NOVEL WEB Chapter 20 - Old Veteran
Chapter 20 – Old Veteran
The following morning the uproar, inside the camp, had calmed down somewhat. Professor Hawes and his wife heard about the little skiff with my newly acquired Darmanitan. Hawes gave me an earful about camp safety procedures, apparently the expedition crew brought along a lot of sensitive equipment, so it wasn’t appreciated that I commenced a Pokémon battle in the middle of the campsite. Lenora displayed some type of resigned indignation scolding me for my second attempt at catching one of the Darmanitan, but not making any moves to deprive me of my latest catch. Perhaps me defeating Burgh assuaged some of her doubts on my worth as a trainer in her eyes.
Victini spent her time mentally communicating with Darmanitan. I requested her help in this matter since I didn’t want to get mauled before I could get a word in edgewise. She was supportive in aiding our newest friend by relieving some of his distress, after waking up in an unfamiliar world. She let me know that it was a slow-going process since Darmanitan was vigilant against Victini’s mind probing. So far, she’s figured out that he used to be a guard Pokémon who worked for the royals that lived inside the castle. Darmanitan’s primary duty was to guard against thieves and bandits who were looking to plunder riches and screen for potential ne’er-do-wells entering restricted corridors.
This would be my first time releasing Darmanitan from the confines of its poké ball. Yesterday evening the Pokémon was too tuckered out, after its rampage, to wake up from his slumber and have dinner with us. My Pokémon were a bit anxious to meet their new teammate. It isn’t only the chemistry between Pokémon and trainer that is important, but also how Pokémon on the same team interacted with one another. Typically, the strongest Pokémon formed the top of a team’s hierarchy becoming the de facto leader while the trainer wasn’t around. In my team that wasn’t really the case since Rena and Numsy are both at around the same level of strength and Victini’s childlike personality and insecurity meshed well with the both of them naturally leading to a sort of pseudo mentors/mentee relationship. Darmanitan’s presence in the team could throw a spanner into this safe learning environment. Therefore, I spent most of the previous day’s evening coaxing my team into giving Darmanitan a fair chance to win their trust.
Darmanitan’s dietary requirements are well known, but for this occasion I decided to spoil the entire team with a selection of berries instead of just mixing them into the dried stuff. We had plenty of reasons to celebrate after all. The addition of a new team member doesn’t happen every day, I wasn’t one of those trainers that followed the gotta catch ‘em all mantra. The amount of time and care each Pokémon took up wasn’t negligible. Only rich trainers and gym leaders could afford to feed and care for more than your standard team size worth of Pokémon. Not to mention the amount of individual attention each of them required. Gym leaders could afford to be a bit negligent of each individual’s personal needs since they had staff on hand to do that for them.
“Come on out, Darmanitan!”
My newest Pokémon partner appeared in a flash of light. The first thing he did was create distance between us while holding up his hands aggressively. Darmanitan surveyed his surroundings, his eyes resting on the bowl of food that I prepared for him. The rest of my team greeted the confused Pokémon.
“Num num!”
“Vuuuuul!”
“Vi Vi!”
Their enthusiastic greetings eased Darmanitan’s aggressive stance somewhat. The Pokémon sniffing the bowl of food presented to him with some apprehension.
“It’s okay pal, those are freshly preserved berries. I didn’t know what kinds you like, so there’s a bit of everything in there. Take your time eating, it must have been a long while since you’ve had anything to fill your stomach with.”
Darmanitan scrutinized me before looking back at his bowl. After some time, he hesitantly grabbed one of the cheri berries and gave it a cautionary sniff before plopping the berry in his mouth. The expression on his face shifted from a serious one to one with a smidge of satisfaction.
“That’s right, fill your stomach first. Then we can discuss what you want to do now that you are awake and capable of movement.”
I took this opportunity to scan him with the Pokédex.
Darmanitan, the Blazing Pokémon, and the evolved form of Darumaka. A Fire type. It has an internal temperature of 2,500 degrees, which gives it enough power to break a dump truck apart. Warning! Thanks to recent new discoveries this entry is incomplete.
‘Oh yeah… maybe I’ll get credited for rediscovering Zen mode.’
The remainder of breakfast proceeded to be quiet but amicable. Darmanitan, now certain I wasn’t going to press him into doing anything he didn’t want to, started enjoying his meal ravenously consuming the food presented to him. My other team members followed suit relishing this opportunity to dispose of their strict nutritional diets. When all their bowls were emptied, they sat there enjoying the afterglow of a well filled stomach.
