Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoy. If you REALLY like it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.
Writing a chaotic fight scene is always a gamble. The challenge lies in making it confusing yet still readable. This entire chapter revolves around a single fight, and I've deliberately made the first part messy, but please let me know if I took it too far.
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Eevee felt her sister's large body pressing her against the metal wall, the thick fur tickling her nose as she hid her face in the pelt. The vibrations of Sister's growl traveled through her body, shaking the bars that surrounded them as Sister tried to protect Eevee from their captors.
Eevee understood what was happening, but it all happened so fast. She had just woken up in her little house, safe and warm in the cuddle pile, when she felt the sudden urge to pee. Sister was already awake, of course – out training before the sun even rose. Sister had always liked the darkness, but Eevee didn't, so she stayed inside longer, snuggling with the others. However, Sister insisted that Eevee train more on her own now that she was older. Eventually, Eevee emerged and accidentally woke up a number of the others.
She had thought this was good – maybe they wanted to train with them as well.
Yet when they went outside, the red light suddenly began taking them! Eevee recognized the red light. The human woman had a bunch of balls that created it, and Eevee even had her own, although she didn't like being inside them. They made her senses seem almost non-existent, and she hated not knowing her surroundings.
But the human woman always warned Eevee when it was time to go inside the red light, and this time she didn't. There were humans wearing dark furs that Eevee hadn't seen before. It all happened so suddenly, and Sister was one of the first captured. Eevee tried to flee, but she was too slow.
It was even more confusing when the red light released her. She found herself somewhere new, in a cage, all alone. The humans looked at her and tapped on their clacking machines before breaking Eevee's ball! Usually, that would have been okay, but without her ball, how was she supposed to get back home?
Thankfully, Sister came out afterwards and shielded Eevee from the bad humans. Eevee didn't know what they wanted, but the human woman had warned them that it was dangerous outside the walls. Sister was big and strong, but Eevee was small and had delayed her training. She knew that one day she would have to go with a Trainer, but that day always seemed far off, and training made her feel dirty and sweaty.
She was scared. Even with Sister to protect her, and though she wasn't a child anymore, it was terrifying.
And then it became even scarier.
Suddenly, the entire roof vanished! Just gone, like when Eevee tipped over the food bucket when she wasn't supposed to. Yelling erupted both from outside as something large landed, and from inside, where it was now the bad humans' turn to be frightened.
"FUCK! FUCK! YOU SAID YOU DISABLED THE FUCKING TRACKER!" one shouted.
"I DID, I DID! I-I-I DON'T UNDERSTAND! THERE SHOULD BE NO WAY THEY COULD FIND US!" another replied, panic creeping into his voice.
"WELL, CLEARLY YOU'RE FUCKING WRONG, BECAUSE THE FUCKING ADMIRAL OF CERULEAN IS OUTSIDE! PACK YOUR SHIT AND GRAB THE FUCKING POKÉMON, WE HAVE TO GO!"
"WE HAVE TO FIND OUT HOW THEY FOUND US FIRST-"
SMACK!
Eevee flinched at the sound of the loud slap and the pained cry that followed, yet satisfaction welled up within her. One of the humans had kicked Sister. It was good that he was in pain. In fact, it felt so satisfying that Eevee couldn't help but peek out, despite Sister's protests.
One of the bad humans, a shorter male dressed in a long, white pelt with extra eyes on top of his normal ones, clutched his face while whimpering. The other male, big and muscled with bare arms and a furless head, glared at the first.
Ah, hierarchy. The bald human was stronger and reestablished his superiority.
"You were hired to do a fucking job, which you've already fucked up! So shut the fuck up and do what the fuck I tell you to!" The big man's attempt at being intimidating fell flat, and to Eevee, he sounded like he was trying too hard. He should have relied more on violence.
A noise outside the window caught Eevee's attention; on the other side of where she could hear fighting. The furless male ducked and moved towards it, sliding it open slowly and allowing a loud screech that made Eevee wince to drift through the opening.
Leaning out to look, the man exclaimed, "What the fuck!?" and pulled his head back inside.
Turning to the multiple-eyed man, the big one began, "It's a kid-" but he didn't have time to finish before something brown and blue shot through the window, hitting him in the side of the head and knocking him to the ground.
