navel Island was its centerpiece.
Almost as wide as the island itself was, a grand mountain stood. So grand was it that it pierced the clouds overhead, its tip invisible to me and Winter. Like, I don't think there are any words I can use to describe it. It's a massive mountain that's smack dab in the middle of the island. Actually, it's probably safer to claim that this was a volcano that was dormant, that the island surrounding it was just the refuse of when it was active, however many years ago that was.
My best comparison is to Ice Island, poor though the comparison was. Ice Island is much smaller than this, and while its mountain is of a similar size, it's far skinnier and was probably made through terrain adjusting Pokémon attacks from the legendary powerhouses that claimed the both island and its neighboring landmasses.
At least I knew where to go. The Navel Island Gym was located at the peak of the mountain, so even though we couldn't really see where to go, we could also, well, see.
It was a weird thing, when the location your going to wasn't visible, but was also obvious in where it existed.
Winter ascended into the clouds, slowing down marginally in case he accidentally ran into the mountain by some stretch. As it were, such a precaution, while smart, was unnecessary. Once we exited the cloud, the peak of the mountain was visible to us, with the clouds buffeting the peak like the shore of a beach.
The peak was partially flat, in actuality. The flat portion of the mountain was directly next to a large gate with the symbol of a Poké Ball branded onto its stone doors, built into the rest of the mountains peak that still ascended.
Can I just take a moment to mention how stupid this gym is? I mean, the location is awesome, I won't deny that, but this is a public gym that is a part of the Orange League. And you've got to climb the mountain, no riding any Pokémon up the cliff. All the other Gym Leaders are relatively access when compared to this malarkey, and then you've got to bob sled down the mountain?
Unless the show just completely skipped passed the safety procedures or the challenge is not, in fact, sledding down the mountain, then I call bullshit.
Winter landed in front of the door and I returned him in short order. Walking up, I found a button, rang the bell, and waited.
I didn't have to wait long.
The door opened with a groan, and a green, insectoid head popped out, its singular, sickle-like claw holding the door open with obvious strain.
"Scy?" It sounded, eyes narrowed.
Ah, hello my dream.
To be fair, Scyther was one of those few that eluded me. Pokémon Blue was the first game I had ever owned, so naturally I played it the most, but I didn't really know a whole lot about it or how to look up a guide and was sadly never able to get my hands on a Scyther. Later, once Fire Red and Leaf Green came out, I found out that Scyther wasn't even available for Pokémon Blue, being a Pokémon Red exclusive. In other words, I never would have had the chance to get my hands on it, since I was a lonely little shit whose friends were into Digimon, those buncha plebs.
So yes, I want one.
"Hi Scyther, I've got some mail for Danny." For emphasis, I waved the folder at him. "Can you bring him out, or can I meet him? If he's available, that is."
Scyther bobbed his head jerkily, opening the door fully and allowing me entrance. Now that I was inside, I was able to get a good, proper look at the Pokémon before me. Scyther stood a few inches taller than my 4"4' (I'm nine, I'm short. It sucks, I know. At least I'm a little above average for my age range), with green and tan scales, open muscles veining around the tan portions of his body. The green seemed more armored than anything.
His wings sprouted from his back, reminiscent of a dragonfly, and he buzzed about the room as I walked. The gym was surprisingly just like a gym, and in that, I meant it looked like a proper gym, not a Pokémon Gym. There were weights all around, some machines I couldn't name that isolated specific muscle groups being prominent. It looked like nobody was using it at the moment.
Scyther led me to a back room, where he beckoned me to sit on a wooden chair. I did so, and he then left.
Uncertain as to what to do, I decided to just go play with the gym equipment.
I'm not an idiot, mind you. Well, at least not in this case; I have my moments. I understand that working out before you've started puberty is a recipe for disaster. I have no intention of going crazy but testing the gear couldn't hurt.
I played with a pullup bar, dabbled with some dips, attempted to curl a pair of ten pounders and tried to squat the bar without any weight, when Danny finally showed up.
His arrival was a surprise. I wasn't paying too much attention and was about to go down for another squat when the bar was lifted from my shoulders and placed too high for me to reach on its rack. My instinctual desire to snark died a quick death upon seeing Danny's black eyes filled with mirth.
Cartoons and animation never really showcase people properly. The two Nurse Joy's for example, while looking similar, weren't identical, and their personalities didn't match. The Joy on Kumquat was a more reserved woman, whilst the Joy on Shamouti was of the more forward type.
Danny is no exception.
