Alright, so. Evidently, I've been having some problems with consistency.
For the time being, I'm going to switch to aiming for updates
every OTHER Monday, until I feel like I've got the hang of my writing speed again.
Sorry for the wait!
----
Chapter 6: Luxurious Lotad & Zealous Zubat
The next morning sees Rin, Riki, Masato, and Kengo making their way through Oreburgh's western outskirts. Heavy gray skies shadow the town, and along with the lack of noise coming from the mines, they lend the atmosphere of a city deep in slumber.
When the childhood friends had gathered in the Pokémon Center's lobby for breakfast, Kyousuke had begged off, citing the need to clear out the blockage they'd encountered under Mt. Coronet.
"You guys should go on ahead. I can catch up when I'm done, so there's no point waiting for me."
As such, it's still fairly early when the four pass the last couple of buildings and ascend a small hill to reach the mountainside walling Oreburgh off from the west. Long ago, travelers looking to reach the easternmost areas of Sinnoh had to detour up Route 206 and swing around Eterna Forest and Floaroma Town to get around the mountains that cradle the mining city. However, when Jubilife City was first built, miners were called in from Oreburgh to help carve the city's foundation out of the mountain that once sat in its place. On the way, they wound up digging a tunnel through the rock that cut them off from Route 203, creating an easy path east and connecting them to what would become one of Sinnoh's most bustling cities. Even now, centuries later, the foot traffic through what became known as Oreburgh Gate allows the city to maintain some economic relevance despite the fall of the mines.
The cave itself is much more straightforward than Mt. Coronet. Being a human creation rather than a natural cave system, the walls and floor are relatively smooth, if a little worn out from generations of travelers passing through. What's more, the path is fairly straight, leading right from one side of the mountain to the other without major detours.
There aren't many Pokémon in the Gate, either; aside from the occasional confused Psyduck wandering in, the tunnel's only inhabitants are the Geodude and Zubat that make every cave from here all the way to Hoenn their home. It'd be child's play to get through the tunnel without any ruckus.
So, naturally, the muscle idiots decide this is the perfect opportunity for some training.
Kengo clears his throat. "It's important to remember that wild Pokémon won't always be polite and fight you one on one. If you disturb their nests by accident, many will be like those Clefairy yesterday and attack en masse. If you want to deal with their teamwork, you need to know how to work together, yourselves."
"Didn't we do that already?" Rin cocks her head. "Riki and Kyousuke and I all fought together in Mt. Coronet."
"Sure," Masato replies, "But in the end, each of you was just fighting half of the Clefairy on your own."
Kengo nods. "It may as well have been three separate battles, for how little you interacted. There's a difference between fighting together, and fighting
together. If you're comfortable working as a team with somebody, and know how to build on their moves, then you can combine your strength and handle numerically or statistically superior opponents."
Riki hums and cups his chin. "So… Do you two fight like that, then?"
Masato barks a laugh. "Not a chance! I'm not letting Kengo see my techniques until I can use them against him!"
"Hmph. Like you have any 'techniques' to speak of." Kengo scoffs. "Your idea of a special move is to just try hitting me twice as hard."
"What!" Masato's eyes bug out. "How did you guess my secret weapon? Nooooo! Now I have to hit you
four times as hard! No, eight!"
"I didn't think you could count that high. Be careful what you try to do with that brain, or you might break something."
"Maybe you should stop worrying about me, and start counting your chances of winning! I'll show you—"
"Both of you,
shut UP!" Rin jumps in between the two idiots, kicking at them both and causing them to stumble. "I'm not going to fight all of the wild Pokémon because of you morons again!"
"Guh…" Kengo closes his eyes in shame at the reminder. He coughs. "…R-right. Anyways, as I was saying, you and Riki should practice fighting as a pair. You'll be able to accomplish more if you know how to react to each other's moves."
"Wait…" Riki groans. "You don't mean…"
"That's right!" Masato grins and jabs his thumb at an innocent family of Zubat minding their own business on the ceiling not far away. They're small, blue bat Pokémon with large purple wings and ears, wide fanged mouths, and no eyes. "Kyousuke asked us to train you, so we're training you - and the best training is experience! Get battling!"