“So… I am guessing that you are very confused about your whereabouts and the time period you now find yourself in Darmanitan.”
“Dar dar.”
“He agrees with your statement.”
“Well… by my estimations it has been around twenty-five hundred years since you went to sleep. The previous kingdom you defended has become a footnote in the annals of time and most of the castle’s lower levels have sunk deep into the desert sands.”
At that news Darmanitan huddled into itself deeply saddened by the revelation.
“It’s okay buddy that’s just how these things go. Time is the great equalizer and all that. Kingdoms come and go but the people and Pokémon living inside that nation left behind their descendants to inhabit this more modern Unova region.
That seemed to cheer him up a little. His body language tells me that he still needs a bit more comforting, so I decided to introduce him to the team.
“By now you must have become curious about all my partners sharing a meal with us. They are all great Pokémon to get to know and I am sure they all want to be your friend.”
This is Numsy, my first partner he likes to sleep in and is the most level-headed in the group.
“Num!”
And this is Rena, our resident princess.
“Pix”
And this is Victini, the mischief maker and liveliest in the team.
“Hi!” “Vi!”
I also pulled out the egg still held inside the incubator to show off to Darmanitan.
“And this little cutie hasn’t been born yet. So, we don’t have a name for him or her. Our group takes turns looking after the egg. Its mother lives deep inside the ruins of the castle and she entrusted her child to my care.”
The egg reveal seemed to shake Darmanitan to the core.
“Dar Dar Manitan!”
“He says to show him the mark.”
‘Even this darmanitan knows about the mark? How come everyone we encounter has intimate knowledge about secret Volcarona procedures? No wait, he used to work for the residents of the castle; he might have encountered one of the previous Volcarona that resided here.’
I rolled up my sleeve and exposed my right forearm to Darmanitan. The mark was still there but faded one had to know what to look for if they wanted to recognize the mark for what it was now. Darmanitan inched closer and gently held my right arm in his hands scrutinizing the faded mark after he gave it a quick sniff, and seemed satisfied enough quickly dropping his guarded demeanor.
“So, what do you say big guy? Do you want to partner up with us and travel around the world?”
“Manitan!”
“He agrees with your proposal and that you can count on him to do his best to protect a descendant of the Sun.”
With Darmanitan’s loud vocal agreement the rest of my team moved in to sate their curiosity over this new partner of ours. Numsy was still in awe at the strength of our new friend gushing out compliments at the older Pokémon even gifting Darmanitan one of his precious berries as a peace offering. Rena acted standoffish but still moved close enough to listen in on the conversation between Numsy and Darmanitan. Victini nestled herself in my hair content to just watch the new relationships developing.
It was at that moment that Aurea briefly announced herself before moving into our tent. The young professor obviously becoming more shameless the longer we interacted with her.
“Hmm good morning, Egon. I see you have already finished having breakfast. Oh my… have you already warmed relations with your new capture?”
“Darmanitan has agreed to travel with us. How’s your research coming along? We’ll be leaving for Nimbasa City in a short while.”
“Done! I came here to show Victini’s completed Pokédex entry to her. With her approval I’ll upload it to the lab’s database as a secret entry.”
Victini curiously floated over to look at Aurea’s own device to read her newest iteration in a line of embarrassing entries.
Victini the Victory Pokémon. This Pokémon brings victory. It is said that Trainers with Victini always win, regardless of the type of encounter. It creates an unlimited supply of energy inside its body, which it shares with those who touch it. When it shares the infinite energy it creates, that being’s entire body will be overflowing with power.
“Wait wait, that last sentence did you test that while I was away or something?”
“Yes! My Mincinno bravely volunteered to be the test subject for Victini’s powers. The little munchkin is still sleeping off from the energy high Victini gave him.”
I quickly addressed the subject of her research.
“She didn’t blackmail you or anything right? You don’t have to use your powers for anyone else’s sake except your own.”
“Vi Vi!” “She said that if I help her that I can have as many berries as I want.”
“That’s fine then just wait a moment.”
I readdressed the intruder in the tent who is running out of my hospitality.
“Don’t bribe my Pokémon! That’s bad etiquette especially from someone in your position. Not to mention the fact that Victini is already eating more than she should be, do you want her to blow up like a balloon?”
For the first time Aurea looked truly apologetic.
“Sorry! I know my curiosity should have limits, but sometimes I just can’t help myself. She is designated as number 000 in the Pokédex.”
“Well at least you know you are in the right profession… Come on guys, give me your empty food bowls, after washing them we’ll set out.”
