Chapter no.12

I gave a cursory thought to some of the early trainers who were around during my era. Even though I had only spent a short amount of time observing them, I was aware that they were obligated to praise and acknowledge every achievement their Pokémon achieved. "Good job!" As I watched Xander waddle closer to the beast that was growling at him, I yelled out to him. "Water Gun it again!"

Before Xander could respond, the beast pounced on him, growling and biting his way through my Pokémon as he clawed and slashed at them with his claws. They were biting, clawing, and ramming into each other as they fought, and I watched in complete silence and horrified fascination. The two of them were surrounded by a cloud of fur, flesh, blood, and leaf, and the air was filled with the sounds of their wild cries.

Xander retreated while growling and blood trickled down his head in a serpentine pattern while he was doing so. The Electrike made another leap, this time with its teeth bared in preparation for the kill. Xander tried to avoid losing his footing by ducking down and clumsily jumping to the side, but he was successful. I was surprised by how much smarter and capable the little fighter was than I had anticipated, and I had to admit that he deserved some degree of respect from me.

"Keep it up Xander!"

The Electrike and Xander walked in a large circle around each other while conversing. Within a fraction of a second, water erupted from Xander's mouth, which caused the Electrike's feet to be knocked out from underneath it. During the time that the Electrike was screaming and falling to the ground, Xander charged forward with his body frozen in place and his legs moving in the most unsettling manner I had ever witnessed. He charged headfirst into the Electrike, sending it flying through the air and crashing into some bushes nearby.

This time, it growled feebly at us before turning around and hobbling away, handing the victory to Xander. I couldn't help but laugh as I scooped Xander up in my arms, then continued to laugh as I hurled him into the air and caught him. I noticed the numerous cuts and bruises that were now covering his body, as well as the broad smile that had replaced his usual expression of boredom. I was forced to take a moment to reflect... did Pokémon find engaging in such battles enjoyable? Xander was having a lot of fun bullying the Electrike into submission despite the fact that it had obviously been looking for something to eat.

It changed my mind and made me think that Pokémon are much more wild than I had previously believed they were. The fact that they appeared to take pleasure in causing other Pokémon discomfort led me to wonder whether or not they attacked people in my time for the same reason. Although I was aware that they developed and matured as a result of the experiences they gained in battles, the idea that they would find such joy in doing so never occurred to me.

I put Xander down on the floor and began searching through my bag for something that could help ease the pain from his wounds. I came to a halt as I tightened my grip on the handle of a miniature bottle that was stashed in my bag. I took it out of the bag while concentrating on the label. It was rumoured to be a potent medicine that could treat a wide variety of injuries. I beckoned Xander to come back over so that I could squirt him with the solution. I held him still while he grimaced in pain because the solution irritated his open wounds. I watched in horrified fascination as the wounds caused by the cuts and bites began to close up in front of my very eyes, almost as if a surgeon had stitched them back together in lightning speed. A few of them appeared to be somewhat paler than they had been before, and I assumed that they would develop into little scars.

Xander let out a croaky sound of gratitude before deciding to settle down in my lap and resume his snoozing in the bright sunlight. Given that he is a water type, I presumed that he needed to be immersed in some water as soon as possible. In the meantime, however, it appeared as though he was perfectly content to bask in the sunshine. I assumed that because he was a grass type, he was capable of producing food through the process of photosynthesis.

My train of thought was abruptly terminated for the second time in a row in rapid succession. This time, on the other hand, it was because of a loud thump that could be heard on the ground, as if something heavy had just landed nearby. I jumped back and turned to glare at the danger, only to discover that it was at least one foot taller than I was.

As I looked up at the insect-like body of the creature, I noticed how the sun shone off of the green scales that covered its entire body. Its wings were lined in a brilliant red, and red goggles covered its eyes. It looked like something out of a horror movie. It had three antennae growing out of its head, and the end of its tail was tipped with three prongs that looked like miniature versions of its wings. Below them were two stingers that gave off an evil impression and appeared to be almost transparent in colour.

Someone was seen descending from the animal's back while dressed inappropriately for the weather in a black trench coat. A dark navy scarf was draped around his neck and tied in a sloppy knot about halfway down his chest. He was also wearing a white t-shirt with a slim fit that bore an image of a spooky skull glowing in the creepiest way I'd ever seen it. He wore black jeans and steel caps, and his light brown hair was styled into fiery red tips. His greyish eyes were obscured by black-framed glasses, which gave the impression that they were unusually small.

