Chapter 2: New Companions
At the border between Oldale Town and Route 102 I saw the footprint guy sitting on the ground crying. When I asked him what was wrong, he sobbed and told me that when he finished sketching the footprints he realized they were his own. I just shook my head and kept walking.
While I wanted to visit my dad was soon as possible, Lelouch can’t do this alone, he was going to need back up. I wandered into the tall grass by a pond looking for my first wild capture. Unfortunately there were no Wild Pokémon in sight, just a lily pad floating in the pond. That’s when I noticed the lily pad was floating away from land but the soft breeze was blowing towards land.
“Lelouch, I think that’s a Pokémon right there!” I pointed out.
“On it!” said the Mudkip jumping in the water. The lily pad tried to evade Lelouch, but he was able to chase it to shore. Aside from the lily pad on its head, the Pokémon was small and dark blue with a yellow beak and six legs. My Pokédex calls it Lotad, the Waterweed Pokémon.
“No stop! Leave me alone! I don’t want any trouble!” Lotad screamed in panic. Unlike other wild Pokémon, this one didn’t seem as vicious and cut throat. I got to my knees to appear less intimidating.
“It’s ok. We won’t hurt you.” I said gently.
“Get away from me! You’re both liars!” she screamed at us.
“Liars?” I asked in confusion.
“I know what you are! You’re a Pokémon Trainer! You’re either going to kill me or enslave me!”
“You’re wrong! Sapph is not that kind of Trainer and I won’t kill the weak and helpless.” Lelouch proclaimed.
“I won’t fall for that!” yelled Lotad before clapping her small front legs on Lelouch’s head.
“So you were just pretending to be helpless this whole time?” yelled Lelouch in anger. He ran into her with a powerful Tackle.
“I knew it! You really did want to hurt me!” Lotad cried letting out a loud Growl. The Mudfish Pokémon retaliated with another Tackle.
“Lelouch stop!” I commanded noticing the tears in Lotad’s eyes. “Can’t you see she’s scared? She only attacked you in self-defense!” I scolded.
“She should have said something then!” he defended.
“You just weren’t listening. That’s the problem with this world. Everyone uses violence to solve their problems so we end up with Trainers killing each other’s Pokémon.” I said bitterly.
I looked at Lotad who was still conscious but too injured to move. She would be easy prey for other Wild Pokémon or any other Trainers that pass by here. There was no choice then. I pulled out a Pokéball and threw it at her. The ball shook vigorously as she tried breaking free, but in the end the ball locked making Lotad mine now. No. Not mine. My new partner if she wanted to tag-a-long. I would release her if I couldn’t convince her. But first things first. I walked back to Oldale Town to take Lotad to the Pokémon Center.
“Are you alright now Lotad?” I asked the Waterweed Pokémon after getting my Pokémon back.
“So I’m a slave now. I’ll be forced to fight.” she lamented in defeat.
“No one is forcing you to do anything. Listen, I’ll tell you what I’m trying to accomplish and then you can decide if you want to stay with me or if you want to be released back into the wild.” I offered. “My name is Sapph and this is my accomplice Lelouch. I just became a Trainer and already I’m appalled by the way battles are conducted in Hoenn. My father Norman is the Petalburg Gym Leader so I was on my way there to figure out ways to stop all the killing.”
“Impossible.” denied Lotad.
“Maybe, but nothing will change if someone doesn’t take a stand. I promise I won’t let anything happen to you if you join me. I’ll train you to make you stronger so that you no longer have to live in fear, but if you rather go back to your old life, now is the time to say so.”
“No! Anything but that! I want to believe in you. I’ll stay.” Lotad conceded. She then put on an energetic smile. “By the way, I’m Shirley!” she introduced.
“Welcome aboard Shirley.” I said.
“Let’s see… you’re Sapph, and… Luluff?” she asked pointing at us.
“It’s Lelouch.” he corrected.
“That’s kind of hard to say, so I’ll just call you Lulu from now on!” Shirley declared.
“Whatever.” the Mudkip said dismissively. “Are you really going through with this Sapph?” he asked me.
“Of course.” I answered. “Alright Shirley, we need to work on getting you stronger so let’s go to Route 101.” I proposed.
“I’m kind of scared, but I’ll try.” she said nervously.
“Don’t worry. Lelouch will back you up if you get in a tight spot.”
“You’ve gotta be kidding me! Of well, at least I’ll get something out of this too.” he grudgingly agreed to.
