Chapter Four
A Rare Rendezvous
A little girl with flaming red hair sat lonely and afraid in a small cave, grime covering her frilly white dress. The place smelled of sulfur, the air tasted stale, and the small enclosure had no sound to speak of. As far as looks are concerned, the dreary cave was not much of a pleasure either; it was offensive to all of the senses. Titus took in his surroundings with a look of disgust and was about to reach out to the girl when, all of the sudden, red water began dripping from stalactites on the ceiling and forming a quickly widening pool on the ground. He sat there in stunned silence as it covered the majority of the cavern floor. The pool then began glowing a bright white, twisting and convoluting until it took a solid shape. As the light dimmed, the speechless trainer could make out what seemed to be spikes jutting out from either side before the light began glowing once again, this time brighter than the last, until it engulfed the entirety of the cave.
Titus was woken violently by the morning sun barraging his hectic dreaming with focused rays that boorishly pushed through his eyelids. He sat up with a start and rubbed said eyelids with the backs of his hands vigorously until his vision began to focus itself. The green expanse before him flashed in and out of focus for a few minutes until it finally became clear that Titus was no longer in the cave of his dreams, but in the field just off of Route Two where he had passed out the night before. The field was a temporary sanctuary that he had stumbled upon while cautiously making his way through Route Two. He had zigzagged over the beaten path and through the woods bordering it in an attempt to avoid detection by the two thugs from the remnants of the Viridian City Gym. This plan had succeeded, to Titus’s relief, but had also made what should have been a one day trek to the Viridian Forest checkpoint a two day affair that would more than likely land him in the forest itself.
The groggy trainer gave his head a violent shake, as if to forcibly remove the images of the little girl that had now plagued his sleep for the second night in a row. He could not help but wonder where the image had generated from, as it certainly was not a memory, but his mental search turned up nothing. Giving one last shake, Titus rose slowly to his feet and brushed off nearly every inch of his body before turning to the large green bulb that was resting next to his crimson travel bag. His face broke into a small smile as he strolled over to his slumbering partner, remembering what had transpired the night before. Once they had reached the field where Titus ultimately ended up falling asleep, he had released Zagreus from his Pokeball and the two had spent nearly all night talking. Their conversation had focused mainly on the events that had transpired after Zagreus’s loss of consciousness, but they had jumped from topic to topic on occasion. One such topic was what to do with the Pokemon they had rescued from the clutches of the two mysterious men in the Gym.
Titus had not yet released the Pokemon from the ball his father had sent him for his birthday. This was mostly due to the fact that he figured the obviously abused creature deserved some peace, quiet, and rejuvenation, and if the special Pokeball worked the way it was supposed to, that ball was the perfect place for it to receive that care. The card that had accompanied the phoenix marked Pokeball described it as a sneak-peek at what Titus’s father’s company in Saffron City was currently developing and had not only been specially designed for Titus on the outside, but the inside as well.
The creation of this Pokeball was a project Drake Polloa had spearheaded on the suggestion of his son. Titus, eight years old at the time, had just been tucked into bed after hearing his favorite bedtime story of the hero Gar: The Quest for the Dragonite, when he made the point of saying to his father that the Dragonite Gar had journeyed to capture was now useless. When he asked his son why such a powerful Pokemon was useless, Drake was met with the reasoning that Gar had used all of his healing herbs in the battle against Dragonite and since he was on the peak of Mt. Silver with no Pokemon Center within miles, as the story had stated, the Dragonite, that was severely weakened now due to the efforts of Gar, would be of no use if the hero encountered more powerful Pokemon on his way down the mountain. Drake Polloa was baffled by the logic of his son and quickly came up with a solution. He replied that Gar had a magic Pokeball that would heal its occupant over time. Pleased with this explanation, Titus asked his father if he could make him a magic Pokeball just like Gar’s before drifting off to sleep. The naivety of his son’s request sparked an inspiration in Drake to create the “magic Pokeball” of his own imagination and deliver on Titus’s youthful wish.