Unfortunately, since I have now officially cut my working relationship with Aurea, the expedition was no longer obliged to provide transport for my traveling needs. This wasn’t as much of a problem since some extra exercise would do my body good. Not to mention the fact that it has been a while since I’ve locked eyes with other wandering trainers, getting into the grind again would do us good.
The road towards Nimbasa City was fully paved and patrolled by rangers so getting there would be a cinch, no need to take out any maps for this road trip. Not to mention this would give me some time preparing Darmanitan for his first encounter with a city as large as Nimbasa. We walked down the road as I was busy explaining everything about everything to him.
“Okay, so trainers like me are people who have taken up Pokémon training as a profession. Pokémon training entails capturing wild Pokémon and getting stronger together to compete against others for money and recognition. The device we use for this is called a poké ball.”
I showed off his own ball to him as a teaching prop.
“Dar…”
He motioned for me to continue.
“Poké balls can capture and store Pokémon. Trainers use this as a convenient tool to carry their partners with them wherever they go. Did humans use something familiar during your time?”
“Dar Dar.”
He gave me an affirming nod.
“He says its functionality resembles the staves the guardians used to use.”
“Darmanitan must be referring to the aura guardians. They are a secretive organization, composed of humans capable of wielding a type of energy called Aura. It is the same energy the Pokémon riolu and lucario use to perform attacks.”
“Vi Vi!?” “Humans can use moves!?”
“Some humans can. As I said, they guard their secrets closely. There’s only a single human that I know of that is trained in the use of aura abilities and he lives all the way over in the Sinnoh region. Anyway, Darmanitan I have been wondering is it okay to give you a nickname? There is a good chance that we’ll encounter other Darmanitan on our journeys and I don’t want to get confused.”
This was more for my benefit than Darmanitan’s. Any Pokémon would instinctively know who I was referring to when calling out their species’ name. Intention is more important than words when communicating with Pokémon. You could be talking in a completely made-up language, and they would still understand you.
“Nitan.”
“He says if it’s a good name that he will consider it.”
“Hmm… How about Olive?”
Darmanitan shakes his head to let me know his refusal.
“Paprika?”
Shake
“Parsley?”
Shake
“Basil?”
Darmanitan was about to refuse again when Numsy popped out of his ball. Obviously looking around for the aforementioned food items. When he didn’t find any, he looked up to me expecting me to feed him extra for dragging him outside of his poké ball.
“Sorry Numsy, I was trying to come up with a good name for Darmanitan.”
“Num…”
We were currently standing on route four’s main road towards Nimbasa City. Built entirely out of asphalt concrete, but as expected from a road that’s been built in an arid climate surrounded by wild Pokémon, maintenance was rarely done. The road was littered with potholes and also regular holes, probably made by some of the ground types that live in the area.
“Dar?!”
Darmanitan, who has been walking beside me, got his hand cut by a sharper piece of rock. The Pokémon usually walked with both his hands and feet leaving him vulnerable for this type of terrain. Naturally, being a Pokémon afforded him some protection, the sharp piece of rock barely scratched the surface of his skin.
“Maybe we can get you some gloves over in Nimbasa. If you are going to be walking with me on the asphalted streets of big cities, the roads are going to be a bother.”
“Manitan!”
“He liked that name!”
“What Nimbasa?”
“No, gloves.”
“Do you want to be called Glove? It is an unusual name, but oddly fitting. Okay! From now on you will be known as Glove the darmanitan.”
“Dar Manitan!”
“Let’s keep on going, now that I have to factor another team member depleting our supplies, we’ll have to make it to Nimbasa before tomorrow evening. Glove you rest in your poké ball, okay? I don’t want your hands getting all scratched up by this poorly maintained road.”
The rest of route 4 was oddly devoid of trainers to challenge. At first, I was confused until a realization struck me. Who would want to linger around inside a desert environment waiting for passing trainers to challenge? Only certain specialists would want to have their battles here and I certainly don’t want to intentionally lose my money while battling at a disadvantage against rock and ground type specialists. My ruminations proved true when I eventually locked eyes with someone whom I expect to be some type of construction worker. He had all the safety gear on him not mentioning the fact that his vehicle parked behind him was filled with power tools.
“The name’s Gus and I challenge you to a two-on-two Pokémon battle!”
‘Guess I am not getting out of this one…’
“That’s fine, but ehm… don’t you have a job to do? There are a lot of holes on this side of the road.”
“A fair point you are making there youngster, but you see the wild Pokémon don’t like it when this here road becomes too pristine. So, we maintenance boys all got together and decided to only fix the holes that could lead to serious physical injury.”