As expected, Shirley was very inexperienced as a battler so early on Lelouch had to come in and bail her out. There were many trips back to the Pokémon Center. She had a really hard time in dealing with Zigzagoon since they were completely immune to her Astonish. After a while though, she was strong enough to hold her own in battle and was even able to combat Zigzagoon after learning Absorb. Unfortunately, we had spent the entire day training and with the sun almost completely below the horizon, we had to spend the night in the Oldale Pokémon Center. My Pokémon were getting stronger, but I still had no idea what dangers awaited us at night.
The following morning we headed straight for Route 102 after breakfast.
“Hey you!” a boy called. He was short, most definitely younger than me, and wore shorts and a baseball cap. I knew right away this kid was trouble because he had the same eyes as May when we had our battle. “You’re a Pokémon Trainer right? Let’s battle!” he challenged. Without even waiting for me to reply, he threw down a Pokéball releasing a Zigzagoon.
“I’ll take this one Sapph.” Shirley offered stepping forward.
“Go for it. Absorb!” I called. Shirley bit down on the Tiny Raccoon Pokémon’s head and started sucking its energy.
“Don’t lose! Use Tail Whip to get it off!” the Youngster commanded. Zigzagoon swatted Shirley with its bushy tail.
“Absorb again!” I countered. The Lotad did as told.
“Brush it off with another Tail Whip!” my opponent ordered.
“Once more!” Zigzagoon must have not had much left because Shirley finished draining it in no time. “Alright, that’s the battle. Take Zigzagoon to a Pokémon Center to get it healed.” I told the Youngster.
“What are you talking about? We aren’t done here yet!” he complained.
“Do you have more Pokémon?” I asked.
“No.”
Then we’re done.” I said walking away.
“Hey! HEY! You can’t just walk away from this dammit! We aren’t finished!” he shouted. When it became clear to him that I was ignoring him, he yelled louder. “I am Youngster Calvin! If I ever see you again, you’re dead! You hear me? DEAD!!” I just kept walking. I ran into three more Trainers on my way to Petalburg City and each one gave me similar treats about not finishing off their Pokémon. Things are a lot worse off here than I thought if Trainers are getting agitated about being spared. The fact that May wasn’t nearly as crazy as these people shows just how wonderful she really is~
“Sapph! Over there!” Shirley said pointing to two strange looking trees.
“I’ve heard of them. Those are Berry trees aren’t they?” Lelouch inquired.
“Berry trees?” I asked.
“Yeah! Berries can reenergize Pokémon that are fatigued or cure ailments if the right ones are eaten. They’re very nutritious!” informed Shirley.
“Then let’s stock up.” I said picking a few and putting them in my backpack. I also came across a Potion that someone must have dropped. Hey, it saves me a trip to the store. A few minutes later we finally reached Petalburg City.
“Well guys we’re here. Now let’s look for my dad’s Gym.” I said looking around the city.
“Wally! Wally! Where the heck could that kid have gone? Wally!” a woman was shouting. This must be a pretty busy city.
“Hey kid! Are you a new Trainer? Yeah you’re a new Trainer alright!” said some random guy. He grabbed me by the arm and started pulling me with him. RAPE! RAPE! “Come with me. I’ll take you to the Pokémon Gym. All new Trainers should go to the Gym when they get to a new town.” …RAPE? True to his word, the creeper dumped me off right in front of my dad’s Gym before walking off to presumably abduct more unsuspecting Trainers. So help me if he lays a greasy hand on May!
I walked inside and saw my dad sitting on the floor meditating. He must have either heard me walk in or sensed me because as soon as I set foot on the hardwood floor of the Gym, his eyes shoot open and he jumped to his feet.
“Well well well. Sapph! I’m glad to see you made it to Hoenn in one piece. But… how did you get to Petalburg City in one piece?” he asked in confusion.
“With their help.” I said sending out Lelouch and Shirley. Dad’s eyes got wide with amazement.
“You have Pokémon now? That’s great! I knew you’d take after me!” he said proudly.
“Yeah, about that. You realize Trainers in Hoenn kill each other to get to the top right?” I demanded.
“And?” he asked looking for a point. I was taken aback by his lack of caring. Sure both my parents were comically neglectful of me, but I would think my dad of all people would see something morally wrong with this, especially as a Gym Leader!
“You don’t see a problem with that?” I interrogated.
“No. It’s been this way since I was a boy.” he admit. “I went abroad to study how other regions battled, but you know what they say: ‘There’s no place like home.’ I missed being able to go all out!” I clenched my fist in anger. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing!