The culmination of seven years of tireless work now rested in Titus’s hand as he stood over Zagreus, waiting silently for the Bulbasaur to wake so the pair could release the mysterious Pokemon from the Pokeball and confront it together. They had decided the night prior that it would probably be better if the abused creature had a fellow Pokemon to talk to fresh off of its imprisonment at the hands of humans. It had also been decided however, that Titus should still be there for the initial meeting to show his compassion and good intention considering that the trio was stuck together at least until they reached Pewter City and the Pokemon Center there. Only at the Center could Titus properly release a Pokemon from its bond to its Pokeball, and since backtracking to Viridian City was too risky, Pewter was their only shot. Release seemed like the obvious option in this case since the mysterious Pokemon had probably spent much too long in containment already to consider an entire journey in the relative containment of a Pokeball, no matter how comforting that Pokeball may be. In the end however, it was all up to the mystery Pokemon’s preference. Titus would be more than glad to add another member to his fledgling team, but he was not one to keep anyone against their will simply to add to his arsenal.
Zagreus soon stirred from his deep sleep and shook himself awake much like his trainer had done mere moments ago, and turned to face Titus with an early morning glow in his eyes. <Morning Titus!> the Bulbasaur exclaimed in a soft, yet excited voice. His excitement soon turned to an emotion that was about as close to seriousness as the shy, young Pokemon ever got as he stole a glance at what Titus was holding. Zagreus had quickly realized that now was the time he had been wondering about ever since he had retrieved that odd looking Pokeball from the cage. Now was the time to confront whatever they had rescued from that cage.
“Are you ready for this Zagreus?” Titus asked his companion.
<I suppose…> the Bulbasaur responded tentatively, <but what if it was in that cage for a reason? What if it’s dangerous?>
“Well I guess we’ll just have to risk it,” Titus replied just as hesitantly. He had mulled that very question over while Zagreus slept and had to thoroughly convince himself that whatever those men were going to do to this Pokemon was worse than what the Pokemon itself could do. So, after much thought and planning, the moment of truth was upon them. It was time for the rescuers to finally meet who it was that they had rescued. With a deep breath, Titus tossed his specially-made Pokeball into the air. The ball flipped and spun as it flew towards the open field of grass in front of the pair, glistening in the sun as it went. As it hit the soft grass, the ball bounced and split itself in two down the middle, releasing a red-orange flash of light that twisted and reformed into the shape of the creature Titus had seen the day before huddled up in the corner of a stark cage. As the light dimmed, the young trainer held his Pokedex at the ready as it began to scan the new arrival.
Once the mystery Pokemon had finally made its physical appearance known however, Titus realized his Pokedex’s species description was not necessary in the least. The Pokedex’s audible announcement of the name of the species was all that Titus needed to know about what he now beheld.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was about a year-and-a-half ago that Titus was marching through the hallways of the Pokemon University towards the academy lecture hall. He was joined by a group of about one-hundred other students who were, like him, enrolled in the Trainer program at the university. The mob was headed to a special lecture by a world renowned wild Pokemon specialist who had traveled all the way from the land of Hoenn at the behest of Professor Oak. According to Professor Oak, he had taught this man in his youth and he was one of the professor’s most successful students from his teaching days. This statement of praise was a rather impressive feat by itself considering the great minds that the Professor had helped to mold over the years. That is, until his retirement from teaching a few years prior to Titus’s enrollment in the university.
As Titus entered the great hall, he headed straight for the front, hoping to get a good seat for the renowned guest speaker. He joined several other potential trainers in the first couple rows of the massive auditorium and sat down, turning his attention to the stage up front and the two men that were conversing up there. One of them Titus immediately recognized as the local celebrity and Pokemon expert Professor Oak. The other man on the stage was considerably younger than the aging professor and exhibited it quite proudly. He gave off a youthful and energetic exuberance that echoed throughout the hearty laugh he gave in response to something his former teacher had just whispered to him on stage. His clothing, Titus noticed, was a bit suspect for one in his position as he sported a tight-fitting, navy blue t-shirt, a pair of khaki shorts, and a couple of tattered, brown sandals. Another thing that the trainer-to-be found interesting about him was long, brown hair he sported in contrast to Oak’s clean-cut silver, and the scruff of facial hair that ran across his chin.