The projectile tumbled through the air, but just before it hit the ground, it slowed and righted itself. Glaring all around, the muddied-brown fish with blue fins took in its new surroundings, blinking slowly as it looked from the many-eyed man to the furless one who was now cursing while trying to get back on his feet. The attempt was interrupted by a jet of water slamming into his ribs, sending him crashing against the wall once again, his skull cracking against the thick wood. The creature, which Eevee believed was a Feebas, turned its attention back to the long-furred one. Eevee was sure she had seen a Water-Type like it when the human woman took them to the larger yard to play.
Eevee let out a cry while Sister growled in warning. The Feebas was unaware of the Shade lurking nearby.
The shadow beneath the cage undulated ominously, rising as it rushed forward. Three-fingered, clawed hands formed, reaching out to grasp the Feebas while red eyes glowed with malicious glee. An unnaturally large, fanged mouth twisted into a mocking grin, long tongue lolling as it prepared to strike.
The Feebas gurgled in confusion as it was lifted from the ground, caught from behind. The Shade took its time, drawing the Water-Type closer, its mouth stretching grotesquely wider than seemed biologically possible.
"Hey, put her down, you dick!"
A long, shiny metal stick flew through the air and struck the Shade. The sword was ineffective, passing right through the formless gas that the Shade commanded, but it managed to distract the ghostly entity and made it momentarily forget its prey.
THUMP!
Another human, smaller than the others and still a child by their species' standards, pulled himself up over the ledge and landed on the floor on the other side. As everyone took a moment to register the new addition, the red-furred boy quickly jumped to his feet and leaned back out the window, holding a Pokéball in each hand.
Two red flashes knocked the Shade out of its daze, prompting it to turn toward the boy, only to be distracted again by a beam of ice shot from the Feebas still in the Shade's clutches.
The youth then released the Pokémon from the balls inside the now-crowded room.
A large, yellow canine with black stripes and flames erupting from its mouth wasted no time, lunging at the Shade. Its fangs gleamed dangerously as it bit down on the Shade's long tail. Forced to release its grip, the Shade shrieked as the canine shook its head, pulling it back and forth. However, the Shade was powerful, and a swirling sphere of putrid black and purple energy formed in its hand.
Suddenly, a yellow, humanoid hand punched through the Shade's face. While it passed right through the ghost, the sparking lightning leaping from the fist caused it to twitch just enough for the Fire Type to jump back, allowing the Feebas to bombard it with small globes of water rapidly. The three Pokémon surrounded the Shade, taking turns distracting it so the others could attack.
"HA! Found you!"
The boy pressed his back against the now-closed window as something large with even bigger wings scratched and banged furiously on the glass. It must have been special glass, as Eevee had broken much of it in her life, and she wasn't as large as the Flying-Type.
Announcing his presence like that wasn't the most brilliant move, Eevee knew. It was much safer to attack while hidden, as that essentially allowed for a free attack. The bald human demonstrated this when he cursed and fumbled for another red-light ball at his waist.
Another canine, even larger than the yellow one, appeared in a flash. It had black fur and bone armor covering its body and head, making it a terrifying sight. It charged straight for the youth with black-tinted flames leaking from its jaws. The red-haired boy dodged to the side to avoid the charge, scrambling desperately across the floor to get away. The Feebas broke off from the Shade, leaving it to its companions, and positioned itself between its Trainer and the Dark-Type. Although the Water Gun attacks were on target, they were too weak to do more than slow the canine, but it bought the child just enough time to grab his own red-light ball with a strange grimace and press the button to release it.
"BAAAEEEERRR!"
A roar echoed through the room as something big and hungry joined the fray. Almost as tall as its Trainer, a blue reptile with a bone dome on its head screeched as it entered the battle, intercepting the Dark-Type in its path. The Dragon-Type's Headbutt stunned the canine, opening it up to a couple more Water-type attacks, while the reptile's short arms scratched furiously. However, the Dark-Type was larger and stronger; it managed to get its horns between the snapping jaws and throw the Dragon-Type aside.
The battles were two-on-one in both cases, yet it was clear that their saviors were losing ground. Freed from the Feebas' attacks, the Shade was free to utilize its strange biology to faze through the opponents' attacks and even their bodies. It pretended to attack, only to reappear on the other side and land a blow while cackling with laughter. It had abandoned actual moves in favor of simple grabs and punches, yet each touch left behind sickly purple patches.
