5 Chapter 5: Onward and Upward
[General POV]
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In the morning, he was woken up by the sounds of punches and kicks to see what was going on outside. He saw Kubfu, furiously working out and hitting a tree with a flurry of strikes. The poor tree looked so battered as Kubfu put in the final blow with a rock smash, destroying the tree to bits of splinters. While Kubfu was panting, Eli came near him and patted him on the head. "What are you doing so early in the morning?" Eli smiled as he gave Kubfu some water.
Kubfu snatched the bottle as he began chugging it, which earned a small laugh from Eli. "Let's get some breakfast, and we'll start today's training with your daily run with a twist." Kubfu nodded as he waited patiently while Eli prepared his food. Eating food as always was a quiet affair, as everyone was eager to start training, especially a certain little bear. After they quickly scarfed down their meal, they started their day off with training. "Ok, Kubfu, go run as much as you can around here. We'll train your agility. Try to run on the trees and not fall off. Rookidee chase after him and try to hit him as much as possible while also dodging the branches. So you both can learn control and agility. I'll monitor your progress." Kubfu nodded as he dashed into the trees, with Rookidee following in hot pursuit.
While Kubfu jumped from branch to branch, sometimes pulling down other branches and letting them go to try to hit Rookidee, with the assistance of Tailwind, Rookidee was just faster realizing this. Kubfu just gave up attacking as a whole and started defending. Eli started realized that his Kubfu was more calm and collected than he had been on the first day of their journey, maybe because of their training or because Kubfu was maturing. Whatever it was, he liked the improvement he saw in Kubfu.
As the exercise went on, both of his Pokémon started getting hit here and there, signifying their exhaustion, and Eli beckoned his Pokémon to come back. "Good job, both of you. We'll have this exercise whenever the terrain allows for it. Now, take a 30-minute break, and then, Rookidee, you move onto training Drill Peck. I think you'll be able to get it to Expert Rank in these two days, and Kubfu, you will try to complete the first step of the Scroll of Waters in these two days before we arrive at Viridian." Rookidee and Kubfu nodded as they went their separate ways near the camp to train.
Kubfu began meditating, and to not disturb him, Eli made his way to Rookidee. "Ok, Rookidee, let's check your progress on Drill Peck." Rookidee chirped in agreement as he flew up high, and while descending down in a spiral motion with his beak glowing as he met a tree head on, he penetrated right through the tree bark. "It has definitely improved; by tomorrow you should have it on expert rank. Keep on training; next we will start to train Hone Claws and Tailwind." Rookidee nodded and began to train his Drill Peck and Tailwind combo.
With nothing to do, he decided to check what tournament Tristan had been talking about on his Pokédex. [Viridian Kanto Rookie Tournament: We are excited to bring to you the annual Viridian Kanto Rookie Tournament. This will be a tournament in which new trainers will compete against each other for prizes. It is to be noted that only the top 3 will get prizes, and as such, we urge all trainers to try their best. Good luck to all the trainers -Pokémon League Association.
As he finished reading the announcement, Eli decided to enter the tournament, as his Pokémon were well trained but lacked true battle experience, and this tournament would allow them to get the experience that they needed. He checked and found out that the registrations would close in 2 days and the tournament would begin in 10 days. 'Enough time to train hard enough to dominate the tournament.' Eli thought as he began approaching where Kubfu was training.
Kubfu had made massive progress on the first stage of the scroll; he could enter 'The Flow State' as Eli started dubbing it more often. While he couldn't do so at will, he had made considerable progress. Eli estimated he would have the first stage down by tomorrow. "That's enough for now, Kubfu. Now start practicing move mastery, and then you will have a friendly spar with Rookidee before we go out to battle some wild Pokémon." Kubfu nodded as he began training in Brick Break and Bulk Up.