"I don't want to!" Rin glares at Masato, refusing to give an inch.
"Shouldn't we keep moving? Didn't we have enough interruptions yesterday," Riki sighs.
"I saw this coming, and prepared accordingly. Rin?" Kengo pulls a metal can of Pokémon food out of a pocket in his robe. "If you and Riki successfully pull off a team attack, I'll give you this Mon Petit. It's Santa's favorite, right?"
"We're doing it! Riki, let's go!" Rin enthusiastically flings a Pokéball at the path in front of her, releasing Lennon. "Use Ember!" The Litten spits several small gouts of flame straight up, and the Zubat scatter. One wobbles this way and that, before it gets its bearings and screeches at Rin.
Wordlessly, Rin points her thumb at Riki.
Sorry. It's for a good cause.
Riki takes a step back, and the bat Pokémon swivels to face him. He shudders suddenly, and freezes in place as the Zubat exudes the impression of a probing stare. "Wh- come on! You don't even have
eyes!"
"There's no choice but to fight, Riki! You have to defend yourself!" Rin eggs him on.
"Yeah, Riki!" Masato echoes Rin with a shit-eating grin. "Defend yourself!"
"Shut up!" Rin doesn't miss a beat, and commands Lennon to jump out of the way of a Zubat as it swoops in to take a bite.
"Shouldn't I be defending against
you…?" Still, Riki sends out his Turtwig and quickly has it try to tackle any Pokémon that get close enough to attack. Unfortunately, the turtle is too slow to provide much deterrent, and the bats continue to dive bomb it with impunity.
"Ember! Ember, Lennon!" Rin's Pokémon scatters flames this way and that, making up for the Zubats' agility by spreading its attacks too wide to fully dodge. The Pokémon attacking Lennon finally give up, flying away to lick their wounds. "Use Scratch!" Lennon pounces at one of the Zubat fluttering around Terra, and quickly the enemies have all fled.
Rin turns to Kengo with shining eyes. "There! We won, now give me the Mon Petit!"
*BZZZZZZ!* A harsh buzzing sound makes her jump a foot in the air. She whirls around, glaring this way and that, until she sees Masato holding his Pokégear with the attitude of the cat Pokémon that just caught the canary.
"That wasn't teamwork, Rin." Kengo sighs.
"What!" Rin waves her hands wildly. "But Riki drew their attention while I beat them! That's teamwork!"
"Usually, your wall should be
intentionally filling that role." Kengo pockets the can of cat food, and Rin's outstretched hand goes limp. "Try again."
…
The next attempt is a round rock Pokémon with two arms called Geodude lying on the side of the path, which Terra and Lennon slowly whittle down.
"Now, Lennon! Finish it off!"
"Pokéball, go!"
Riki pitches a Pokéball at the Geodude right as Lennon dives for center mass, and it smacks the Litten in the head. By the time Rin's done yelling at Riki, the Geodude has merrily rolled away.
*BZZZZZT!* Rin yelps and aims a roundhouse kick at Masato, only to lose her balance and fall in a heap. Kengo looks on impassively. "Try again."
…
A Psyduck shudders in fear as Terra barrels towards it, only for an Ember attack to engulf both Pokémon from behind.
"A flaming tackle! Woah, did I just invent a new move? This must be the pinnacle of team attacks!"
*BZZZRRRZZZRRRZZZT!* "Eep!" Rin windmills her arms and topples over backwards. She turns and hisses at the muscle idiots, but Kengo doesn't react.
"Try again."
…
Rin and Riki face off against the Geodude from before, this time with friends. She gives Riki a slight nod, which he returns.
"Now! Santa, use Confusion!" As the bell Pokémon starts ringing, a Geodude begins to roll around wildly and smack into its companions.
"Terra, Absorb!" The tiny turtle Pokémon waddles into the din and leeches energy from the distracted rock Pokémon, giddy despite the effort of using energy attacks. Its jaw snaps back suddenly as a thrown rock interrupts its feast, and the original Geodude advances on it menacingly… But Santa sneaks up and startles the Geodude with a sneak attack, throwing it off balance and letting Terra's tackle send it backwards into a pool of water with a splash.