Eevee noted that the Shade shied away from only two moves: the black fangs and the electric punch, although the two Pokémon didn't seem to realize it. The yellow Fire-Type struck with a glowing white paw, but its attack passed right through the Shade, resulting in a slow lick from the monstrous tongue on one of its hind legs. This left the Fire-Type hobbling as it tried to spin around, jaws snapping only at air.
But that was why they had a Trainer.
"Sol, Bite! Herc, only Thunder Fist!" Those were the only words the boy had time to utter before the bald human crashed into him with blood running down his face, sending them both tumbling to the floor in a flailing pile of limbs and foul words, disrupting the rhythm of the battling Pokémon.
If nothing changed, they would lose, and Eevee would be stuck with the bad humans. She whined to Sister to let her know, but surely she was already aware.
However, the response didn't come from the larger Eevee but from their other cellmate.
The proximity of the Shade had left their comrade drained and weak, but with the Ghost-Type occupied, he was free to regain his strength. His renewed strength was swiftly demonstrated as the blue, egg-shaped Water-Type jumped to its stubby legs, long ears swaying with the motion. Turning around, water swirled around his black, zigzagging tail, concentrating at the bulbous blue tip at the end. Then, Azumarill swung it at the metal door.
SCREECH!
The door flew through the air as if launched by a Gyarados, nearly striking several of the combatants as they instinctively dodged from the loud noise. Without missing a beat, the liquid surrounding Azumarill's tail expanded to engulf his whole body, and he shot across the room, crashing into the Dark-Type canine with a splash! The force sent the canine into a wall. The enormous blue reptile snapped threateningly at Azumarill, but was quickly pacified by a bop to its snout, causing it to blink rapidly.
Meanwhile, Sister hissed at Eevee to stay before leaping at the Shade with her own teeth, flashing that light-devouring black. Eevee felt a little annoyed by that. Sister was stronger, but Eevee could still help!
However, she also realized that space in the room had quickly run out, and the addition of two new fighters had turned the previously separate battles into a single chaotic clash. Typically, three-on-one would be better than two-on-one, but as she observed, Sister tried to jump away from the Shade's gleaming purple claws that tore through reality as they swiped. Unfortunately, she collided with the yellow canine, getting them both hit in the process.
The Dark/Fire-Type was faring slightly worse. Unlike its partner, it was impacted by the decrease in mobility, forced to tank and brawl with the Dragon-Type and Azumarill. It whimpered as the glowing white paws hammered into it, while the Feebas seized the opportunity to land hits whenever possible on both enemies. Yet, the horned canine was larger and stronger, even when facing two Water Pokémon. The ones to lose a teammate first would be the losers. Eevee could see how any change in the equilibrium would tip the whole thing.
She didn't account for the Dark-Type saying 'fuck it' and going down in a blaze of glory. Though it was more likely that it simply didn't realise it. Most beings were shockingly stupid in Eevee's experience.
"NO, YOU FUCKING MORON-ARRGHH, BITCH!" The bald human cried out to his ally before the red-furred boy punched him in the side. His Pokémon momentarily halted its relentless attacks to unleash a powerful move. A ball of mind-destroying darkness, an oscillating sphere of non-existence that rejected reality, formed between its sharp fangs. The others scrambled to disrupt it, but they were too late; the Dark-Type move screamed as it launched, impacting barely five feet from its originator.
BOOOOOM!
Eevee screamed and ducked as the opening of the cage faced the rapidly expanding bubble of darkness. Pokémon and humans alike were thrown against walls and furniture, wooden boards and windows cracking from the force. The Shade's tortured howl sent a shiver down Eevee's spine as it simply vanished in the face of the darkness. Even the Dark-Type was affected, whimpering from a crater in the ceiling. Soon, it would be Eevee's turn. It would take too long to leave the cage and run around, and she didn't know any defensive moves-
Suddenly, a brown, furry shape, almost twice as big as Eevee herself, appeared in front of her. She barely had time to widen her eyes before Sister slammed into her, the cold bars bending and breaking against her back as they crashed into walls and landed near the heroic human youth.
The whole room echoed with groans and gasps of pain as everyone took a moment to check that they hadn't broken anything before launching their attack against the opponent.