From the show, I vaguely remembered a red headed dude that wore hiking clothes. While these two details were in fact true, there was a much deeper part of him that wasn't properly shown. He was ripped. By ripped, I don't mean he was hulkingly large, with muscles the size of my head. No, he was like a Bruce Lee type of ripped, the kind where all the muscles that were defined were used on a daily basis and weren't just for show. Think of an adult Goku from the original Dragonball, bring that ridiculous physique down a few levels, turn him into a ginger and you've got Danny.
"Most messengers don't work out in my lobby," he said, snickering a bit. Even when he laughed, his muscles contracted. Just behind him, his Scyther returned, sharpening his scythes against one another. I would have been intimidated, were Scyther not trained. But since it was, I just smiled.
"I've got a letter for you from Shamouti." Walking over to the wooden chair his Scyther brought me to, I grabbed the envelope for Danny.
"Carol isn't the courier anymore?"
Shaking my head, I handed him the document. "Nah, she didn't like it and she kinda forced Mr. Brinks to give me the job so she could do something else."
With a good-humored smile, my fellow ginger grabbed the file, folding it up and placing it in his back pocket.
And with that, my work was finished.
It was a little disappointing, to be honest. I was hoping that there would be a bigger fanfare, that something interesting would happen, or that I would run into a Pokémon of some sort on my way. I was in the world of an anime-game combo, that type of bullshit was supposed to happen.
Alas, it was not to be.
"Anything else you need?" Danny asked, walking me to the front door.
Pondering, I caught sight of Scyther hovering around the gym equipment.
"Where'd you get him?"
Danny furrowed his brow, "How old are you?"
"Nine."
"That might be a little young for a Scyther, they aren't the nicest Pokémon around. Especially not for a Starter." He said, thinking aloud. We were at the front now, and while the view was spectacular, it was hard as shit to breathe out here. The air was really thin.
And what did he mean about Scyther being a Starter? It may have been a badass Pokémon, but Winter was my Starter through and through.
He furrowed his brow, looking around. "Where's Fearow? Did that old bird leave again?"
Ah. He thought I rode on Fearow.
To alleviate his confusion, I released Winter, barely holding back a snicker at the dumbfounded look Danny was quick to sport. Winter was a little less than twice the size of the average Pidgeot and had room to grow further. It was surprising, to say the least.
He turned a stern eye onto me. "The Pokémon of Fairchild Island are protected."
I just shrugged. "I caught him on Shamouti. He got lost from his flock as a Pidgey during migration, or at least that's what Nurse Joy told me."
The sternness in his look went away in an instant, and he relaxed once more.
"But yeah, I think I should be able to handle a Scyther if I have Winer with me." And even if I couldn't, just knowing where I could find a Scyther was huge. Eventually I would have one, nothing was going to stop that.
Danny approached Winter, who looked at my red-haired kin with narrowed eyes. The older man circled the Pidgeot, inspecting him.
"I caught my Scyther with my Nidoqueen. She knows a few Rock Type attacks, and they have an extreme weakness to those." Danny said, poking at Winters tail feathers. My Starter took the opportunity to hop away, gliding behind me and attempted to use my body, which was almost less than thrice his size, as a shield. "They're Bug Types though, and are weak to Flying Types, so you shouldn't have too much trouble."
He rubbed his chin, and then shrugged. "To be honest, it's not really a secret or anything. You could figure where to find a Scyther if you dug around the Pokénet long enough. There's a swarm of them on the western bank of Murcott Island. Murcott's actually pretty famous for being home to rarer Bug Types, like Scyther and Pinsir."
Interesting.
I hopped on Winter, offering my thanks. Before I left, he gave me on last tip.
"When you look for a Scyther to catch, don't go for the leader," warned Danny. "It may be the strongest, be it's also the oldest, and wouldn't work out well for a team. It gets challenged by a lot of other Scyther though and has a habit of kicking out a few of those upstarts. I'd go for one of them, since it wouldn't affect the swarm, which means the swarm won't bother the islanders. Part of being a trainer is keeping your pursuits away from civilian life."
Made sense. Going for the Scyther that were kicked out would be easier, but probably harder to find.
And it was also quite reasonable to keep walking natural disasters away from the normies.
…Meh.
It honestly doesn't matter that much, not in this case. If I find a Scyther I want, I'm gonna try and catch it, regardless of it being in the swarm or not. Why would I care if the leftovers kicked up a fuss? It's not like I'm planning on sticking around. Murcotts been home to the swarm for longer than I've probably been alive, they should have contingencies in place in case the Pokémon get riled up.
Plan set, I checked my compass, noting that we were facing the correct direction, and tugged on Winters scalp feathers. He dove off the edge of the mountain, righting himself into a fast and steady glide to the south.