Titus was snapped from his observation and appraisal of the speaker as the telltale sound of someone clearing their throat rang out over the speaker system. The sound continued to ring as everyone else in attendance immediately fell silent and turned their attention to Professor Oak who had stepped up to the polished wooden podium on stage. He gave the students a quick smile and a nod and proceeded with the introduction of the guest in their midst.
“Hello everyone,” he began with his eyes grazing the sea of students, “as you all know, today we have a very special guest speaker for you. He is someone that I had the great pleasure of teaching as a young man at the Rustboro Institution of Higher Learning. He has since become the foremost expert on wild Pokemon, specifically, their habitual distribution and behavioral patterns. Currently, he is working closely with scientists of the Devon Corporation on a new and more comprehensive Pokedex that will be available next year for those of you lucky enough to score in the top percentile on your Trainer Proficiency Exams. He is here today to present to you all he knows about one of the most interesting and mysterious, not to mention rare, Pokemon in the world today. Ladies and gentlemen please welcome Professor Birch.”
The aforementioned professor was met with a cacophony of applause that he received with a look of great pleasure and excitement as he stepped up to the podium, shaking hands with his former teacher on the way. Birch’s large physique towered over the podium that Professor Oak had stood nearly even with, and he struggled to adjust the microphone to the according height. Once he had finished, the Professor looked out over the crowd with a smile and fiddled with something unseen to the audience on the back of the podium. Finally prepared, he spoke loud and clearly through the microphone to the assembled masses.
“Nice to see you all! I, as my esteemed teacher mentioned, am Professor Adam Birch and I’m from Hoenn, New Bark Town to be exact. Like Professor Oak, I am an avid researcher of Pokemon, but I prefer my studies to take place in the field where I can experience firsthand what it is that many of my colleagues merely read about. I am here today to talk to you about a certain extremely rare, and just as interesting, Pokemon.” With his introductions complete, Professor Birch removed a small remote like object from his pocket and pointed it at the screen that had lowered behind him as he spoke. With the press of a button, the obviously dated image of a very impressive Pokemon appeared on the white backdrop. “Now,” the professor continued, “can anyone tell me what this Pokemon is? It is talked about thoroughly in the mythos of ancient Pokemon, but very rarely seen in real life. As a matter of fact, this picture is one of the only recorded, credible, sightings of this wonderful creature.”
The creature that graced the screen was vaguely canine in appearance, despite the fact that it stood perfectly balanced on its powerful hind legs. Its body was mostly black and blue, the only exception coming in the form of its furry, tan torso and three white spikes that adorned its chest and two hands. The hands themselves were black and led the way to blue arms that in turn led to black shoulders. The creature’s legs followed the same basic pattern as the feet and lower legs were black, the upper legs were blue, and the waist was a ring of black. The most predominantly canine features that this Pokemon displayed were the blue tail, blue pointed ears, and the blue face that sported two black stripes. These stripes ran perpendicular to each other, one forming a ring horizontally around its head and the other arcing over the top and ending at the intersection on either side. Both of them ran from the four sensory appendages that hung down from the back of its head to the end of its protruding snout. The final and perhaps most stunning feature of this proud creature was the pair of red eyes that cut straight through the black of its face.
Titus had seen this particular Pokemon somewhere before, exactly where he had seen it he was not sure, but, due to the Professor’s description, he assumed it was in the Pokemon Mythology class he had taken the year prior. This, of course, meant he was unable to answer Professor Birch’s question. Apparently, someone was however as the Professor soon called on someone towards the back of the room to voice their answer to the question. A soft voice laced with shyness answered with a volume that was barely registered towards the front of the room where Titus sat.
“Umm… that’s Lucario isn’t it?” his fellow student replied hesitantly.