At the exact moment the Electric-Type, the yellow Fire-Type, and the Dark-Type canine got to their feet, the cracked window shattered. Yet another enormous Pokémon rushed in to join the chaotic scene in the already crowded office. The vast, human-sized Golbat screeched, producing a frequency that made everyone wince and clutch their heads. It flapped its immense wings with such force that it confusedly tried to get higher, crashing into the ceiling and smacking everyone in its path.
In the frenzy, it was hard to discern who was who as everything devolved into a jumbled mass of twisting bodies, each trying to figure out whom they were supposed to attack.
Drawing herself up, Eevee positioned herself above Sister's limp body. Panic welled inside her despite the steady rise and fall of her ribcage. The two canines rolled around, snapping and biting, while the Dragon-Type attempted to join in, accidentally hitting her teammate as often as the enemy. Roaring in anger, the reptile decided to abandon the effort after one of Golbat's wings struck her in the back of the head. Crouching down, she leapt up at the Flying-Type, surprisingly managing to reach higher than Eevee would have thought something so large could, and latched onto one of Golbat's tiny legs.
Screeching in pain, the added weight dragged the bat down into the chaos, landing on top of the Electric-Type, right next to the many-eyed human, who was shaking as the floor creaked ominously.
The chaotic scene was more overwhelming than anything Eevee had ever witnessed, even more so than when the human woman had only one treat left. The mingled smells of their bodies and the noxious gas from the Shade created a nauseating concoction that made Eevee's head spin. Yet she forced herself to focus, analyzing and scanning for any moment or opportunity she could use to help.
Of course, that's when it got even worse.
"P-p-protect me!" the multi-eyed human whimpered. Even from across the room, Eevee could smell the puddle of urine he had made beneath himself. One of his extra eyes was shattered, crimson blood running down the side of his head. Yet he was the only human standing, as the other two were still groaning on the floor.
This meant there was no one to stop him when his trembling hand cracked open a red Poké Ball.
The scarlet light expanded, growing large enough to cover a significant part of the room, hovering ominously over the struggling Pokémon as they slowly came to a stop, gazing up at the immense, unidentifiable mass looming over them with dread.
And then it solidified.
"MUUUUUUUUURrrrggggghhhhhhh!"
With a drawn-out, moist, guttural cry that left Eevee feeling as though she had been dunked in garbage, pink-purple sludge splattered onto the floor, seeping into the cracks and fur. Pokémon and humans screamed in pain as the Poison-Type's own Trainer was instantly buried beneath the toxic mass. Smoke erupted from the floorboards, which began to melt under the acidic touch. Clothes, skin, and hair dissolved as everything disintegrated under the ooze. Eevee heaved, a truly unbearable stench filling the room, like rotting sewage and corpses left in the sun. The air stung her lungs, the poisonous gases filling them as she struggled to do something, anything, while the puddle slowly pulled itself together, its victims still twitching and screaming, but she was helpless. There was no way out other than the window, the Poison-Type barring the door, and she was too far, not to mention Sister.
She squeezed her eyes shut, hearing and feeling the boards beneath her paws creak and bend under the weight and burning touch.
CREEEEEAK-CRASH!
Suddenly, she was falling. A tremendous crash filled the air as the flooring finally gave way and collapsed inward under the sentient sludge. Pokémon cried out as they were dragged along with her into the pit below. A couple of red lights flashed through her eyelids, prompting her to look again, but there was no time.
She was sliding, falling. Desperately, she tried to hold on, to dig her claws in deeply while also clutching Sister. But she couldn't manage it; she was tumbling down to her doom.
Then, a hand caught her by the tail, yanking painfully, yet it allowed her to grab onto Sister with her teeth. The two Eevees dangled over the hole as the void beneath them began to move.
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Okay, so things weren't going… well.
Hanging by one hand from the melted, broken edge of a complaining floorboard, I held a small, trembling Eevee by the tail with the other hand. That Eevee was clinging to a bigger Eevee while I contemplated exactly where my strategy had gone wrong.
To be completely honest, it probably started at conception.
Encountering the Golbat had already thrown everything off, but I liked to think I adapted well. Having Sol and Herc hold the giant bat off while I used Siren as a projectile to enter the room and create a distraction probably wasn't included in any League handbook, but it worked. I had just enough time to climb the wall and get inside, using the Poké Balls to bring my team up with me and leaving the Poison/Flying-type out in the cold.