Wait…
Water?
Rin glances around, noticing an array of cracked boulders, small ledges, and earthy ramps around her. In front of her is a long, wide pool of cloudy water.
Riki's voice echoes next to her. "When did we even
get down here?"
Rin shrugs, and the two stand for a moment and watch the ripples in the pool. The ripples get fainter… and then stronger…? The friends dive to either side as their opponent is spat back out of the water and ricochets off the wall behind where they were standing.
They get up and see a dark blue catfish Pokémon with a yellow mark like a 'W' on its forehead, long yellow whiskers, and light blue lips stretched into a wide frown peering out of the water at them. They peer back. It's a Whiscash, and it doesn't look very happy to be here.
Terra waddles up to it, and tries an Absorb.
…Nope, not happy at all.
"
AAAUGH! " Rin and Riki scramble every which way as the Whiscash spits pulsing blasts of water at them. Terra gets knocked out in a single hit from one of its attacks, and Rin has to tackle Riki out of the way of a Water Pulse when he pauses to withdraw it. The Whiscash starts thrashing around more and more, and the ground shakes all around Rin as she pulls Riki by the hand back up the rocky stairs that led them down from the main tunnel.
The two collapse once they're back up on the ground floor of Oreburgh Gate, and the earthquake slowly subsides.
"We," Riki pants, "are
never, doing that again."
Rin starts to nod, before realizing something and tensing up. She glances here and there, whole body coiled like a spring, but the expected noise never comes. After a minute, she starts to relax and pushes herself to her feet.
*WEEE-OOO-WEEE-OOO-WEEE-OOO!*
…
"Okay, I said I was sorry! I got carried away! Now can I please have my Pokégear back," Masato wheedles as the group wanders the tunnel. Santa clutches the apparatus in its tendrils, jingling merrily as it hops along with its new toy.
"No! I refuse!" Rin shakes her head vigorously. "Actually… Santa, break it!"
"Noooooo! Not my calls from Riki!" Masato shouts out in despair as the Chingling glances at his Pokégear quizzically and raises it above its head, ready to slam its rope down.
"Ahem." Kengo catches Rin's attention and waves the can of Mon Petit conspicuously.
"…"
"…"
"…Fine. Santa, give." Rin hangs her head in defeat, and her Pokémon relaxes its grip so that Masato can snatch his Pokégear back. He cradles it lovingly.
Kengo nods in approval. "Try—"
Rin explodes. "I
get it, okay?"
…
Scree! Scree! Several Zubat back and forth across the path in front of the group. One flies closer and…
somehow… fixes Rin with an accusing glare. Several red, angry scratches decorate its wings and back.
Rin can't help but be impressed by the hostility and determination radiating from the bat. "Woah! Even after all that, you came back for revenge? You're amazing!" She scratches her chin, searching for a memory of learning something that's on the tip of her tongue. Something about a banished ambassador… Ah, that's it! She smacks a fist into her open palm, like a judge bringing down his gavel. "I'll call you… Michizane!"
"Is this really the time, Rin?" Riki implores her, voice dripping with exasperation, but as Michizane wheels around for a divebomb, it feels like there's a live wire humming in Rin's veins.
"Riki, follow my lead!" Rin quickly hops out of the way of the lead Zubat's dive, even as she calls for Santa to do the same. Before she can retaliate, the others swoop in to pester the Chingling, flying back out of the way any time it gets its footing enough to lash out with its ropes. "Ignore Michizane, we need to deal with his friends first!" Her attention flits back to Santa. "Use Confusion!"
A Zubat loses its bearings and smacks into the wall, another goes down under a thrown rock from Riki's Bonsly, but Michizane just keeps dodging around their attacks and coming back for more. Finally, as the last of its backup goes down, the Zubat makes a mistake - it nearly smacks into its falling comrade and pauses, fluttering in place for a moment as it gets its bearings. "Riki, now!" At Rin's signal, Riki shouts his own command and one of Sly's thrown rocks hits Michizane right in the wing. The Zubat falls, finally catching itself a foot from the ground.