“Very good young lady!” Professor Birch exclaimed as his booming voice completely outshone the student who had answered him. “This wonderful creature is known as Lucario, the Aura Pokemon. Now this classification branches from a Lucario’s unique, one-of-a-kind ability to sense, read, and manipulate the energy known as Aura. Not much is known about this energy other than it permeates from every living being and apparently varies in strength between each. Now generally speaking, humans do not have especially high Aura levels. The select few that do however are very lucky in that they are potential candidates for capturing this majestic creature. A Lucario will never ally itself with any Trainer that it considers unworthy, and unlike many other Pokemon it can afford to hold this distinction as a fully grown Lucario has the potential to be extraordinarily powerful.”
With this mention of power, many of the potential trainers in the auditorium perked up in their seats and many raised their hands. With a grand smile on his face, Professor Birch pointed one of them out and asked for his input. The chosen student spoke very loudly, and much blunter than his predecessor as he asked the question that was riding every student’s mind.
“Where can you catch a Lucario sir?” with this question, the attention of the entire auditorium turned almost palpably to Adam Birch, the man with all the answers.
“Well now that’s the golden question son,” the Professor said with a knowing glint in his eye. “Quite simply, I don’t entirely know. No one truly does. At least, that’s the official word on it. The last man to officially capture a Lucario released his approximately twenty years ago, and will not confess as to where he captured it. This man, the Sinnoh League Champion for a number of years, claimed that his Lucario found him, not the other way around. So, in the end, we don’t have much to go on as far as Lucario habitation is concerned other than the fact that they are found somewhere in the Sinnoh region and only seek trainers with high concentrations of Aura.” With that, one could hear the entire gathering of students sigh in disappointment at the unfortunate news.
Professor Birch was not one for bad moods however, and he followed this bit of bad news with some good. “Hold on now! We have made great strides in recent years concerning the Lucario population. Although study on habitat location has stalled, we have learned a great deal about physical makeup, combat technique, and even the evolutionary line of Lucario.” Having recaptured the undivided attention of his audience, Professor Birch continued by changing the image on the screen behind him.
“This, ladies and gentlemen, is Riolu…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Now, a year and a half later and not even a week into his journey, Titus saw live and in person what the rest of the world would hardly ever get the chance to see even in a picture. What he saw was what seemed to be a miniature version of Lucario. According to the description that was still being rattled off by Titus’s Pokedex, the extraordinarily rare Pokemon stood at a little over two feet tall. Much like its evolved counterpart, this small canine creature’s color scheme was almost entirely black and blue, the only exception coming in a small tuft of tan fur on its neck. Its upper legs, arms, and tail were all a medium blue and its torso and lower legs were a deep black. The Riolu’s face was considerably less profound than a Lucario’s, but still held the same color scheme and interesting design. Other diminished features included its ears, which were tiny nubs compared to the regal protrusions of a Lucario, and its sensory appendages of which there were only two as opposed to four. Perhaps the most noticeable feature however, was the absence of the spikes. There was no semblance of metal on its chest and only what could be described as a pair of steel bumps on each forearm. Overall, it was not the most intimidating creature, but its red eyes had a look of dark suspicion unbefitting of one who appeared so innocent.
These eyes darted back and forth between the trainer and his Bulbasaur, obviously confused and clearly wary of what the two strangers had to do with his drastic and sudden change of circumstances. Titus saw the apprehension creep across the Riolu’s face, something the trainer readily expected, and was not entirely surprised by what followed. The bipedal canine quickly struck a fighting pose and squared off against the two with a snarl and bared teeth, a kneejerk reaction to the supposed threat they posed. Both trainer and Pokemon flinched quite visibly in reaction, despite this being a relatively foreseen event, but quickly recovered and began attempts at calming the new arrival down. Zagreus began a bit panicked and rambled incoherently for a few moments before righting himself with a breath and restarting.