The fight in the office – which wasn't recognizable as such after we finished – had been chaotic. The Haunter was particularly unpleasant and better trained than anything I'd faced since the Lab. It probably even outclassed Scott's Arbok. Even three-on-one, the fight had been more challenging than I would have liked.
In hindsight, I should have just said 'fuck it' and sent Betty out to hold it off while I rescued the stolen Pokémon out the window and then fled to rejoin Walter. But I hadn't wanted to leave a Ghost-Type at our backs or use Betty.
Not that the decision turned out to be very helpful. Once the Houndoom entered the fray, I had no choice, and the resulting balance was too delicate for me to risk disrupting it.
I had also been preoccupied rolling around with the bald guy. A thieving dipshit he might be, but the dude could fucking fight. My jaw and shoulder ached, and I was pretty sure I could feel a broken rib poking into my left lung whenever I took a deep breath. Still, even that kept a more experienced Trainer busy and unable to direct his team. As Walter said, the guy was definitely better than me and had a stronger team, so I thought it was a fair trade-off – especially when that badass Azumarill broke out and started throwing hands.
Maybe that was the moment I should have disengaged or called Siren to help me take down the criminal and start shuffling the Pokémon out, but the odds seemed in our favor, and I was still occupied with the man who was right in my face.
I thought we had it under control.
Clearly, that was a mistake.
Who could have foreseen the dumbass nerd trying to kill everyone in the room – including himself, as he'd been at ground zero – with a fucking Muk? I barely had time to recall Siren and Betty before the whole building collapsed under its rotting touch, and even now, Sol and Herc were down in the pit that slowly came to life beneath me.
The floorboards groaned and shifted, splinters cracking and shooting up from the fault line, snapping me back to reality. Right, it was action time. I couldn't pull myself up; there was no way the wood would hold. I was definitely about to drop. But that didn't mean I had to take anyone with me.
Swinging my arm to build momentum, I threw the two Eevees as far upward as I could, letting them sail back into the destroyed office. I felt my grip becoming more precarious, and I quickly shook my head when the smaller Eevee rushed back, grabbing my sleeve with her teeth and trying to pull me up.
"No, don't! Just get out! Out the window and around the building! Walter's fighting the rest!" The Eevee looked at me, her eyes filled with surprising intelligence. Not that I thought Pokémon were simple; I just hadn't encountered any outside of Psychic-Types that had such clear thoughts racing through their minds.
Another splintering drop reminded me of the urgency. "Go! GO!"
It took a moment, but with a soft 'eiff,' the Eevee vanished back in the direction she came and left me to my fate. Fuck it. I was dropping anyway; might as well do it under my own terms. Steeling myself, letting the rushing adrenaline and Aura wipe away any hesitation or fear in exchange for anger and eagerness, I loosened my grasp and fell into the darkness.
Landing with a wet squish, I bent my knees on impact. Immediately, I heard a soft sizzle as the acidic makeup of the dispersed Muk began to melt my shoes, seeping through my disintegrating pants. I flinched as the thick sludge touched my skin, feeling the outer layer dissolve. I quickly stomped toward the edge of the living room where I had just dropped in.
It was utterly ridiculous. As far as I knew, Muk were toxic, not acidic, yet it was apparently so poisonous that it melted anything in its path.
As my eyes adjusted to the dark, I couldn't quite make out who was who, but several figures were twitching and whimpering in the slowly moving waste, involuntarily spasming as they were gradually infected. I gasped when I recognized one of the painful sounds, rushing over to one of the larger shapes as the yellow pelt of Sol became visible beneath the thin, retreating layer of purple gunk. Grabbing him by the nape, I ignored the tingling in my fingertips and dragged the Growlithe to a corner.
Fumbling around in my fanny pack, I praised myself for one of my rare moments of brilliance in having stocked it with as many Super Potions and Antidotes as I could carry.
Quickly, I popped out the needles and injected Sol with several of each, feeling his trembling calm as his breathing became less erratic, albeit still faster than usual. When he cracked open an eye and started to move around, I breathed a sigh of relief and sprayed the rest of the fourth Antidote on my own hands. It wasn't meant for humans, but with the wide variety of Pokémon it needed to affect, it wasn't entirely useless either.