“What about the safety of your Pokémon?” Before I could get my answer, a boy with green hair wearing a white shirt and green pants walked into the Gym. Could this kid be a challenger?
“Excuse me, are you Norman the Gym Leader?” the boy asked.
“I am, but if you’re a challenger I’m going to have to ask you to wait. I’m having a talk with my son right now.” Dad replied.
“Oh no, I don’t have any Pokémon.” the boy said. “But I was hoping you would help me catch one. See, I’m moving to Verdanturf Town today to live with relatives.I was hoping that if I had a Pokémon it would make the transition easier.”
“I thought you looked familiar. You’re name’s Wally isn’t it?” Dad realized. So he’s the boy that woman was looking for.
“Yes sir. I’m very sickly so I don’t get out much and I don’t have any friends.” Wally admit shamefully.
“Very well. Take my Zigzagoon and this empty Pokéball. Sapph, go out and help Wally catch a Pokémon of his own.” instructed my dad.
“What? Are you sure? What about--?”
“You heard him. He’s only looking for a friend. There should be no harm in that right?” he persisted. I rolled my eyes. What the hell is wrong with these people? Are they being brainwashed or something?
“Alright Wally, follow me.” I said cheerfully.
“Really? Oh thank you so much Sapph!” Wally said appreciatively. After graciously taking Dad’s Zigzagoon, Wally and I went to Route 102 to catch him a Pokémon.
“So Sapph, how long have you been a Trainer? You must be really strong being a Gym Leader’s son and all!” inquired Wally.
“I actually just became a Trainer yesterday but I’m doing pretty good for myself. I’m so far undefeated.” I told him. I didn’t mean to brag but it was the truth.
“I never would have guessed you were Mr. Norman’s son though. I mean, he has such dark black hair and yours is so white!” he said.
“It’s a hat.” I corrected. Just then a small white Pokémon with green hair and a red horn jumped out of the grass Growling at us.
“Oh wow! A Pokémon!” Wally said is surprise. My Pokédex said this Pokémon was called Ralts and that it was a very rare Pokémon. Some people have all the luck.
“Well there you go Wally. Catch it!” I told him.
“Here I go! Zigzagoon… uh… Tackle!” he called. My dad’s Pokémon lunged into Ralts momentarily stunning it. Ralts then Growled again. Wally followed up with another Tackle. “I think that should do it!” he said throwing the Pokéball. After three shakes the sphere laid still indicating Ralts was now Wally’s companion.
“Congratulations Wally.” I congratulated. “Treat Ralts well.”
“Oh I will!” he said proudly looking at the Pokéball. “Sapph? Will you be my friend too?” he asked.
“Sure. No problem at all.” I answered. Wally gave me a big satisfied smile. With that accomplished we went back to Petalburg Gym so Wally could return Zigzagoon.
“Thank you Mr. Norman and Sapph. I won’t forget your kindness!” he said appreciatively before leaving. If I ever go to Verdanturf Town, I’ll be sure to pay him a visit.
“Sapph.” Dad said to me. “You are my son so the blood of Trainers flows through your veins. I know you must be as eager to battle me now as I am to battle you, but we must be patient. If we fought now, your Mudkip and Latad would be smears on my floor and I just had it waxed. For now go to Rustboro City and challenge the Gym Leader there. Then one day, if you haven’t given up or been killed, come challenge me.”
“Fine! Just know that the next time I see you, I’m kicking your ass.” I promised.
“Don’t think it’ll be easy. I am still a Gym Leader.” he reminded. “Don’t worry, I’ll tell Mom you went on a Pokémon Journey. I’m sure she’ll be so proud of you too!”
I stormed out of the Gym and headed towards Route 104. I couldn’t believe him! Not only was he completely unhelpful, he was the epitome of what I was fighting against. May and Prof. Birch at least seemed regretful of how things were around here. If they were as insane as my dad just now I would just say it was this whole region that was screwed up!
“Bombs away!” something shouted.
“Look out!” Shirley yelled pushing me out of the way of a small bird that would have otherwise driven its beak into my skull. I recognized the bird as Taillow. A Trainer I battled on Route 102 had one.
“So you dodged! Then come! Dodge this!” he yelled Pecking Shirley.
“Ow! Hey that really hurt you know!” she yelled.
“Suck the energy back with Absorb!” I called. Shirley did as told biting down on Taillow’s side and draining him.