<Um okay…> he began slowly and calmly, <so I guess I should start with names… Right? Alright well my name is Zagreus and this is Titus. What’s your name?>
The Riolu’s eyes continued darting as confusion began to creep into its face to join the anxiety and suspicion. Evidently, it was expecting a much different reaction from its captors than this nervous combination of stutters and clumsy introductions. After a few tense moments of appraisal, it spoke out in a harsh, male voice that had an undertone of defiance almost exclusive to adolescents, human or Pokemon.
<You will get no such thing! Now where am I?! Who are you?! Explain yourselves!>
Both Titus and Zagreus were somewhat surprised by the tone of voice used by this supposedly mysterious and regal creature, especially the post-pubescent accents of it. After getting over this miniscule speed bump, Zagreus opened his mouth to speak once again, but was cut short by Titus stepping forward.
“Like my friend here said, my name is Titus,” he spoke softly, lacing his voice with compassion as best as he could, “and I’m a Pokemon Trainer. We’re in Kanto, just north of Viridian City to be specific. We found you a while south of here being transported in a cage by a couple of thugs from the basement of the abandoned Gym. You looked like you were in a lot of trouble so we did what we thought was right and got you out of there. We were found out though, so we had to get out of there ourselves. So what ended up happening was that I ended up hiding from them almost all day until I finally lost them and settled down in this field here. And well that’s about it.” The young trainer finished with a smile and hoped his friendly explanation would help ease the tension.
To Titus’s surprise and pleasure, it seemed to work as, after a few moments of heart stopping silence, the Riolu finally lowered his arms. This change in position did not change the look in his eyes, but it was a start. Both Titus’s and Zagreus’s bodies followed suit with their new arrival’s and released a great deal of stored tension, relaxing each of them individually and the situation as a whole. All three of them stood there, relaxed but still at a loss as to where to go from that point. After a little while, even the Riolu’s eyes lost a bit of their suspicious edge as he considered what Titus had just told him. This softness did not last for long, much to Titus’s chagrin, as the Riolu had stumbled upon something in his mental breakdown that alerted him greatly.
<Where’s Astor?!> he exclaimed suddenly.
“I’m sorry who?” Titus asked, confused.
<Astor! He was with me when I was… captured. We were…> the eminence Pokemon struggled to find the correct word for a second or two, but soon settled on a suitable one, <…friends…>
A fallen look overtook Titus’s face as he realized what exactly this distressed Pokemon was talking about. He replied solemnly, “I only had enough time to save one of you… I didn’t see into any of the other cages so I’m not even sure if your friend was even there. Plus I don’t know how I would’ve been able to either. I only had one Pokeball-”
<Pokeball?!> Before he could finish his regretful explanation, Titus was abruptly cut off by the Riolu. <You put me in a Pokeball?! That’s how you “saved” me?! This is awful…>
Despite expecting this type of reaction, his savior was visibly annoyed by the final trailing statement the Riolu made and spoke accordingly, “Now hold on! Awful? It’s gotta be better than that cage! You were in terrible shape when we found you and this Pokeball is specially made to heal. I didn’t expect you to be glowing with praise but I figured you’d at least a little grateful before I released you geez…”
<Released me? You planned on releasing me?> the Riolu inquired, now more confused than ever.
“Well yeah,” Titus said matter-of-factly, “I didn’t catch you fairly so I figured it was only right to have you released once we reached Pewter City. It’s about a day or two walk from here but once we get there I can officially have you released from the Pokeball.”
The Riolu took in this last statement with a bit of difficulty. However, he soon recovered his defiance and swagger with a final retort, <Right then… Well hurry up and return me to that ball so I can heal further… I’ll need to be at full strength once you release me so I can find Astor…>
Titus was about to advise against the emotion-driven rescue mission, but he realized it would be useless to argue further with the stubborn creature and merely complied with his wishes. The young trainer unclipped the Pokeball from his belt once again and returned the Riolu to his temporary home in another flash of red-orange light that engulfed the Pokemon and retracted into the ball. With a sigh that revealed a mixture of relief and a trace of disappointment, the young trainer turned to Zagreus and gave him a quick nod before returning him as well. Titus then gathered the rest of his things and set off into the nearby underbrush and back towards Route Two. He trudged through branches, dirt, and an inordinate amount of prickly leaves for a few good minutes before emerging into the mid-day sun of the clear dirt road. It took a few moments to recover his bearings and sense of direction, but once he did, Titus set off towards the Viridian Forest and ultimately, Pewter City.