While his two Pokémon were busy, Eli decided to start planning what he wanted to do in the long term with his team. Unlike in the games, he could have more than six Pokémon if he raised his trainer ranking, and with his aspirations, that was a given. So he decided he wanted at least 8 Pokémon to form his team, while he had Urshifu for a fast yet bulky sweeper, Corviknight for bulky sweeps, and Tailwind support. He wanted another tank or support, a fast assassin or sweeper, a dragon killer, and other roles that were yet to be filled. He had a rough idea of what Pokémon fit the role, but he didn't know how to get them or where to get them.
'No use mulling about it now; I'll cross that bridge when I get there.' done with contemplating team building. Eli quietly observed his Pokémon training for a while before he stood up. "Alright both of you, time for you guys to spar; remember no lethal moves; we still have to go and train on wild Pokémon and Rookidee; you can't fly too high to make it fair for Kubfu." Both of his Pokémon nodded as they squared each other up. "Alright, ready? GO!" As he finished shouting, both of his Pokémon went into action. Rookidee began with Taunt, predicting Kubfu would use Bulk Up, which he was spot on. Kubfu now unable to do anything but attack, prepare a Brick Break, and charge at Rookidee, who set up a Tailwind but had to take a Brick Break because of it. Rookidee took quite a bit of damage from the hit, but because it wasn't buffed, he could still take a few hits.
Rookidee, with the help of Tailwind, started zipping past Kubfu as he started using hit-and-run tactics, and Kubfu, with his lack of range, was helpless until Eli called an end to the battle. "Rookidee wins, congratulations, and Kubfu, don't be disheartened by the loss while, as a Kubfu, you don't have any ranged options, and as an Urshifu, you have quite a few, so focus on your training. Winning and losing are two sides of the same coin." Kubfu tried to put on an encouraging face, but Eli could see that the little fighter was still disheartened. "Alright, let's get on with the day by fighting wild Pokémon." He heard a cry and chirp of agreement as he packed up and set off with his Pokémon.
While outside the clearing, he saw many Pokémon, but none looked like worthy opponents for his Pokémon, and the wild Pokémon, realising this, stayed out of his way. They made it quite far into the main road, but he found no wild Pokémon for him to fight with until he noticed a Pidgeotto and a Nidoran♂. He scanned them to see if they were worth fighting for.
Pokémon: Pidgeotto
Lvl: 18
Type: Normal Flying
Ability: Keen Eye
Gender: Female
Potential: Shallow Silver
Moves: Peck, Leer, Sand Attack,Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Twister
(Innate Talent) Aerial Ace [E]
Pokémon: Nidoran
Lvl: 15
Type: Poison
Ability: Poison Point
Gender: Male
Potential: Silver
Moves: Poison Sting, Leer, Peck, Double Kick,
(Innate Talent) Horn Attack
While these two Pokémon weren't weak, they weren't quite strong either, and as such, he instructed his Pokémon to battle them. "Alright, Rookidee, try to stall out the Pidgeotto as much as you can until Kubfu joins you; it seems like it evolved recently. Use that to your advantage while it's unused to its new body. Kubfu, try to take out the Nidoran as fast as possible, but make sure to not hit its horn or you'll be poisoned." His two Pokémon nodded as they went into battle. Before engaging Rookidee, set up Tailwind for them, giving them a burst of speed and the element of surprise.
While Rookidee was going toe to toe with the Pidgeotto four levels above him, Kubfu began blitzing the Nidoran, who couldn't even fight back, and when the Pidgeotto tried to help her friend, she was cut off by Rookidee. With this dynamic, the Nidoran quickly fell as Kubfu and Rookidee moved onto defeating the Pidgeotto.
While the Pidgeotto was dealing with Rookidee, she didn't see Kubfu approach her from behind before taking a leap and landing a massive brick break onto the Pidgeotto's wing, essentially making the fight already won. With the combined might of Kubfu and Rookidee, not even a level gap was enough. "Good job both of you." Eli praised his Pokémon as he checked their statuses.