We made it to Moro in four hours.
From Navel Island, we sprinted to the Grapefruit Islands, reaching the chain in just over thirty minutes. There, we took a break for an early lunch that lasted for about an hour and a half, consisting of grapefruits for me and a few Caterpie for Winter.
After finishing our food, we steadily made our way to Moro, enjoying a nice, sedate fly, basking in the weather. I was flying with my shirt and hoodie in my bag, and dearly loved my new body's ability to tan. On Earth, I was one of those sorts that would go lobster red in an hour under the California sun. Here, I was like a Greek guy, I could be out forever and never have an issue.
It was nice.
So, over two hours later, we made it to Moro Island.
It was… eh.
Moro Island was a smaller island, with a lopped hillside taking up most of its landmass. On the lower bank of the hill stood a small town, its buildings scraping against the ocean water, where little to no sand buffered the wakes. I won't say it's not a nice place, because I honestly haven't found a place in the Orange Archipelago that wasn't nice yet, but when I compare it to the unique geography of Shamouti, to the bustling town of Kumquat, to the open fields of Cleopatra or the mountain of Navel or the harvests of the Grapefruit Islands… Yeah, Moro came up kinda short.
Oh well, it wasn't like I intended to stick around.
Winter landed in front of the museum, Moro's largest and only tourist attraction. There were a good few people loitering about. Those people shot me strange looks when I landed, a shirtless child riding an overly large Pidgeot was sure to be eye-catching, but I didn't mind. I didn't actually care what they thought, so it worked out.
Putting my shirt back on, I returned Winter and entered the museum. It was a quaint space, filled to the brim with old paintings, sculptures and artifacts. They were situated in such a way that didn't really make sense, but I wasn't an art guy, so I didn't really know anything.
I tried to approach, but the teller that stood before me halted me we a leg. He was a broad bodied teenager, sporting a bored look on his plain face, and he stared me down with dull brown eyes that were partially covered by his unkempt blonde hair.
"Welcome to the Moro Museum," he said, his voice almost monotone. "Tickets cost 5."
Great customer service skills there. I'm sure he'll make a wonderful salesman someday.
Sarcasm, if it wasn't obvious enough.
I pulled out the envelope from my backpack, a little ruffled but nothing bad, and showed the teller the address. "I have a letter to deliver to the curator."
Bored, he held out his hand. "I'll give it to 'er."
I snatched it away from him, shaking my head. "I've got to give the curator myself." I needed to ensure that it was me that she saw, just in case they tried to snatch my money.
The teller shrugged at me. "'kay. It'll be 5"
…Seriously?
What a tool.
Yeah, no. I'm not paying somebody so I can do my job. I'm here, I'm not leaving, and I'm ready to make a fuss.
Which I did.
"Call the curator here," I barked, loudly. The other people that were perusing the museum looked on in interest. "Or your manager. Whoever's in charge. I just need to deliver the letter and get paid, man."
He started picking his ear, flicking a ball of yellow ew onto the floor. "Nah, just pay the 5."
"Or you could stop being a prick and let the kid do his job," a cool, feminine voice said from behind him. I'd been giving him my undivided attention, so I hadn't expected the intrusion, and jumped, while the teller flinched something harsh.
It was a woman that looked to be in her mid to late thirties, with sleek blonde hair tied into a strict bun and glaring black eyes that were emphasized by a pair of smart glasses. Her outfit was purely business, a black pencil skirt meshed with a sleeved white blouse with a small black tie wrapped around her pale neck.
She was intimidating.
…She was also pretty hot. What can I say? I've got a bit of a librarian fetish and she ticked off most of my boxes in appearance.
She grabbed the teller's ear with a quick jab of her manicured hand, twisting it painfully. "I gave you a job because you needed money, nephew. I also warned you to treat people with respect. Remember?"
"He's trying to get in without paying!" He yelped, trying to pry the hand off of his ear. It was twisted further.
"This young man has a job to do. We don't make people who are here for business purposes pay, because they aren't here to browse. I've told you this already."
She released him, and as he grumbled and rubbed at his ear, she turned to me. Bending down, she struck out her hand.
"Kara Berks, curator of the Moro Museum. Apologies for Bruce, it's his first week and he has much to learn."
I shook her hand. "Jon Snow. Uh… courier of Shamouti Isle. It's- no… problem?" What do I even say in this situation? I was prepared to just give a little complaint but watching him get publicly embarrassed like that took the sails out of me like they weren't even there. I just felt bad for the guy now.
Not bad enough to do anything about it, mind you.