“Oh yeah? Just wait until I power up!” the bird said. “Aaaaahhh!” he yelled as a battle aura surrounded him.
“Absorb more energy!” I called. Lotad sucked more until Taillow looked ready to collapse.
“You… you’re pretty good.” he said panting. “Before you finish me off I have a request. I want to be stronger. Train me.” I honored that request by throwing a Pokéball. There was almost no resistance.
“I see you!” shouted a Youngster running up to me from the sand. “I was just going to leave footprints, but I think battling you would be much more fun! Prepare to die!” the Trainer said sending out a small round brown Pokémon that my Pokédex called Seedot.
“Get ready Lelouch!” I said readying his Pokéball. Instead, my newly acquired Taillow burst on to the field. “What? Taillow! You’re in no condition to fight!” I shouted in panic.
“The name’s Robin and I can handle this punk! Watch this!” Robin fluttered over to Seedot and Pecked it hard on the head.
“You won’t break our defense! Use Harden!” the Youngster ordered.
“Like that’ll help!” Robin taunted going in for another Peck.
“If you’re going to be so offensive, then try out Seedot’s Bide!” To counter, Robin started using Focus Energy again before Growling at Seedot making the opponent’s attack useless.
“Now for my finishing move!” Robin pulled back for another Peck which looked like it would be strong enough to crack Seedot in half.
“Robin! Hold back! Don’t kill it!” I commanded.
“Where’s the fun in that?” he questioned before attacking. At least he obeyed and Seedot was still breathing.
“Don’t kill? Your pacifism is going to get
you kill! Get ‘em Taillow!” the Youngster sneered calling upon his own bird.
“Now Lelouch!” I called switching Pokémon. Robin may have done well against Seedot, but in his weakened state he was no match for another Taillow. “Use Water Gun!”
“Not so fast! Quick Attack!” countered the Youngster. Taillow corkscrewed though the air striking the Mudfish Pokémon in his flank, but Lelouch was able to blast the bird out of the sky with a well-timed Water Gun.
“Lucky.” the boy spat.
I wasted no time in getting to the Petalburg Pokémon Center to restore my now team of three. After everyone was at full health, I acquainted Robin with the rest of the team and introduced myself as well. I then told him about my no killing policy which he found to be absurd. I told him if he didn’t like it, he could go back to the wild. To that he said he could only get stronger if he fought alongside a Trainer and so reluctantly agreed to my terms.
I went back to Route 104 and had to fight a Rich Kid that though having money made him powerful. Shirley showed him that commoners were better. I then gathered more Berries off of nearby trees. After that, I entered the dark Petalburg Woods. As I wandered around I was assaulted by a Bug Catcher with six Wurmples. Robin made quick work of them, though I had to stop him from eating them!
“Honestly, what’s with you Robin?” I demanded.
“Look Boss, you can make a case for Seedots or other Pokémon but Wurmple are my natural prey items. I couldn’t help myself. Instinct told me to eat!” he defended. I guess he had a point there. All of a sudden a Zigzagoon jumped out of the bushes and Tackled Robin pinning him to the ground.
“You’re gonna get it now!” Robin shouted getting out from under the Tiny Raccoon Pokémon.
“Oh yeah?” Zigzagoon taunted.
“That’s right! Give me an order Boss!” my Pokémon requested.
“Quick Attack!” I called. The Tiny Swallow Pokémon zipped around before striking Zigzagoon in the face. The two Pokémon traded blows for a bit but it soon became obvious the winner was Robin. Still, the Zigzagoon put up enough of a fight that I considered him to be a worthy addition to the team. I threw a Pokéball and sure enough he was my fourth member.
“Nice to meet you guys. I’m Kenny.” he introduced after I healed him. Before we could get better acquainted, we were attacked by a Wurmple.
“Go get it Kenny! Tackle!” I called. The Zigzagoon slammed his body into Wurmple. The Worm Pokémon countered by using String Shot tangling Kenny in a white sticky thread. Wurmple then stabbed him with its yellow tail injecting deadly poison into my Pokémon.
“Kenny! Hang in there! Tackle it again!” I encouraged. Kenny and Wumple traded blows until Wurmple was fainted. Unfortunately, Kenny was losing strength fast due to the poison. He would never make it to the Pokémon Center.
“Sapph… I’m… sorry… I’m so weak…” he said weakly.
“Don’t say that! You aren’t weak!” I corrected.