If there was one thing to be grateful to Muk for – a weird fucking thought – it was that the toxic sludge stuck to the Poison-type and didn't linger on us.
At least on the surface. I had no illusions about what was flowing through our veins. Super Potions had some kind of steroids or something that would keep us going, but even miracle drugs had their limits. Except maybe Full Restores, but I wasn't made of cash.
As Sol staggered back to his feet, still exhausted and injured, I released Siren and Betty as well, grabbing my Dragon-type to keep her from moving too much. She had been good upstairs, but this wasn't the time for risks. Scanning the room, I searched desperately for another glimpse of yellow, but Herc was nowhere in sight.
What I did spot, however, was a human shape slowly using the wall to stand on shaky legs, cradling his ribs. Our eyes met across the noxious no-man's-land littered with unconscious Pokémon, which slowly became visible as the Muk settled. The faint light reflecting off the bald man's head added to the surreal scene. The air wavered in a heatwave-like manner, filled with harmful fumes; each breath felt like inhaling knives, and the loogie I spat to the side was more blood than spit, which wasn't a good sign. We both blinked furiously to try and clear the involuntary tears, the salty liquid doing little to soothe our stinging skin.
Explosions and crashes filled the air from outside, Walter hammering the rest of the thieves, but neither of us moved.
Until we did.
"Siren, Bullets!"
"Haunter, pull yourself together, you fucking idiot!"
The thief dove out of the way as three tightly packed balls of water punched through the wood behind him. I noted absently that the attack would have killed him had it hit, but there were more pressing matters at hand. I hadn't seen the Haunter since the dumb Houndoom had blown us all up with a Dark Pulse, but there it was, the poisonous pollution slowly gathering above the middle of the Muk. The Haunter was sagging and nearly see-through, with patches of gas so thin they were almost nonexistent, yet it was undeniably upright.
We'd have to fix that.
"Sol, Ember. Betty, Dragon Breath – let's do this. Siren, Bullets, and Ice Beams to keep it distracted. Aim for the Trainer when you get a chance." I mumbled to my team, receiving grunts in acknowledgment, but none of us took our eyes off our opponents as the bald thief gave instructions to his Haunter as well. Etiquette dictated that I'd wait for him to finish, but not only could he eat my entire fucking ass, I was also on a clock. Muk was on the thieves' side, and even if everyone covered by the rotten mass could still fight, we'd be in trouble. I had to finish this before that happened.
"GO!"
Colors erupted into life – red-orange, green-blue, and blue-white – forcing me to close my eyes for a moment. By the time I reopened them, the initial attacks had already missed, but a new flurry was headed our way.
"Rotate around slowly! Watch the poison!" I shouted.
Betty stood guard in front of me like a hyper-aggressive shield while Sol and Siren fanned out in opposite directions to encircle the Ghost-Type slowly. The Haunter and its Trainer didn't make it easy; Shadow Balls formed at an alarming rate, harassing my team in return.
The spheres weren't as powerful as I knew they could be – their explosions barely larger than a human – but they were enough to force my Pokémon to dodge. Some of the attacks were smaller than an apple, sniping Siren's Water Bullets out of the air before they could reach the Trainer. Occasionally, Haunter dove down swiftly, trying to grab someone and drag them into the Muk, but Siren kept forcing it to turn back.
Once again, the battle reached a stalemate – neither side giving an inch, yet both a move away from disaster. If I had anything to say about it, we would be the ones to come out on top, especially since everyone was in position.
"EVERYONE, WIDE SPRAY!"
Thanks to their training, none of my Pokémon needed more than a moment to switch gears, although Siren lagged behind slightly. Sol's Ember was so expansive that it nearly resembled a Flamethrower, while Siren's Water Gun turned to steam upon contact. Betty followed up with her Dragon Breath, forcing the mixture of flames and steam forward. The last time I had seen her produce anything like it was in Viridian Forest; the billowing bellow of dragon fire was almost as wide as the room we were in. The greenish-blue firestorm combined with the steam to create a wall of force and energy, scorching the back of the space.
The coagulating puddle of Muk groaned and contracted, losing mass as it evaporated under the heat and mixed into the hazardous blend. Though unfortunate, it was worth it.
The Haunter's eyes bulged, the orbs growing so large they literally popped out of its head cartoon-style as the semi-coporeal Pokémon dove down in front of its Trainer. Raising its gaseous claws, a green sheen erupted from them, spreading outwards and forming a protective half-dome.
