Nathan had originally planned to distract Nessa with words first. He still had a Starmie he'd bought years ago, a Gym-level Pokémon that wasn't ideal for combat but was more than capable of hypnotizing a human with its psychic powers.
But the moment she pulled out her communication device, he sensed something wrong. Whatever was inside that device could be dangerous to him.
As the Hulbury Gym Leader, his appearance here at this exact time was far too suspicious, no matter the reason. And since the girl was already on guard, there was no need to waste time. Better to strike first, lock down all her Poké Balls, and take everything she had before she could react.
"Pelipper! Use Quick Attack!" he barked.
"Peeellli!"
A sharp cry cut through the air as Nessa, who had just regained her balance, was forced to stumble back again. She had reached for a Poké Ball at her waist but had to dive aside, barely dodging the bird's sudden lunge.
A flash of gray-white light zipped past her. With a twist of its broad beak, Pelipper snatched something loose, her trainer belt, lined with several Poké Balls.
Crouched on the ground, Nessa's face turned pale. Her hand brushed against her now-empty waist, and she immediately realized that the bird's target hadn't been her at all.
Nathan wasn't here to ambush her. He was here to steal her Pokémon.
'For Lina's roadblock challenge…?'
The thought came and went in a heartbeat. But by then, all her Poké Balls were already gone, taken by Pelipper. She had no Pokémon left to defend herself.
As the bird soared back toward Nathan, the Poké Balls on the stolen belt began to shake violently. Every Pokémon Nessa owned had been raised by her personally. Their bonds were strong, and she had never locked their Poké Balls. Each of them could break free on their own.
"Hah..." Nathan's brow creased as a cold smile tugged at his lips.
Right as the Poké Balls were about to crack open, a wave of psychic energy spread from his waist. It moved like invisible hands, gripping the balls tightly before flipping their locks one by one, sealing them shut.
Of course he had come prepared. Even if a Ghost-type appeared out of nowhere to protect her, he had ways to handle that.
Patting the heavy belt at his waist, he looked down. His pockets and trainer's belt were packed full of Poké Balls: his own, the ones passed down from his father, and the ones he'd bought over the years. Nathan never felt safe unless every Pokémon he owned was with him.
At this time, five Starmie appeared around him, each with a faint purple gleam around its edges. Their bodies glowed with psychic power as they carried the stolen belt to his side.
Two were Gym-level. Three were Advanced-level. Five in total.
When he had bought them years ago, he hadn't stopped at one. He'd purchased every Starmie that Kanto merchant had, all caught by hunters in the wild.
Kanto didn't have the same kind of mental-conditioning methods that Galar's Macro Cosmos did. There, captured Pokémon had to be retrained through an intense process. If they couldn't be tamed, they were disposed of: turned into "materials" and sold back into the market.
Nathan hadn't formed any bond with these five Starmies, but they obeyed orders, and that was all he needed.
Five Starmie were enough to take care of Nessa.
She clenched her fists and backed toward the trees. There was no way out. He had all her Poké Balls. Whatever he planned next, she couldn't stop him. In this situation, all she could do was protect herself and avoid getting hurt.
"Hehe…" Nathan let out another chuckle, shaking his head with a relaxed smile.
Everything was going more smoothly than he expected. The camera crew at Hulbury Gym had probably just left by now; he was far ahead of schedule. All that remained was to swap her Pokémon with his, then use psychic power to slightly alter her memories.
He waved a hand, commanding his Starmie to surround her, and leaned against the brown-colored boulder nearby, watching with smug satisfaction.
He didn't believe for a second she could outrun a team of Psychic-types.
* * *
"Interesting."
High above, Shiro hovered in midair, his entire body faintly surrounded by psychic energy as he observed the scene unfold.
Unown A floated beside him and asked 'You're not going to save her?'
He turned toward the creature with a slight smile and shook his head. "Nessa doesn't need me to save her. She still has a way to deal with Nathan."
'She has a way?' Unown A tilted slightly, momentarily confused. Then it realized there must be something it hadn't noticed. After all, it had only just awakened and knew little about how human trainers operated nowadays. Closing its single eye, it extended its psychic sense downward to scan the situation.
* * *
Below, Nessa had retreated several meters before stopping. Seeing the man leaning lazily against the boulder, casually directing his Starmie, she no longer bothered to run.
There was no point. She couldn't escape anyway. Besides, more than Nathan's sudden attack, there was something else weighing heavier on her mind.
"Gym Leader Nathan," she called, her tone sharp but trembling slightly, "my parents once visited the Hulbury Gym... What happened to them?"
He glanced at her with annoyance. The memory of those two filthy, fish-smelling "people" resurfaced, souring his mood.
In his clean, orderly town, how could such disgusting things exist?
They didn't belong there.
Just like Nessa never deserved to battle his daughter in public, and that boy Shiro never deserved to be the obstacle blocking his family's claim to the gym.
.
"Hmph."
His smile faded. The sting of his earlier defeat returned like a shadow across his bloated face. He glared at her coldly and spoke in a low, venomous tone.
"The ones who came to the front of the gym before? Those two stinking fish... Heh. Where else do you think fish end up?"
Nessa froze, the color draining from her face. Then, regaining her voice, she shouted, "What did you say?! Gym Leader Nathan, you said you gave them some money and sent my parents awa—"
Her words only seemed to irritate him further. He snarled, cutting her off with a furious roar.
"Money? Sent them away? Don't spout nonsense! I never told anyone that! Are you deaf or just stupid? I told my men to throw those things into the sea and feed them to the damn fish!"
Nessa stood in complete shock, unable to move or speak. Nathan's grin widely as he continued, clearly enjoying every word.
"Two stinking fish showing up in front of my gym, how's that acceptable, huh? My street, my town, tainted by those two reeking things. What was I supposed to do? And when Lina inherits the gym one day, what if she complains the streets are filthy because of trash like them?"
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