“Sapph! The Pecha Berries you picked earlier! They can cure poison!” Shirley pointed out. Yes that’s right! Just hang in a moment longer Kenny! I reached into my backpack and pulled out the pink heart shaped fruit.
“Here, eat this. It’ll help you.” I told the Zigzagoon. Kenny weakly opened his mouth and started chewing on the berry. I then got out a Potion to heal him back to full strength.
“Hey it worked! I feel good as new!” cheered Kenny. “Thank you Sapph! I promise you I’ll get stronger. I know you meant it when you said I wasn’t weak so I promise I won’t disappoint you.”
We continued walking through the woods until coming into a clearing where there was a man dressed in business clothes looking around. Was he some kind of Trainer too? He then saw me but instead of going berserk he cheerfully ran over to me.
“Hey have you seen Shroomish? They are my favorite Pokémon! I absolutely looooooove Shroomish! Unfortunately I haven’t seen any here.” said the man. I was thoroughly confused.
“Sorry, but I don’t even know what Shroomish look like.” I apologized.
“I know of Shroomish, but I haven’t seen any today.” Kenny informed.
“I don’t know what Shroomish is, but it sounds like something I could easily beat.” Robin boasted.
“Alright that’s enough! I’m done waiting!” yelled a man dressed as a pirate jumping out of a bush. He wore blue pants, a black and white striped shirt, and a blue bandanna with an ‘A’ written in the skull and crossbones on it. “How can I ambush you if you dillydally?”
“Eek!” shrieked the office worker like a ten-year-old girl as he ran behind me. “You’re a Trainer right? Please help me!” he begged. Before I could say anything the pirate sent out a Poochyena.
“If you’re going to protect him you better be prepared for the consequences!” He’s a pirate and yet he just missed a great opportunity to use ‘Arr’.
“You can do it Kenny!” I encouraged my newest member. “Use Tackle!” The Zigzagoon lunged at his adversary.
“Power-up with Howl!” commanded the pirate. I found it strange that the pirate didn’t have the same evil expression as the other Trainers I fought. Poochyena turned its snout to the sky letting out a mighty holler. “Now show them your Tackle!” The small hyena rammed into Kenny with great force.
“Don’t quit! Use Sand Attack then Tackle!” I instructed. Kenny kicked dirt into Poochyena’s eyes before slamming into it again.
“Arr!” growled the pirate. There it is! “Don’t let this brat take you out! Attack with another your own Sand Attack and Tackle!” Poochyena did the same as Kenny leaving both Pokémon exhausted.
“Boss! Switch me in! At this rate Kenny will be killed!” requested Robin.
“It’s up to you Kenny.” I said.
“You told me I wasn’t weak. I promise I won’t let you down!” Kenny said with determination. He gave one more Tackle which defeated the pirate’s Pokémon.
“This isn’t over yet!” he said fiercely. I got ready to prep Robin for his next Pokémon. The pirate then slouched in defeat. “That is what I want to say, but I’m all out of Pokémon.” The pirate returned his Poochyena then looked right at me. “You’re not like the other Trainers of Hoenn are you. You’re like us, the members of Team Aqua.” I was taken back by his statement.
“You mean you don’t fight to kill either?” I asked in surprise.
“I never said that. Anyway, I have things to do in Rustboro.” The pirate turned to the office worker who quivered in fear behind me. “This isn’t over you Devon Twit!” he said before running off into the woods.
“*Sigh* Looks like he’s gone. Thank you…” the office worker paused as if waiting for my name.
“Sapph.” I told him.
“Sapph! Here is your reward for helping me.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a Pokéball that was blue instead of red and had two red stripes on the side. “This is a Great Ball. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to go back to work.” With that he too ran off into the woods.
“So strange.” Lelouch said.
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Sorry for the lack of updates the past couple of weeks
even though I only seem to be talking to myself. Along with playing the actual game (I'm in Mauville) I have also been musing on the actual plot of the story. There is still a lot of mystery at this point but it should start to become clear as the story progresses. Providing I don't die along the way that is
The team at this point in the story were between the levels of 7 and 11 which is pretty average I think between four Pokémon. Everyone was still alive although Kenny was a pretty close call on two occasions. Shirley needed Lelouch's help early on when caught at Lv.3 and only able to harm Wurmple, other Lotad, and Ralts but she pulled through and is doing fine on her own as of the end of this Chapter. Knowing Absorb really helps. Chapter 3 will be up whenever I get around to it.
Lelouch
Shirley
Robin
Kenny