Our combined attack slammed into the Protect with a loud gong-like sound, the wave of heat and force pressing against the barrier. Haunter bared its teeth in a grimace of exertion while the bald Trainer screamed, the wall around them tearing apart. The entire back of the room was destroyed, sunlight finally piercing inside, only to be outshone by the torrent of energy that rent the air asunder. The grass in the clearing withered in its wake, and the puddles of water that had gathered were steaming and evaporating rapidly.
Finally, the attack dissipated, leaving a molten trench five feet deep that carved the land in two. I knew it was audacious, but for a moment, I imagined the lack of clouds was thanks to my Pokémon as well.
Unfortunately, as the smoke and debris settled, the emerald glow of Protect leaked through, vanishing instantly once the attack ceased. Haunter hung there, panting, with entire sections of its body simply missing. It wavered in and out of reality, focusing entirely on just existing in real space.
Glancing at my Pokémon, I grimaced at our situation. There was no hesitation in recalling Sol; the Growlithe wheezed with every breath, sweat dripping from his trembling, poison-dotted body. Siren rested on one of the few clean patches of floor, her eyes drooping more than usual. Even Betty was feeling the strain; she growled faintly, swiping at the air and sneezing constantly, swaying on her feet.
Coughing into my hand, I frowned at the red spots appearing on my skin. Thank fuck I'd opened a way out before we inhaled any more of this toxic air. I just had to get through the last of the Haunter.
Suddenly, black-tinted flames erupted across the room, tracing a line straight through the Muk, which groaned loudly enough to make me worry for the already unstable house. The Houndoom stumbled forward from its position on the far side of the room, where the diminishing Muk had uncovered it. One of its bone horns was broken at the root, veins visibly pulsing against its skin, while its right front femur protruded through its dark fur. Its eyes spun wildly in its skull as it lurched toward me.
White glinted in the air as a dozen star-shaped Normal-type energy blasts whirled through the space where there had previously been a wall. Haunter intercepted some of them with weak bolts of Ghost-type energy, while the rest hammered into Houndoom's ribs. The Dark/Fire-type, seemingly driven mad from injuries, ignored the Swift attack from the small Eevee and began to crouch. It curled its legs together and sprang across the room, its maw flickering with weak Denial flames that were still more than strong enough to take me out.
An equally weak Water Gun struck it off target just enough for most of its attack to miss me, but its muscular shoulder hit me in the chest, sending me sprawling to the ground. I snarled as my left hand landed in the Muk, the skin sizzling as it began to dissolve.
Betty snapped her jaws shut around Houndoom's neck in what would typically have been a killing blow, but she hadn't accounted for its skeletal armor. Dragging the Titan Bagon forward with a broken leg, the canine howled as a powerful Brick Break slammed into its ribs with several crack-like noises, yet there was no stopping it.
With the unrelenting ferocity that only a Dark or Ghost-type could muster, it had decided that my life was worth sacrificing its own. No matter the injuries, it would not back down.
Just then, something stepped in front of me – something primarily purple with bits of yellow and black visible. The figure was humanoid in a familiar way, but it wasn't until I saw the bulbous hands, one of which glowed a bright white, that I recognized it.
Whirling his right arm around in circles, light shining as if his arm were encased in starlight, Hercules swung upwards just as Houndoom lunged. The Hammer Arm struck the Houndoom right in its mouth, snapping its jaws shut with such force that teeth flew through the air.
Houndoom's eyes rolled into the back of its skull and became completely white as it soared almost to the ceiling before somersaulting backward and crashing to the ground in a heap, finally remaining still.
Panting from the close call, a grin still pulling at my lips, I started to call out my gratitude to the Elekid, only for him to tip forward and collapse. I quickly scampered over to him and saw why it had taken me a moment to recognize him. Most of Hercules' body was discolored; the Electric-type looked more poison than Pokémon, as every artery throbbed and each muscle trembled.
Turning him over, I noticed his glazed eyes and the pink foam leaking from his mouth. Acting swiftly, I sighed in relief as he shone red and disappeared into his Poké Ball, pressing the device against my forehead for a moment.