"Shit, did I scare ya?" he asked with a laugh clearly present on his lips. "Did I scare ya?" He was heading in my direction when he stopped to pet the Flygon on the shoulder as he walked by. I focused my attention solely on him as I watched him approach with suspicion. "I apologise if I offended you, but we had to land rather quickly. For whatever reason, there is a flock of Skarmory flying nearby, and I really do not want to engage in aerial combat with them in any way, shape, or form." He laughed once more as he peered down at Xander while doing so. "Wow, you have a Lotad? That's awesome. Damn, lucky you. I've always wanted one of them; whenever they start dancing, Ludicolo have a way of making me laugh."

I just stared at him in complete bewilderment. It got to the point where I seriously questioned whether people were typically like this or whether this particular individual was truly as peculiar as he appeared to be. To be fair, I didn't have much to base my judgement on because I hadn't encountered anyone during my week spent outside. There's no way that people could have gotten their Pokémon to terrify other people and then carry on a conversation with them as if nothing had happened, right?

I found myself saying to the newcomer, "I just don't see Xander ever being an energetic Ludicolo." "I can't see Xander ever being an energetic Ludicolo." Even though the guy was starting to annoy me a little bit, it was nice to have human company, and even though I didn't really know where I was going with the conversation, it was nice to have it.

He assured me that "apparently they do become energetic" as he explained the phenomenon to me. It's supposedly what happens in the end, and I know a few people who have trained them up. He removed his glasses, gave them a quick wipe down, and then held them up to his face while frowning in order to evaluate the quality of his work. "You are probably aware of the fact that flying is not exactly kind to your wardrobe. You end up squashing so many little bugs because they are so small." Before squatting down in front of me with a broad grin on his face, he made a funny face. "I'm Adryan. Call me Ayd if ya like, "he said as he thrust a hand in my direction while doing so. "Irenui is the name of that Flygon over there. Do not be intimidated by her petite frame; she is just as nice as can be."

As I shook Irenui's hand and introduced myself and Xander, I also made a mental note of the numerous scars that covered his body. I was under the impression that Xander, along with myself, would eventually become covered in a comparable number of battle trophies at some point in the future. I pushed the thought away as I recalled that he knew people who had raised Lotad, and I asked him if he knew how to teach Lotad abilities. I remembered that he had mentioned knowing people who had raised Lotad.

With a broad grin on his face, he responded, "I might know, if the price is right." I looked at him with a serious expression on my face as he laughed at his own joke. "Just kidding dude. Urm, "Despite rubbing the back of his head, he managed to fall over. "It is entirely dependent on the type of Pokémon as well as the Pokémon themselves. You can usually assist a Pokémon that is weak to water by using a water pistol, or even by simply splashing it with water. It is possible to instruct grass types by doing things like spitting watermelon seeds or similar things at them. Make use of your common sense, or read a few books; either one will be of assistance to you." Irenui would flap her wings and float up alongside her trainer, and he would laugh at the sight. "I can't even begin to describe how frustrating it was to instruct madame here in the art of ground attacks. I'm pretty sure that by the time we got home, we were covered in more mud than a Koffing is armed with poison, what with the constant mud throwing and everything else. And don't even get me started on how to properly teach the dragon to dance!"

His voice was gradually growing louder and louder, and by the time it reached the point where I was sure that people in the neighbouring towns could hear him, it had already reached that point. He seemed to take and treat everything as a big joke, and he seemed to love trying to push people's buttons in an attempt to get a reaction out of them. It wasn't long before he started to grate.

Suddenly, he asked me, "Anyway, are you familiar with the location of Altering Cave?" "I really want to go there and have a look around. It would appear that there are a large number of Pokémon that are not native to Hoenn."

I nodded. "It's on Route 103 in the neighbourhood," the person said.

"Cool, cheers dude." He gave a cheesy grin all the way down his cheek before standing up and giving his Flygon a pat on the shoulder. "Who knows, maybe I'll run into you somewhere, huh? Unless, of course, some gruesome wild Pokémon ends up devouring me first!"

My eyes rolled in my head. "We have no choice but to hope." Xander murmured his assent while maintaining his expressionless gaze fixed on Adryan.

Instead, he laughed at the absurdity of the situation and shook his head in amusement. "I just had a feeling I'd be able to coax a sense of humour out of you! I have achieved success!" He gave a snort of amusement before climbing aboard the dragon and giving me a salute before they took off. Before Irenui took off, he yelled after him, "Catch you around, soldier boy!" as he flew low to avoid colliding with the Skarmory flock.

As he walked away, I couldn't help but give a little eye roll. Even though we only spoke for a total of ten minutes, I found that the majority of that time was spent wishing for him to leave. He was loud and obnoxious, and on top of all that, he was exceptionally obnoxious. I couldn't help but wish that it would never come to pass that I would have to spend another five minutes with him.

It was inevitable that fate would turn that situation completely against me.