As he walked down the Route, Titus began to notice a strange rustling noise in the taller grass to his left. Initially, he brushed it aside in his mind, assuming it to only be a Rattata or something similarly annoying trying to goad him into battle. These suspicions were seemingly confirmed moments later as the rustling gave up following the young trainer and stopped altogether. With a smirk and a semblance of pep in his step, Titus continued on heartily. That is, until the rustling returned, this time on his right-hand side. He continued his strategy of feigning ignorance, convinced that it was the best way to neutralize this annoyance. However, this time the rustling chose not to stop and even intensified as he continued to approach the ever-nearing Trainer checkpoint at the entrance of Viridian Forest. Finally, once the checkpoint appeared as small, dark blip on the horizon, the rustling creature made its presence known in a big way.
The ground before Titus exploded in a flurry of dirt and rocks as a small yellow creature emerged violently from within the earth. It rolled around on the ground for a few seconds, nothing but a blur of yellow, before snapping out of its spherical shape and into what seemed to be a fighting stance at the startled trainer’s feet. This Pokemon was no more than two feet tall and had a rather round figure, slightly less so than when it emerged from the earth, but round nonetheless. Its body was covered in hard, yellow scales that covered everything but the two beady eyes on its head and the soft, white underbelly. It had mousy features overall, and its limbs were all short and stubby, each ending in a pair of white claws. This creature was fairly common in caves, mountains, and deserts, but to see one this close to a forest was rather unheard of. Before Titus could question its appearance, the questions were explained by a voice emerging from behind him.
“Hey there! It’s about time you stopped to chat!’
Fearing it was the thugs from the abandoned Gym, Titus turned slowly and beheld something, or rather someone, much less intimidating. It was a small boy, about twelve or thirteen years of age, with a pasty complexion and a wild mess of brown hair. He wore a bright yellow t-shirt and a pair of blue denim shorts that were held up by a black belt bearing two red-and-white Pokeballs. The young boy stalked up to Titus and blew right past him, stopping a few feet behind the mouse Pokemon and turning to face the rookie trainer. In a few seconds it was obvious to Titus what this kid wanted. He wanted a battle.
“Well send out your Pokemon! I know you’ve got at least two on your belt there,” the mystery boy shouted indignantly. “I haven’t got all day!”
Titus complied with a smirk and, in one fluid motion, released Zagreus from his spherical confinement in a flash of white light. The trainer was brimming with an uncharacteristic confidence in lieu of his opponent’s unimpressive identity, and even dared to smile at his chances. After the hectic events of the last couple days he was happy to return to anything even remotely less terrifying than grown men chasing him down for his life. Pokemon battles were not Titus’s forte, but the memory of his wondrous comeback during his last battle was fresh in the rookie’s mind. Besides, if he wanted to become a champion, he would have to start battling seriously sometime. With a confident breath, Titus locked eyes with his opponent and, for the first time, began a battle on his terms.
“Start things off with a Vine Whip Zagreus!” he exclaimed heartily. Zagreus, invigorated by his trainer’s confident command, complied dynamically and, just as Titus commanded, whipped out a vine with full force and swiftly smacked his opponent across the face. The mouse Pokemon hit the ground rolling once again, but this time it was not by choice. It rolled and rolled until it was able to right itself with clumsy application of its tail and stubby arms. Titus saw a ghost of himself in his opponent as the young child’s face was frozen with frustration in reaction to his Pokemon’s misfortune. Unlike Titus in his first few battles however, the boy channeled his frustration and was able to successfully command his partner in the face of this turn of events.