"Santa! Use Wrap!" Before Michizane can regain its altitude, Santa grabs it with its ropes and brings them down hard, slamming the Zubat against the ground. It brings the Zubat down once, twice, then finally releases it as the bat Pokémon's thrashing becomes too much to handle. It's at that moment that Rin chucks a Pokéball with a cry. Even dazed, Michizane executes an aileron roll to the right… But Rin's throw was off, as usual, and the Zubat winds up dodging right into the wild ball's path.
The Pokéball drops to the ground. It shakes once…
Twice…
…and bursts open, the top half cracking off of the hinge in the process. Michizane flutters up unsteadily, skewing first to the right, then to the left, and then it opens its mouth and a burst of high-frequency vibrations forces Rin to curl up and clamp her hands over her ears. By the time the sound stops and she straightens back up, the Zubat has fled.
Mission Failed…
As Rin's hearing returns, she makes out the tail end of Riki mumbling "…sure that wasn't the original mission…" Did she say that out loud? Then, a rhythmic sound of two hands slapping together.
Kengo is clapping. "You did it, you two. You worked together!"
"Huh?" Rin shakes her head to clear the fog from it.
"You know, the whole reason you were doing this?" Masato taps the side of his head. "You sure
I'm the idiot here?"
"Uh…Oh! Right!" Rin finally snaps out of her daze, and greedily snatches the Mon Petit from Kengo's hand when he offers it. Lennon's going to love this! "Mission Complete!"
She ignores the fond shake of Riki's head as she whirls back towards the exit, prize in hand, and triumphantly strides towardsoh whoops that's the wall.
Ok, so maybe her head's still spinning a little.
----
Half an hour of resting (and healing their Pokémon) later, Rin's back in top form. The group decided to take a break while she recovered from the Supersonic, a consideration she's silently grateful for, but now they've all picked themselves back up and are ready to go.
Thankfully, they've made enough progress during Rin's training that it's only a couple minutes' walk before the exit comes into sight.
Less luckily, it's accompanied by the rushing sound of heavy rain. It's coming down hard enough that for a puddle to start to leak into the tunnel, rippling and splashing water every which way from the raindrops hammering on it outside.
Kengo furrows his brow. "It wasn't supposed to start raining this early, was it?"
Riki scratches his chin. "I mean… it
is already eleven, after all that ruckus. What do you think, should we wait it out?"
"Nah," Masato replies, shaking his head. "Weather report said it was supposed to go on all day."
"I don't want to run all the way to Jubilife in that…" Rin gives the exitway a guarded look.
"Wait!" Riki snaps his fingers. "We packed an umbrella, I'm
sure I remember that on the list!" He pulls off his backpack and rummages through it. "Come on, you guys help me look!"
After a minute searching, Rin finds it hidden in a corner of her own backpack. She pulls the umbrella out, and with a flourish it pops open to its full width.
"All right, Riki, Rin! I knew we could count on the two of you!" Masato shoots them a thumbs up.
Rin glances up at the umbrella.
She glances at Riki, Masato, and Kengo in turn.
She looks at the umbrella again.
A moment later, the issue sinks in for the others, too.
"I guess we… packed
an umbrella, huh…" Riki chuckles nervously for a moment before giving up and falling into a sigh.
"You know, Riki… Sometimes, you're almost as bad as them," Rin says.
"Ouch. Harsh." Kengo pats Riki on the back consolingly.
"That means you're one of us, now! Come on, Riki! Let's be muscle buddies!"
"No, no, no…" Riki shakes his head rapidly. "I don't think I'm quite that far gone yet…"
"Aw, Riki rejected me…" Masato hangs his head. "Ah, well! Hey, Kengo!"
"Why do I have the feeling I know what you're going to propose…" Kengo regards his friend suspiciously.
"Let's race! First one to get out of the rain wins!"
"Hmph. Well, with just the one umbrella, I suppose we don't have a better choice." Kengo starts stretching to warm up. "Good luck, you two."