Pokémon: Kubfu
Lvl: 16
Type: Fighting
Ability: Inner Focus
Gender: Male
Potential: Gold
Moves: Rock Smash, Leer, Endure, Focus Energy, Aerial Ace, Reversal
(Innate Talent) Brick Break (Innate Talent) Bulk Up
Pokémon: Rookidee
Lvl: 16
Type: Flying
Ability: Keen Eye
Gender: Male
Potential: Shallow Gold
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Taunt, Fury Attack, Pluck
(Innate Talent) Drill Peck (Innate Talent) Tailwind
'Not bad' Eli praised in his mind that both of his Pokémon leveled up and learned new moves. He especially had an idea for the move reversal, but as Rookidee leveled up faster and faster, he came to a dawning realization: he didn't have any items to give Rookidee to absorb energy from while evolving. It just wasn't possible to get Rookidee an item because of his dire finances, so he resolutely decided to break it to the little Raven. "Rookidee, I'm very sorry. Even though you are quite close to evolving, I just can't give you an item to raise your potential right now. I'm very sorry." Eli spoke with a lot of guilt for not being able to maximize Rookidee's growth. Rookidee did look upset at the notion, but he accepted it as it wasn't his trainer's fault; he just didn't seem to have the finances to do so. Seeing Rookidee being so understanding, he gave his little raven a big hug. "Thank you for forgiving me. I promise to give you many items before you evolve into a Corviknight."
Rookidee looked embarrassed as he tried to get out of his trainer's embrace, whom he thought at the moment was acting like an idiot. Eli chuckled it off, and they began once again their hunt for strong Pokémon to fight.
This went on for a while until it became nightfall, and they set up camp again. Seeing his Pokémon's growth, he couldn't be more proud.
Pokémon: Kubfu
Lvl: 17
Type: Fighting
Ability: Inner Focus
Gender: Male
Potential: Gold
Moves: Rock Smash, Leer, Endure, Focus Energy, Aerial Ace, Reversal
(Innate Talent) Brick Break (Innate Talent) Bulk Up
Pokémon: Rookidee
Lvl: 17
Type: Flying
Ability: Keen Eye
Gender: Male
Potential: Shallow Gold
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Taunt, Fury Attack, Pluck
(Innate Talent) Drill Peck (Innate Talent) Tailwind
Both his Pokémon were at level 17, and Rookidee neared Evolution more and more. As they finished their meals, the Pokémon exhausted went to sleep while Eli ran by what happened today until he finally was exhausted enough to sleep as well.
{The next morning}
Eli once again woke up and found Kubfu not by his side. Sighing, he got out of the tent only to find his Pokémon having a light spar, but what was different was Kubfu. He looked very focused, taking in every detail of the battle, so some would still mistake him for a statue. Rookidee, seeing this as an opportunity, decided to rush with a Tailwind-boosted Drill Peck to end the fight, but even though Rookidee neared Kubfu, he remained unmoving as Eli saw what was happening. He wanted to stop the fight, but his gut feeling told him to believe in Kubfu, so he did.
In the last second, when Rookidee neared Kubfu, time seemed to slow down as Kubfu made a fluid side step to the left before landing a big rock smash onto Rookidee, launching the raven into the tree. The movement looked so flawless and perfectly executed that not only Eli, the bystander, but also Rookidee were shocked. "Kubfu, you did it!!! You mastered the first step. Congratulations!" Eli was elated as he hugged his little bear, and Rookidee congratulated him too, although he was a bit sore thanks to the punch.
"Ok, so how about a change of plans since Rookidee is very close to evolving and you have learned the first step? Why don't we just eat and then head out and battle Pokémon till lunch and reach Viridian City by night?" His Pokémon nodded as they quickly ate their meal and headed out once again. Eli was happy, as his Pokémon had made considerable leaps and bounds in training, and he couldn't wait for the tournament to see how the opposing trainers looks after seeing his two little monsters.
On the way, he noticed a Nidorina and Nidorino in his path with a familiar Nidoran ♂. 'He's the same one I saw with the Pidgeotto; don't tell me he's here for revenge.' As he realised it, so did his Pokémon, who looked ready to fight.