“Don’t take that Sandshrew! Use Scratch attack and get ‘em back!” he declared excitedly. His partner responded in turn and quickly rushed toward its opponent, claws raised. The claws never did reach their mark however, as Zagreus’s still extended vines harshly kept the shrew Pokemon away with well timed strikes and parries. Both the opposing trainer and Pokemon were visibly aggravated by their inability to pull off a successful attack and the very young trainer eventually thought of a different strategy. His look of frustration turned, almost comically, to one of absolute delight as he shouted out his new command, “Sandshrew change to a Dig attack!”
The shrew Pokemon complied with gusto and immediately stopped its pointless assault, instead switching to a subterranean method of attack. Sandshrew lowered its claws below its head and straight to the ground, quickly shoveling its way into the earth and beneath the outstretched vines of its opponent. At a loss for strategy, Titus could only watch as the disturbed ground snaked its way through the battlefield until finally reaching Zagreus’s underside. The earth beneath the Bulbasaur’s feet viciously exploded outward and his embattled opponent drove out from underneath and struck Zagreus’s underside with considerable force. This blow took a considerable toll on Zagreus as he stumbled off weakly to the side after being catapulted a good amount of feet.
Despite this momentary adversity, he stayed strong and retaliated quickly and without prompt with a powerful full-body tackle. The resulting contact sent the small shrew Pokemon flying even further than Zagreus had just flown, high up into the air and then roughly back down to the earth. Pokemon and ground met with a resounding impact that sent up a small cloud of dust. Once it all settled, it was clear that the Sandshrew was no longer capable of battling as it lay motionless and unconscious. The small boy despondently took in his defeat and returned his partner back to its Pokeball and the ball to his belt.
Titus was nigh ecstatic in his first true victory. It was a long time coming, but he had finally recorded his first victory as a Pokemon Trainer, a wondrous occasion for any up and coming trainer. Or so he thought. His celebration was cut short by the surefire sound of a Pokemon being released from a Pokeball. With a flash of white light, the opposing trainer had released a second Pokemon onto the field of battle, this one being a small bird.
The bird Pokemon was enveloped in contrasting brown and cream colored feathers that each covered one half of its body. Its tiny body was held up by a pair of even tinier pink talons for a few moments before it lifted itself into the sky with a pair of feathered wings that together doubled its unimpressive size. The last of its features were a pair of black rings encircling its eyes and a small beak that’s color mirrored that of its talons. It was a rather unimpressive creature overall, but it was one that anyone in Kanto would recognize in an instant, a Pidgey.
The initial surprise at its sudden appearance washed away quickly as Titus assessed the miniscule bird as a minimal threat. He was not expecting a two-on-two battle, especially since the last thing he wanted to do was bother that Riolu he “caught” with a battle it would certainly see no point in fighting. However, the fact that the second Pokemon was one as common and notoriously weak as a Pidgey erased his doubts and he set forth with continued vigilance. With a quick clearing of his throat, Titus shouted another set of encouraging commands to his besieged partner, “Alright Zagreus I know you’re tired, but you can take this one out too! I’m countin’ on you buddy, let’s show ‘em what we’re made of with another Vine Whip!”
Zagreus took a moment or two to soak in his newest commands and gather himself before resetting himself in a powerful stance and reasserting his current battlefield dominance with a barrage of vines that quickly rained down upon his new opponent’s head. Both the young boy and his Pokemon were taken by surprise by this sudden offensive, perhaps thinking that Titus would opt to defend with Zagreus worn from the last battle. The Pidgey was defenseless against the blows hailing from above and its trainer was doing nothing to help it, his face screwed up in a visage that seemed to say he was thinking a bit too hard. His tiny avian soon became weary of its trainer’s inaction took it upon itself to bank low under the vines and smash head on into Zagreus, sending him sliding back a few feet and causing him to retract his flailing vines.
The Pidgey’s sudden action took both trainers by surprise, but the younger trainer’s surprise was quickly veiled as he attempted to take credit for the brilliant maneuver. “Yeah that’s it Pidgey! Just like we um planned! Good job, now follow it up with a Quick Attack!”