"Woah, woah, wait!" Riki waves his hands in front of him. "Are you two serious?"
Rin shakes her head. "Those two are crazy, Riki. You should have given up by now."
"Eh." Masato shrugs. "I'll own it. Now let's go!" With those words, he and Kengo burst into a run, splashing water behind them as they reach the puddle and vanish into the rain.
After a minute, Rin speaks up. "Well, let's get moving."
"I… they…" Riki sighs, and offers her the umbrella. "…Yeah, alright."
Riki withdraws Sly and, after a moment's contemplation, sends out the recently-revived Terra so she can enjoy the rain. Santa hops up onto Rin's shoulder, and she takes a moment to find the position where the umbrella will offer the most protection. And then the two step out into Route 203.
The rain hammers against their umbrella with a sound like a never-ending drumroll. Rin tries to slip even closer to the middle, but her shoulder still gets wet where she's not fully protected. The spray of water coming down and mist splashing up from puddles already obscures the path forward enough that she can't see where Masato and Kengo have gone. It hardly takes two steps before the wetness of the grass soaks through her shoes and socks.
Still, bit by bit, she grows used to it. There's something peaceful in the sound of the rain, and as she watches Terra venture out cautiously at first, then begin to frolic in the rain, Rin can't help but smile. Her awareness expands, and she begins to notice the droplets running down the leaves of trees, the swaying of the tall grass around her legs, the way some Pokémon shelter from the rain and others revel in it.
As she and Riki start to descend the route's rolling hills, Rin notices a family of Shinx curled up under a tree, huddled around their Luxray mother for warmth. One of the small, light blue kittens sticks its paw out from their shelter and yanks it back upon contact with the rain, only to poke it back out in curiosity a moment later. A short ways further, and the two pass a small pond full of Goldeen and Magikarp bobbing up to the surface, chasing ripples left by the rain. Another few minutes later, and Rin startles Riki by coming to a sudden stop.
"What is it?"
"Look." She points at a crowd of what looks like lilypads standing in the rain. Looking closer, they're mounted on the backs of small blue Pokémon with six legs each and short yellow bills. "It's pretty rare to see so many Lotad at once here."
"Oh…" Riki's gaze follows Rin's for a moment, watching one Lotad snap playfully at the rain. Water builds up in the leafy rain dish on its back, creating something like a miniature pond of its own. Rin wonders whether smaller Pokémon could live in it for a moment, before Riki's voice snaps her back to reality. "Do… you think something's wrong?"
"Huh?"
"I mean, it's unusually heavy rain, and if there are more Lotad than there should be…"
Rin cocks her head. She'd just meant to point out something cute.
Riki shrugs. "…Anyways, we should get moving again. I just want to get out of this rain…"
Rin shoots one last glance back at the family of Lotad, but she doesn't really have a choice but to follow the umbrella. As she and Riki reach the end of the hills and cross onto a short concrete path leading the way, she doesn't bother pointing out any of the other Pokémon she notices in the rain.
Soon, they arrive at a small stairway leading up onto a large stone foundation. This is what's left of the mountain that once stood in place of Jubilife City, and stepping onto it marks entry into the city limits. The change is incredibly sudden; one moment they're walking between grass and trees, and the next they're flanked by businesses and skyscrapers. Jubilife City is almost entirely unlike Hearthome, from the smooth grey tiles that make up the city floor to the crush of strangers hurrying this way and that even in the rain.
Rin shrinks a little closer to Riki under the umbrella as they pass.
"We need to find someplace to get in from the rain." Riki glances around, looking from building to building.
After another minute of walking, Rin notices the sound of smooth jazz coming from a fancy café on the side of the street, with a covered patio. With one last, desperate rush, she and Riki make their way under the awning, where they can finally fold up their umbrella without getting drenched.