‘Sure… so you can spend your working hours challenging rookie trainers and earning some extra spending money. Well, he’s in for a surprise if he thinks he’ll get an easy victory off me.’
We moved to the side of the road, to avoid damaging this decrepit road even further.
“My name is Egon from Lavaridge, I have two gym badges so the wager will be to the amount of sixty pokédollars.”
“That’s fine by me, but don’t go crying to your momma when you lose all your allowance for the day.”
‘This guy… I am all for a bit of trash talk but this person is taking it too far. Especially since I am still a minor by Unovan standards.’
“Would you mind if one of my newer team members watches the battle from the sidelines? He’s still new to the whole recreational battling scene.”
“Sure sure, let’s get on with it.”
I released Glove from his ball. The worker’s face paled at the sight of this towering Pokémon.
“Glove, I want you to experience what modern battling is all about. So, watch closely, okay? Can you look after the egg?”
“Dar.” Giving a nod of assent he took a seat somewhere out of the way but within eye and ear sight. Carefully holding onto the incubator while doing so.
I was betting this guy was sporting a team of rock or ground types to take advantage of the terrain. My best lead in either case would be Numsy.
“Go Numsy!”
“Go Drillburr!”
‘Hmm interesting.’
Drilbur the Mole Pokemon, It's a digger, using its claws to burrow through the ground. It causes damage to vegetable crops, so many farmers have little love for it. It can dig through the ground at a speed of 30 mph. It could give a car running aboveground a good race.
“This is my partner in battles and work. Those claws can get the job done lickety-split.”
“Numsy’s the best at boiling water for the tea. I don’t have to do anything except for holding my all-purpose canteen over his hump.”
‘Yes, my brag was better.’
“…”
“Lava plume!”
“Sandstorm!”
The man was obviously trying to maximize the effectiveness of his surroundings. No doubt trying to fulfill the conditions to activate one of Drilbur’s abilities. And seemingly deeming it worth getting hit in the process. The scarlet flames were hampered somewhat by the billows of sand Drilbur was creating but not enough to avoid being able to get hit. The mole Pokémon’s fur got singed after taking Numsy move head on.
“Our speed is the greatest during a sandstorm! Go dig underground!”
“Magnitude!”
Magnitude was a finicky move that has fallen out of use ages ago thanks to its unreliability. We favored the use of bulldoze as a replacement since it was great at changing the surface area of the battlefield to our advantage. However, there is one thing magnitude can do that bulldoze is unable to and that is hit targets that hide underground. Not only that, but the move also becomes even more powerful against subterranean targets. Magnitude’s power changed depending on a multitude of factors; this one seemed fairly powerful though.
“Nooo! Drilbur!”
Both me and Guss concluded that the tectonic waves rocking the sandy depths must have knocked out his Drilbur. He was about to get his shovel when I volunteered our rescue services to dig him out.
“Don’t worry about digging out your Pokémon. Numsy here can get him out, no sweat at all. Isn’t that so bud?”
“Num num!”
Numsy went to work digging out his helpless Drilbur while we watched. While Numsy was busy me and him talked about what happened.
“So that Numsy of yours is also a ground type? I’ll be honest, I am not that familiar with foreign Pokémon.”
“Yep.”
It was common knowledge not to go underground against Pokémon that naturally learned moves such as earthquake or magnitude. If Guss had been more informed the battle would still be up for grabs.
The awkward silence was broken by my little camel hauling up the dazed off Drilbur. Guss returned his fallen Pokémon and threw out his second competitor.
“Go Boldore!”
A rock-like Pokemon with red crystals cropping out at its front and back appeared in a flash of light.
Boldore, the Ore Pokémon and the evolved form of Roggenrola. Because Boldore cannot contain its massive energy, orange crystals form on its body. They glow when Boldore's energy overflows. Just one crystal fragment would provide enough fuel for a hundred dump trucks.
‘This must be his ace in the hole. Not many trainers carry around a second stage Pokémon on this route.’
The sandstorm was still raging on the surroundings making it almost effortless for this weather effect to carry on. Or perhaps we were inside an actual sandstorm. It has been proven that with the assistance of sandstorms rock types gain a microscopic layer of sand particles that protects them from most forms of ranged moves. So, this prospective battle just got a whole lot more difficult.
“Mud bomb!”
“Power gem!”
Both Numsy and Boldore traded blows. Boldore’s crystal gems lit up and fired off a series of successive rays of light while Numsy countered with his own move shooting a hard-packed mud ball at the stationary Boldore. The moves impacted both Pokémon equally hard. However, due to Numsy’s shorter stature he was the one that got blown away by the blast.