Her black eyes, which were cold and glaring, lit up like the nights sky. "Shamouti, really? Let me see the letter!"
Dumbly, I gave it to her. She ripped the envelope open right in front of me, and actually squealed when she finished reading, dancing a small jig in place. The teller, Bruce, stared at her dumbfounded, as if he'd never seen her act in such a manner before.
"Exciting news?" All Carol told me was that the letter was an invitation to the festival. Was it worth all that dancing to go to an event that happened annually and was open to the public?
"Very exciting!" She beamed. "Mayor Brinks has decided to allow me to study the orbs of Ice, Fire and Lightning in the aftermath of their annual festival, and has even given permission to make copies for the museum. Very exciting, indeed!"
Oh. Cool, I guess.
With a skip in her step, which seemed dangerous due to the heels she was wearing, she flounced back into the museum, telling me to wait at the front.
Awkwardly, I stood there, Bruce still rubbing his ear in annoyance. We didn't talk, what was there to even talk about? How funny it was to see his aunt give him a talking to? Yeah, that'd go well. So, no. I just stayed silent.
Kara returned with a small wad of cash, shoving the tan bills into my hand. I counted it, and grinned. She payed me 225, quite a bit more than I was expecting. If these were the regular fees I'm sure Carol wouldn't have had an issue with the job. Such a shame that Fearow was a bitch to her, otherwise she would have probably been quite happy with her lot in life.
Alas, her loss is my gain.
Depositing the money into my wallet, I exited the museum and released Winter. Hopping onto my Starter, we took off. Instead of going north, where I would return to Shamouti, we headed Southwest.
Towards Murcott Island.
.
Forty minutes later, I was sitting in the Murcott Pokémon Center.
Murcott wasn't that far away from Moro, and with Winters excitement to battle new Pokémon, along with my excitement to hopefully catch a Scyther, he gunned it. What should have taken about an hour of flight at a normal speed took half that time, but Winter, loveable Winter, tired himself out in the process.
So, here I was, in the Pokémon Center. Joy was in the process of healing him up, noting that while he wasn't well and truly exhausted, Pidgeots didn't sprint well for long periods of time, especially when they were recently evolved, and that we needed to be careful. I was aware of this, I just- eh, I got excited and it slipped my mind. At least it happened early on, so I'll remember to be cognizant of it in the future.
While waiting for Winter to be finished up, I was on the computer. I was looking up information on Scyther, and the best ways to handle them. Aside from their natural weaknesses due to their typing, there wasn't much to note.
Meh, much as it annoyed me, it couldn't be helped. The Pokénet wasn't like the internet, even though they had the same base. You couldn't find everything on here. The information availability was a lot more controlled, doubly so with regards to Pokémon, and while there were a few blogs that would give further information, not much else was available. Trainers kept their hard-earned secrets to themselves, only offering their knowledge to friends and family by word of mouth.
With that being the case, I settled for what I could do with what was available online.
I have no shame in admitting that even though I started my wasting of time watching video's of people battling, I ended up watching compilations of cutesy stuff.
It's a weakness.
.
Trekking through this forest did not go as I hoped.
In that a Scyther didn't just pop out and bow subserviently to me, awaiting a lifetime of servitude.
No. Instead, after grabbing Winter from Nurse Joy a half hour later, I released him to search from above while I searched from below. If I needed help, I'd blow my whistle. He was nearby at all times, so even though it was worrisome to be out here without him directly next to me, I wasn't put out.
It also helped that most of the Pokémon chose to avoid me.
But that was also the issue. They avoided me.
For the love of Go- wait, is it Mew now? Arceus? Lord Helix?!
…I'm in a weird way.
Anyways. Because they avoided me, I had been walking around with nothing to show for. Hell, there wasn't even a Caterpie! It's been two hours!
I AM COMPLAINING!
Winter screeched at that exact moment, and thus, my complaints came to a decisive halt.
For to my left side, in a small clearing that I had walked past at least four times already, stood a small group of three Pokémon, all of them being Scyther. Two were fighting, the third was looking on from the sideline. Upon further inspection, I saw that the one that was stood to the side was much thinner than the two fighters, which meant it was a female, if memory served. Well, that, and the bright pink crown of flowers on its head.
The two fighters were defined, large and muscular (for their species, at least) and trying to kill one another. They looked very similar, the only real differences between them being their myriad scars, as well as the signs of aging. The age of a Scyther could be determined by the length of their scythes, and one of the fighters had scythes that were well over a foot longer than the others. Both of their scars were notable, the older one with a littered body while the younger was relatively scar free, save for the line jutting directly over his right eye. It was pretty badass.