Once Rin is done wringing out her ponytail, she relaxes enough to glance around the café. Leafy potted plants are scattered around the patio, with flowers visible in the windows of the building proper. In the center of the patio is a circular stage, with a jazz band playing their hearts out atop it. The café's glass double doors are open in order to let the music in, revealing several scattered tables and a bar. Riki and Rin don't seem to be the only ones to have the idea of using the restaraunt as an escape; the café is quite crowded. There are several trainers sitting with their Pokémon at their tables, occasionally hand-feeding them bits of treats. A girl in a beige sweater is nursing a mug of some steaming beverage at the bar. And… are those Masato and Kengo, sitting at a table by the door with soaked hair?
Masato grins and waves them over. "Glad you found us!"
"Don't worry," Kengo adds, "We told them we were expecting a party of five."
Riki and Rin pick their way across the patio to their friends.
"You said a party of five," Riki inquires. "Does that mean you know how Kyousuke's doing?"
Kengo nods. "We called him once we got here; he's on his way."
"We were just debating calling you to tell you where to find us, but it looks like you wound up here on your own!"
"Mhm," Riki replies. "It seemed like the first building that was expecting people to just walk in out of the rain."
"Yeah, that's why we picked it too," Kengo concurs. "So how was the walk?"
"Wet," Riki says.
At the same time, Rin replies, "It was nice."
"Oh?"
"There were lots of Pokémon out in the rain," Rin continues. "They looked happy."
"I see." Kengo smiles gently for a moment, before their conversation is interrupted by a muffled sonic boom. Everyone looks out the window to see a Garchomp skid to a stop outside the café. Kyousuke clambers down from its back and withdraws it before striding confidently into the restaurant.
"Yo." He waves lazily as he approaches the Little Busters' table. "I take it everything went well?"
Masato nods and jabs his thumb at Riki and Rin. "Yup. Even got some training in for these two!"
The pair in question share a glance, concurring that they'll never speak of the Whiscash incident.
"That's great," Kyousuke exclaims with a boyish grin. He sits down, scattering rainwater everywhere with his careless movement. "Now that I'm here, let's order lunch! I'm starving!"
"Good idea. Waiter!" Kengo flags down a waiter, and they order their food before returning to the conversation.
"So… Did everything go alright with the Coronet path?" Riki glances at Kyousuke curiously.
"Oh, yeah, it just took a couple Rock Smashes and it was good as new!"
Riki just sighs at the reminder of their pointless detour.
"Honestly," Kyousuke continues, "The hardest part of this whole expedition was just getting Irwin to turn corners. Garchomp don't exactly have the best handling at top speed."
The conversation continues in this manner as they wait for their food, skimming from small talk to small talk. Eventually, the band finishes their current song and switches over to a jazzy arrangement of the music that plays in Pokémarts around the island chain.
("Even with all this crazy rain, we promise our music will drive you insane! Now here's a song I'm sure you all find familiar - with our own twist!")
Around that time, the girl at the counter finishes her drink and, after what looks like a short conversation with one of the employees, gets up to leave. She weaves between crowded tables, trying to reach the door, but just as she nears Rin's table, she comes face to face with a waiter and stumbles back to avoid a collision.
"Wah—!" She windmills her arms for a moment as she topples backwards. Riki jumps up to try and help, but instead of catching her he just winds up cushioning her fall as her back slams into him.
"Ow…" He rubs his head before getting up. "You alright?"
"Hm?" The girl rises to her feet, and Rin shrinks a little in her seat as the stranger's gaze passes over her. Her beige sweatshirt is a little ruffled from the fall, but otherwise she looks okay. She has strawberry blonde hair tied up by a star-shaped ornament with a trailing red ribbon on each side. Her eyes are blue, and there's something oddly familiar in their expression, something that Rin can't quite place… After a moment, the girl continues. "Oh. Yes, I'm fine. I'm sorry for the trouble…" She bows an apology before stepping around their table and making her exit. When Rin turns back to the others, she sees Riki looking after where the girl left with a pensive expression.
Before she can ask, Kyousuke interrupts her thought. "Finally!" Rin glances at the table and sees that their food has arrived; the waiter who was nearly in the collision must have been bringing it to them. "Come on, let's eat!"
Rin shrugs, and digs in. It probably wasn't important.