My buddy got up pretty fast though, the power gem attack not being all that damaging by my estimations. He could take at least another two of those before being knocked out. I tried coming up with a strategy to counteract our opponent’s defenses, but I realized that our only way forward is to keep trading blows like this. The presence of the sandstorm would allow Boldore to weather my super effective hits and its physical defenses were nothing to sneeze at either.
“Let’s go Numsy, we'll have to rough it out with this piece of rock!”
The battle concluded with Numsy being declared the winner. Both Pokémon were on the end of their ropes. When it came time for their final exchange Numsy’s willpower trumped Boldore’s sturdy defenses. Guss handed out our winnings and was very sportsmanlike about the whole affair. He offered to drive us all the way to Nimbasa City in exchange for some stories about the Hoenn region.
“And that’s why you should never swim in the sea routes inside the region or else you’ll end up Sharpedo bait. Fresh water is fairly safe though.”
“Hah! Really! For us in Unova it’s the complete opposite. Fresh water is the most dangerous, unless you are absolutely sure there are no basculin in the waters you should stick to dry land. The coastal areas are safe enough though.”
Guss, despite being a slacker at his job, was good company and very informative about the region.
“What is the fastest way for a lone trainer without much money to reach the celestial tower? My friend invited me over; she has been welcomed to stay there with the mediums.”
“Well… of course teleportation services are the fastest way, but also the most expensive. What’s your budget like?”
“The Lavaridge gym is sponsoring me, but they only give me money for food and board. Everything else I have to pay for on my own. I have about twenty-four thousand P to spare.”
“That’ll get you a one way teleportation to the celestial tower no problem.”
“I also have to pay for my plane ticket back home. I already looked it up, second class will cost me twenty thousand.”
“A cheap way of travelling for four thousand hmm… You could try riding on the Battle Subway.”
“The Battle Subway?”
“It’s the public transportation all Unovans use to travel on the cheap. Nimbasa City holds the honor of housing the Gear Station, the platform where all subway cars come through. Those subway cars can ferry you to most of the major cities in Unova including Mistralton City.”
“And what is this battling part of this subway?”
“The operation is run by two brothers Ingo and Emmet; we call them the subway bosses. Those two had the ingenious idea of combining their two great passions: trains and battling. Their subway takes you where you need to go and at the same time provides a great battling experience for trainers who are up to the challenge. A fair warning to you though, it’s a tournament style double battling operation with your partner chosen at random. The winners get to face the subway bosses themselves. Most of the trainers taking on the challenge have at least seven badges so as to not hinder their partner’s chances at victory.”
“Can I also board the subway just to get to Mistralton?”
“For sure, it’s about as cheap as you can travel nowadays. A ticket that gets you all the way to Mistralton is going to set you back three thousand pokédollars.”
The man got quiet after that, we both just enjoyed watching the sun setting, basking in its orange glow. The egg was secured while Numsy was sleeping off a day’s battling. The oran berries I fed him did the trick of getting him into shape, before I could get him looked after by a professional inside a Nimbasa City Pokémon center.
‘As soon as we reach Nimbasa city I should go looking for a tutor so Numsy can learn some stronger ground type moves. Master Quagsire wasn’t able to teach us the next set because his trainer gave up her journey to start a bathhouse.’
Nimbasa City was obviously a city centered around entertainment. The famous rondez-view ferris wheel was visible before we even entered the city proper. Because the sun already set, all the street lights had been turned on and it made for an amazing view. It also held the world’s largest sports stadium which the locals just refer to as Big Stadium. Nimbasa is the birthplace of Pokémon Musicals, quite unlike the extremely competitive contests we in Hoenn are familiar with. Pokémon musicals are an option for the Pokémon who want to shine on stage without the pressure of a competition.
At the moment I couldn’t care less about that though. Drilbur’s sandstorm did a number on my attire, every nook and cranny was filled with sand. The thing I wanted to do most right now was take a shower and head to bed. Guss was nice enough to let me off at the nearest Pokémon center. I was mostly asleep by the time we made it. Guss had to shake me up good to get me to wake up.
“This is you kid. Good luck on your journey. Maybe I’ll see you competing in the big leagues someday.”
“It’s been a pleasure Guss. When I get old enough to participate in the Ventress Conference I’ll surely make it back to Unova to leave my mark you can count on that.”
With a spring in my step, I entered the Pokémon center for a good night’s rest.