Pokémon: Nidorina
Lvl: 19
Type: Poison
Ability: Poison Point
Gender: Female
Potential: Deep Silver
Moves: Poison Sting, Leer, Peck, Double Kick, Focus Energy
(Innate Talent) Horn Attack [E]
Pokémon: Nidorino
Lvl: 20
Type: Poison
Ability: Rivalry
Gender: Male
Potential: Deep Silver
Moves: Poison Sting, Leer, Peck, Double Kick, Focus Energy
(Innate Talent) Horn Attack [E] (Innate Talent) Poison Jab [E]
Eli was immediately on edge, seeing the stats of the two monsters in front of him. "You two be careful; these guys are strong. Go for the weaker one first, the Nidorina, together." The Pokémon nodded as they were on edge too. As the Nidorina dashed forward to fight, the Nidorino was using Focus Energy to buff himself up. "Taunt on Nidorino Rookidee, while you Bulk Up Kubfu." Rookidee quickly got a taunt off of Nidorino, while before Nidorina got close, Kubfu was able to use Bulk Up twice. "Now, Tailwind and Brick Break dodge it's stinger." As Kubfu dashed to intercept the Nidorina, he got a sudden bout of speed thanks to the Tailwind set up by Rookidee and got a surprise attack on the Nidorina, chopping her on the side, which made her fly a few feet. "Good job Rookidee now, Drill Peck, Kubfu Focus Energy!" In distress, the Nidorino was making a dash towards Eli's two Pokémon, but it was too late. With one Drill Peck, Nidorina was down and out for the count.
In a fit of rage, Nidorino forgot about the two Pokémon. He continued dashing towards the greatest enemy, the one who harmed his son and his friend, the one who hurt his wife, that darn trainer. With poison constantly leaking from his horn, he charged straight at Eli, hoping to end him with his Horn Attack.
At the same time, the world seemed frozen for the two of Eli's Pokémon. They tried to intercept Nidorino, but he was too fast. That was until Rookidee urged Kubfu to throw him fast in the direction of the Nidorino before it was too late. Entering the flow state, Kubfu without hesitation grabbed Rookidee, lined up his shot, and threw him all in less than a second. Rookidee was praying his partner's throw was on point; he prepared Drill Peck. He closed his eyes for one moment, and in the next, his beak met Nidorino's thick hide before drilling through it and making a deep piercing hole through it.
All that happened in less than 10 seconds as Eli stood there, shocked. He saw his life flash before his eyes, and he had an epiphany: he was in fact in the Pokémon world; he could in fact die. This wasn't a game anymore; this was his life. Rookidee and Kubfu hurried to their trainer, worried if he was okay or not. Eli tried consoling his two Pokémon, but he himself was quite shaken.
Both his Pokémon were filled with resolution to never let something like this happen again; both of them had one collective thought: 'Never again.' While in an emotionally distressed state, Rookidee began glowing with a bright white light, his body expanding and growing larger. It hurt to look at the bright white light, so both Eli and Kubfu had to look away, but when the light died down, they saw their friend, who had gone through a drastic change.
His tail and dorsal feathers had a navy coloration, and his breast feathers were blue-gray. Matte black feathers accented his wingtips, ruff, and face, which were adorned with a mask-like crest. His beak and three-toed feet were grey, and his talons were pitch black. One thing that didn't change were his eyes, a deep red that seemed to stare into your soul, rimmed beneath with a white patch.
Eli was elated, forgetting his near-death experience for a moment as he hugged and congratulated his little crow. "Congratulations Corvisquire!!!" Eli was so happy he could cry. The bird, giving his trainer some leeway, cawed as he leaned into the hug. "Come on, join in, Kubfu." He urged his little bear to join in too. Kubfu rejected the notion at first until he finally caved in to peer pressure and joined in making Corvisquire and Eli laugh, which made Kubfu go even more red.
"You guys are not just my partners; you are my family." Eli spoke with emotion as he brought his Pokémon together tighter. His Pokémon agreed, making a sound as if to say, 'You didn't have to tell us for us to know.' "Haha, I know, I know," and suddenly they went quiet. While they were just enjoying the silence, they heard the distressed cries of the Nidoran as he tried to help his parents. He had even brought Sitrus berries to heal them.