It still looked bad, and I wouldn't calm down until he had seen a Poké Center, but it was a good sign. Being in a Poké Ball wouldn't heal him, at least not with a standard ball, but it would keep him stable in all but the most extreme circumstances.
That gave me time to finish what I had started, which had turned into quite the ordeal. Scanning the direction of our opponents, I cursed when the only thing I saw was the tiny Eevee gazing up at me.
The brown fox-like Pokémon was truly small – about a third smaller than the specimens we had seen from Professor Oak. However, as Sol indicated, basing the average on laboratory Pokémon wasn't an exact science.
But there was no time for that, especially when, with one last disgusting slurp, the Muk finally finished reforming itself. The pile of toxic waste was significantly smaller than the original heap, having lost half its mass due to the various attacks that had kept it spread out for so long. However, it was still more than I wanted to handle as two wavering appendages, venom dripping from them like candle wax, slowly pushed out from the pile.
Standing up, I had to bend over again as I fell into another coughing fit, blood and phlegm splattering on the floor. Groans and vile sucking noises followed us as Eevee took the lead, passing by the completely unmoving corpse of the Golbat, sludge leaking from its mouth where it had choked on it.
Peeking through the hole that had been a wall, I scanned the area for where the bald bastard had run off to.
Turning my head from right to left, I couldn't see him, but I did catch sight of something else that made me stop and gawk for a moment.
Towering over the League cabin and the surrounding trees, a giant crystalline iceberg loomed in the clearing, entirely out of place in the middle of a forest. Giant jagged icicles crackled and groaned, the enormous structure shifting and moving even as I watched, new spiky appendages forming like the legs of a spider. Said spikey protrusions had a purpose. Coming from the side of the building I couldn't see, a man flew through the air, a scream trailing behind him. I preemptively flinched as he approached the iceberg, convinced I was about to watch him splatter into a gory pancake on the side of the frozen mountain.
But he didn't. Instead, as he crashed into it at high speed, the glacial monument acted almost like gelatin. The man sank into it, his momentum quickly dissipating as he flailed in surprise, but to no avail – his limbs were instantly encased in the almost living material. Soon, everything except his head was trapped, stuck in the ice and unable to move, joining seven other humans and more than a dozen Pokémon that dotted the iceberg like macabre Christmas decorations. Another two Pokémon – a creature that resembled the Houndoom I had just dealt with and something large and brown that I thought was a Tauros – soared through the air, their watery tentacles releasing their ankles at precisely the right moment.
That was both incredibly cool and absolutely terrifying. However, it wasn't something I had time to dwell on—my prey was escaping.
Not seeing him immediately raised my fears that he had gotten away. His Haunter was weak and nearing its limit, but all it would take was a single Shadow Sneak to launch an attack from out of sight.
Then, a human shot past me in a blur, crashing through a table that somehow survived and smashing into the opposite wall, creating a crater. The bald thief crumpled to the floor, blood pooling from his mouth and bubbling with every labored breath.
I blinked rapidly and turned back the way the man had come, finding myself eye to eye with a bare chest adorned with tattoos crossing the skin. Looking up, I met the questioning gaze of Walter. We stared at each other, completely ignored, as a much larger Azumarill than I had seen earlier stormed past us, unleashing a chilling gust of wind that caused the Muk to cry out in pain. Walter, a veteran Water-Type Master, surveyed the wreckage—the ruined wood, unconscious Pokémon, and general chaos—and raised an eyebrow at me.
"Ya done?"
Slowly nodding, I felt the tension seep out of my sore and aching body as I sagged.
"Yeah. I'm done."
Walter nodded thoughtfully, continuing to peer over my head as the Muk's cries became increasingly high-pitched.
"Ya got the Pokémon?"
I opened my mouth to confirm, but paused. Right. There were more than just the two Eevees and the Azumarill.
Turning around, Walter and I watched as even more of the second story collapsed, falling onto the melted, burned, and broken remnants of the first floor, now littered with frozen pieces of Muk as Walter's Water-Type tore it apart.
"I know the general location," I replied.
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So much action. Hope it was mostly legiable and understandable.
Next time, aftermath of all this, and then we're moving into the last bit of Cerulean. Finally. Spent more time here than Orre.
Thank you for reading. Hopefully you enjoyed. If you REALLY liked it, I have a P-a-t-r-e-o-n, under the same name, where you can read 5 chapters ahead.