I've decided. Win or lose, I'm getting the one with the scar over his eye. He reminded me of Kakashi, or Scar from the Lion King. Best Disney movie there is. I'll fight you Frozen plebs.
My readings on Scyther, while sparse, were informative on some things, at least. One of which was that they respected power over anything, and when it came to humans, they respected trainers that wielded Pokémon that could defeat them. To them, such a trainer could only help them grow even more powerful. Even newly hatched from an egg, you had to beat the stuffing out of them before they'd listen to you.
Scyther were a bunch of battle crazies, man.
But with this information, there was only one goal in mind.
I had to kick both of their asses.
Well. I mean, Winter does. But I give orders! It counts for something.
Gripping the whistle strewn across my neck, I blew hard, the loud screeching noise catching the trio off guard, the fighters heads swiveling towards me aggressively. Hissing, they scraped their scythes in challenge at me.
I smiled.
"Gust."
Winter barreled down, landing between us, his wings stretched as far as they could. With a loud caw, he cried out his species' name, wind buffeting around his form, the torrent turning visible as it slammed into the trio.
The Scyther trio were properly freaking out, with fair reason. Regardless of them being partially Flying types, their main attribute was that of Bug, and Flying Type attacks trumped them in that regard. Type advantages could be circumvented, but wild Pokémon rarely knew how to do such a thing. Hell, I didn't even know how to do it, and I had the Pokénet for reference.
So yeah, they didn't react well.
The female Scyther just fell over, having fainted with one hit. The older one, more weathered and more experienced, tanked the attack, but quickly maneuvered so that he picked up the fainted female and bolted into the forest.
The last Scyther, the one I was interested in, did not tank it like his adversary did. He instead charged at Winter, twisting around to avoid the Gust, his scythes brightening with energy, Slash at the ready. He tried to hit Winter with the attack, but my Pidgeot shot into the air, Gust billowing out from his wings.
Scyther too shot into the air, though he was not as fast as Winter. Compensating for this, he boosted with a Quick Attack, slashing a claw directly into Winters chest. My Pokémon cried out, both in pain and in rage, and without my permission (though it was my next directive regardless) a sphere of green, draconic energy formed from his mouth, Twister blasting Scyther at a point-blank range.
The Bug type fell to the ground, a twitching and spasming mess. Winter glided back down, wincing slightly. I'd have to bring him back to Nurse Joy after this, to be on the safe side.
Scyther attempted to rise, rolling onto his stomach and digging his blades into the dirt, trying to pull himself up using them.
Winter did not want him to do this. And so, he jumped to the Bug Pokémon's side, using a wing to smack him back down.
Ah, but that was mean. I've taught him so well. It almost brings a tear to the eye.
"Scyther," I said, holding an empty Poké Ball. "My Pidgeot beat you, and your kin. Easily."
Winter cried his agreement, just as Scyther hissed out a "Ther!" of aggravation. Winter smacked him again and he shut up, grumbling.
With a grin, I enlarged the Poké Ball. "And with my help, you might be able to be even stronger than my Pidgeot."
By the glare that Winter was sporting, I was probably gonna regret that one. Ah well, the sacrifices one makes to succeed.
Scyther's head shimmied so that his narrow-eyed stare was directed right at me. He held the look for a few more moments, before he exhaled and groaned, body flopping onto the ground in a heap, nodding his head tiredly.
The sphere was summarily chucked at his body, and Scyther disappeared in a flash of red light. It then began to shake, denoting that even though Scyther gave in, he wasn't entirely done.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
Five.
Six-click
Hell yeah. I knelt down and picked up the ball, just staring. I decided that I wanted to nickname all of my Pokémon early on, to denote them as mine, but I hadn't really thought to hard on future names.
But this?
I figured this one out pretty quickly.
With claws shaped like curved swords, I thought back to another type of curved sword, noted in the same book series that I named Winter from.
In the hands of the Dothraki, these swords were mastered, used to pillage and destroy and conquer the eastern half of Essos. These swords were infamous, and my Scyther would eventually hold a similar prestige. Of this, I was certain.
"Welcome to the team, Arakh."
I'd like to reiterate.
Hell yeah.
Winter/Pidgeot – Male
Moves: Tackle, Gust, Sand Attack, Agility, Double Team, Whirlwind, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Steel Wing, Twister, Fly
Ability: Keen Eye
Arakh/Scyther – Male
Moves: Tackle, Quick Attack, Slash, Pursuit, False Swipe, Fury Cutter
Ability: Swarm
Jon Snow – Male
Date: Mar 20
Badges: N/A
Pokémon: Pidgeot, Scyther
Currency: 250
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