Feeling guilty, Eli decided to help out as he patched up Nidorino, fed him the berries, and brought Nidorina next to her husband so they could heal together. After he was certain they were okay and regained consciousness, he sincerely apologised to them, as he felt guilty that he was at fault. The two Nidos and their child didn't mind, with the law of the jungle being almost an instinct for them. He bade the family a farewell as they made their way to Viridian City, which was very close at this point from what Eli saw on his map.
It was dusk when they finally made it into Viridian City. The city itself was magnificent, a stark contrast to the games, with it being huge and littered with buildings in the truest sense—a concrete jungle. There were 3 buildings that stood out: a red-roofed one, a blue-roofed one, and a brown-roofed one—the Pokémon Centre. the Poké Mart and the Viridian City gym.
Without thinking, he made his way into the Pokémon Centre and gave his Pokémon to Nurse Joy to heal after showing his Alliance ID. After he got back his Pokémon, he took a room in the Pokémon Centre as he crashed into bed with his Pokémon. In the heat of the moment, he had completely forgotten to scan his Pokémon after the battle, so he did just that.
Pokémon: Corvisquire
Lvl: 19
Type: Flying
Ability: Keen Eye
Gender: Male
Potential: Shallow Gold
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Taunt, Fury Attack
(Innate Talent) Drill Peck [E] (Innate Talent) Tailwind
Pokémon: Kubfu
Lvl: 20
Type: Fighting
Ability: Inner Focus
Gender: Male
Potential: Gold
Moves: Rock Smash, Leer, Endure, Focus Energy, Aerial Ace, Reversal
(Innate Talent) Brick Break (Innate Talent) Bulk Up
Seeing the stats of his Pokémon, he couldn't be more happy. "Now that we've checked in, let's go to the Black Market to sell off these four Pokémon and get you two some new moves." Hearing his plan, his two Pokémon nodded as they went out of the Pokémon Centre. As they made their way down an alley, he saw a beggar on the street who seemed off. He was a beggar, yet he wasn't as skinny, and he also saw that the shadow in his shadow was acting strange, so he tried to scan it.
Pokémon: Mismagius
Lvl: 49
Type: Ghost
Ability: Levitate
Gender: Female
Potential: Shallow Gold
Moves: Mystical Fire, Power Gem, Curse [E], Magical Leaf
(Innate Talent) Phantom Force [E] (Innate Talent) Shadow Ball [E]
(TM) Psychic, (TM) Thunder Wave [E], (TM) Dark Pulse, (TM) Dazzling Gleam, (TM) Will-O-Wisp [E], (TM) Poltergeist [E]
'What the f*ck is this monster?' Eli shouted in his mind while keeping an outwardly relaxed expression. As he got nearer to the beggar, he saw the shadow become more ominous. Before things got out of hand, he gave the "beggar" some bills as he asked, "You know a place to sell Pokémon?" "Through the alley, take a left, then right, and then straight, and you'll be there," the man gruffly responded, taking the bills. Eli quickly left as he made his way to the location.
As he entered the gap in the wall, he saw what he had somewhat expected: a dimly lit area with all sorts of shady people with Pokémon. 'Well, time to become a businessman' Eli thought as he walked straight towards a building with a huge sign called "Hunter Guild." Where new opportunities awaited him.
The moment he entered the guild, he was assaulted by the smell of alcohol and sweat, coupled with the rowdy atmosphere of the guild as a whole. He went to the reception desk. "Welcome to the Hunter Guild; how may I help you?" the receptionist asked in her soft voice. "I want to register for the guild and sell some Pokémon I have on me." Eli spoke in a hushed tone, his eyes betraying nothing. "Ok, then, sir, what do you want your name registered under the Hunter Guild to be?" The receptionist asked Eli. "Wilbur Bon Vide," Eli replied in a curt manner. "Ok, Mr. Bon Vide, here's your Hunter Card. Welcome to the guild, and that'll be 1500P. Eli paid the woman the money as he checked his card.