Titus was about to call the young boy’s bluff but his time was cut short by the youngster’s battle commands. As his Pidgey banked once more in preparation for its strike, Titus called out to Zagreus hurriedly. “Quick buddy jump to your left!” The Bulbasaur immediately complied and dodged the oncoming bird narrowly by lunging clumsily out of the way. Bulbasaurs were not meant for that kind of quick motion however and Zagreus’s momentum carried him much further than he wanted. This unfortunate mishap eventually resulted in a loss of balance and a Bulbasaur on his back, unable to roll back over due to the awkward way he was resting on his bulb. The Pidgey seized this opportunity effortlessly and began violently barraging the helpless dinosaur Pokemon with successive pecks and scratches.
Once it was clear that Zagreus was completely unable to continue in the battle, the small bird Pokemon perched itself on the ground next to him and stared at Titus expectantly. Defeated and dejected, Titus robotically removed Zagreus’s Pokeball from his belt and returned his partner back to the comfort of his ball with a flash of red light. This acceptance of defeat was apparently not enough for the Pidgey, as its stare continued to pry Titus for something more. It was only when Titus saw this look mirrored in the eyes of its trainer that he understood what his opponents were looking for.
Oh man what am I gonna do?[i/] the distressed trainer asked himself. I can’t ask the Riolu to battle, especially after I just saved him from who knows what. I doubt he’d listen to me anyway. I should’ve just put his ball in my bag; they only expect me to have another Pokemon because I put the ball on my belt.
Titus racked his brain for excuses for a few moments before finally coming to a conclusive one, “Well you see… My other Pokemon fai-” His quickly planned excuse was immediately rendered useless, despite his best efforts, by the emergence of something none of the combatants saw coming. In a brilliant flash of red-orange light, the Riolu Titus had just been excusing from the battle burst forth and materialized before the pair of shocked trainers. He gave a quick look and nod to Titus and then turned viciously towards his newfound opponent and assumed a powerful fighting stance.
Before Titus could issue a command or the opposing trainer could question the mystery Pokemon’s appearance, Riolu struck. He took two long, lunging strides and launched himself with blinding speed towards the Pidgey. Within the blink of an eye he was upon the bird and pounded it with two powerful punches before retreating to Titus’s side. Both trainers were struck with awe and speechlessness at the display that left the tiny bird Pokemon beaten and unconscious several yards from where it had originally stood. With nothing else to do, the younger of the two returned his partner to its ball and without a word, stuck his tongue mockingly and turned tail back towards Viridian City.
He left the pair of victors standing in awkward silence that permeated the air for a few long seconds before it was finally broken by Titus. “Why’d you do that? I wasn’t going to ask you to battle…” he inquired bluntly.
<I sensed you were distressed, so I released myself from that ball. Once I saw the other two, it was obvious what you needed so I took care of it.> The Riolu replied with an air of pride in his voice indicative of his recent victory.
At a loss for anything else to say, Titus responded with a simple, “Thank you.”
The bipedal canine Pokemon was taken aback a bit by the trainer’s sincerity but swiftly recovered his composure. <It was no problem,> he said with a nod. He then took a few moments of thought and continued, <And if you need any help with fights until we reach wherever we’re going… Just ask… I’ll need the practice if I want to save Astor from those men.> The Riolu seemed to struggle with offering his help, but softened up a bit once he found a self-serving reasoning to it.
Titus took his offering graciously and spoke in return, “You got it. I’ll call on you if I need any help on the way, but do you want to rest up in the ball until then?”
Very little consideration was given to this offer, as the black and blue dog nodded almost immediately. It was slowly becoming apparent that the display he had just put on took a bit more out of him than he cared to admit. Noticing this, Titus quickly snagged the ball from his belt and was about to return his temporary partner to his temporary home when he was interrupted once more by Riolu.
<Hold on,> he spoke assertively. <My name… it’s Romulus.>
“Well it’s a pleasure to meet you Romulus.”