Name: Wilbur Bon Vide
Rank-Rank D Hunter
Branch: Viridian Branch.
"Now what I have with me are an A-rank Spinarak Lvl 12 and an A-rank Weedle Lvl 9 with its Hidden Ability. Run Away so Sniper Beedril in the future, an A-rank Mankey Level 15 Hidden Ability Defiant as well as Low Kick on Expert Rank, and an A-rank Rattata Level 13." He listed off the Pokémon he had on him. Which shocked the receptionist.
"Sorry, sir, I can't buy these Pokémon off of you; some of them are very valuable, so you'll have to meet him on the second floor." The receptionist explained. Eli nodded as he made his way to the second floor, which was much more organised and clean, in contrast to the disgusting first floor. He knocked on the door, which had the sign Manager, when he heard a gruff "Come in.". He entered the office, where he saw a buff, middle-aged man with deep red hair and a scar on his left eye. He was wearing a business suit, and his aura screamed strong. With a plaque on his side titled 'Magnus Vanguard, Manager of the Viridian City Branch'
"So you are the Wilbur Bon Vide that Kelly spoke of? Take a seat; we shall discuss the prices of the Pokémon you've brought. Let's get the Pokémon with only good potential: 70,000 P for the Spinarak and 50,000 P for the Rattata. However, if what you say is true for the other 2 Pokémon, I will be willing to pay 175,000 P for the weedle and 120,000 P for the mankey." The imposing man gave his offer. Eli, not showing the slightest signs of backing down, gave his own point of view. "That Weedle is worth more; with 2 evolutions left, he's all but guaranteed to get to S rank or even SS rank. I am willing to sell him for 200,000 P, and the Mankey's Hidden Ability is very coveted and quite strong too, so I want 150,000 P for him."
After continuously haggling for 15 minutes, they came to an agreement of 190,000P for the weedle and 140,000P for the mankey. Closing the deal, Eli left the guild with 448,500P, subtracting how much it took for the registration. As he left the shady area, making sure he wasn't followed, he made his way to the Poké Mart, where he bought all sorts of items, from stocking up on healing items to training items and TMs.
Eli's Items:
• 10 Poké Balls
• 5 great balls
• 15 Ultraballs
• 15 full heals
• 20 hyper-potions
• Training gear set (weights, balls, slam balls, weighted bags, battle ropes, kettlebells, fitness tyres, sand bells, etc.)
TMs:
•Roost
• U-Turn (2)
• Ice/Thunder/ Fire Punch
•Protect (8)
• Mega Punch/Kick
•Fly
All in all, everything cost him 300,000 P in total, but if it meant his Pokémon would get stronger, he didn't mind even spending all of his money. As he left the mart and went back to his room in the Pokémon Centre, he taught all the moves he got to his Pokémon.
Pokémon: Corvisquire
Lvl: 19
Type: Flying
Ability: Keen Eye
Gender: Male
Potential: Shallow Gold
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Taunt, Fury Attack
(Innate Talent) Drill Peck [E] (Innate Talent) Tailwind
(TM) Roost, (TM) U-Turn, (TM) Fly, (TM) Protect
Pokémon: Kubfu
Lvl: 20
Type: Fighting
Ability: Inner Focus
Gender: Male
Potential: Gold
Moves: Rock Smash, Leer, Endure, Focus Energy, Aerial Ace, Reversal
(Innate Talent) Brick Break (Innate Talent) Bulk Up
(TM) Protect, (TM) U-Turn, (TM) Ice Punch, (TM) Fire Punch, (TM) Thunder Punch, (TM) Mega Kick, (TM) Mega Punch
As he saw his Pokémon's stats once again, he was elated to see their moves. "Ok, today we've had a long day. Rest up, both of you. Tomorrow we'll try out your new moves and train your bodies, too. Goodnight guys." His Pokémon gave a cry and a caw of goodnight as they all quickly fell asleep. Eli didn't even recap his days like he did every night; he was so exhausted that the moment he crashed in bed, he fell asleep without a word.
