TheAlpar
Journey Enthusiast
Warnings: This fic contains swearing, blood and violence. Reader discretion is advised.
Author Notes: This one might take some explaining for it to make a bit more sense. This fic is a translation and adaptation of a DnD-like Pokemon campaign played a few years ago by some friends, which is why the cast is so expansive at the beginning and the characters act wildly different. I imagine it as The Adventure Zone meets Pokemon, in a way.
The reason I'm adapting it is because, honestly, this is one of the greatest Pokemon stories I've ever seen and both the DM and the characters managed to weave together such an incredible, creative world that I can't help but be amazed with it, and I hope all the readers will be as well. Of course I'm adapting this with full permission of the DM Yuki, the man who came up with all of this. Full credits go to him and all the players.
With that said, please enjoy.
That night the station had been swallowed by a harsh cold, enough to pierce lungs and turn skin as pale as marble. The only visible light nearby belonged to a rusty lamp sitting atop a metal pole. It twinkled in and out once every few seconds, threatening to plunge the whole place into darkness.
No train had circulated through those tracks in years, and by all means the place should've been abandoned. And yet, strangely, three dark figures stood behind one of the platforms. The first two leaned back on the freezing benches sprinkled all around. The third was the one closest to the rails, arms crossed and expression darkened.
The clock struck midnight, startling them with its buzzing, electronic gong. Two round, yellow lights could be seen approaching from the east, making the ground rumble the closer they got.
The train that greeted them had certainly seen better days. The rectangular advertisements at the sides had been turned into an incomprehensible garble of bright colors. The windows were so dirty they could barely make out the light inside and the ceiling and lower parts of the wagons were covered in a thick layer of rust.
It opened its gates with a whirring sound of nails against chalkboard. Its front lights illuminated a worn sign that read Viridian City Train Station.
Two of the three people looked at each other for a moment, and set foot inside the ninth wagon. The remaining dark figure turned away from them and entered through the tenth.
The train stood still for a few seconds before roaring back to life, disappearing into the night soon after.
The seats were made of cheap plastic and a grey, dirty carpet covered most of the floor. The edges of the windows were being consumed by a thick layer of filth that made it impossible to see anything through it. Some of them feared the ceiling would collapse any second, as its whirring roars threatened to do.
The train gained velocity at a slow, steady pace. At a distance the persistent sound of something crinkling against metal didn't sit well with some of the passengers, who shifted uncomfortably in their seats and focused their senses on their surroundings.
There were three on the ninth wagon. Looking curiously at the door was a tall man with a messy appearance, wearing a garish red and black jacket and a gigantic yellow thread that hung from his hip toward his left leg. Next to him another young man tapped his foot impatiently, hands on his pockets and worry clear on his face. His brown hair was somewhat covered by a pair of black triangular glasses that hung above his forehead, and the only thing protecting him from the cold was a jacket with a fuzzy white collar. The man who'd entered the wagon alongside him was standing in the middle of it, staring past one of the windows with a look of concentration.
The one with glasses ruffled his hair nervously and grabbed a tarot card from the deck holster hanging from his hip. Closing his eyes he threw it upwards, managing to catch it flawlessly. When he opened them again the image of a winged angel with a trumpet met him on the front of the card.
"Inverted Judgement... an unexpected travel?" he whispered to himself. "Wait... that's already happening."
Mom was right, I should've trained more.
He couldn't help but laugh at himself, and forming a soothing smile he turned towards the two men sharing the wagon with him.
"How about you two? Also traveling because of necessity?"
The tallest one stared at him with a curious, somewhat unhinged look. A pair of unfocused eyes could be seen behind his dark, tea shade glasses.
"Necessity, you say?" His voice was strangely calm, and yet they could feel laughter bubbling underneath it. "Let's see, if my math isn't wrong then there's three of us here, plus the four in the wagon in front of us and two in the one behind. Either this is all a coincidence or we all got the same letter and we came here because we're the perfect group of credulous idiots."
Without giving time for a response he turned towards the door leading to the next wagon, hands inside the pockets of his jacket.
"I'm going to make friends, wanna join me?"
I wonder if they got my sarcasm, he thought to himself. Wait… they're complete strangers. Ah, nevermind…
The one who hadn't spoken yet approached him with a gentle smile and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Forgive me, partner, but wouldn't it be courteous to introduce ourselves?" His tone was low and soothing. "I know what you're thinking: 'This person who doesn't even know me is accusing me of impoliteness!'"
The garish man stared at him as if he didn't understood half the words coming out of his mouth. Either that or he was extremely drunk.
"In any case…" he continued, still smiling, "my name is Siegfried, it's a pleasure to meet you. Well… technically it depends on you whether you want to introduce yourself or not and… ah… I'm sorry, I tend to ramble sometimes."
The man he was speaking to showed him a smile that, he realized, couldn't belong to anyone entirely sane.
"Name's Ñako." He winked playfully. "What about mister tarot over there?"
"You can call me Rhin." The third man also smiled, saving the card inside the deck. "A pleasure."
But strangest of all was the one who'd just stepped inside through the Viridian Station. He wore a wide, bright smile and a simple-minded look, yet what surprised the rest of the passengers the most was his strange hair. A puffy, pink afro.
A dry chuckle came from where the white haired man was sitting, his eyes going from the newcomer's unusual hair to the window next to him.
He let out a sigh, mist escaping his lips, "I don't like it."
The young man with the pink afro turned towards him and smiled.
"There is no need for such praise, my young fan!" he spoke, startling everyone with the volume of his voice. "I can see in your eyes your incipient admiration!"
They all turned to look at him, with varying degrees of surprise and confusion. They stood quiet for a few seconds, and the eccentric man took this as an opportunity to keep speaking.
"If that's what you wish, then I shall introduce myself." He raised his palm toward the ceiling, his hair glistening under the fluorescent lights of the wagon. "I… am Vard!"
The two other men exchanged a puzzled look, and the girl at the back simply looked away, disinterested. Vard interpreted this as a result of his endless charm having boggled the minds of his poor companions. He needed to act fast, to regain their attention.
"Now, my indecipherable friends…" His expression turned darker, perhaps unconsciously. "Let's say… I make this wagon explode."
That certainly got the girl's attention, whose sharp yellow eyes quickly turned towards Vard. Both her and the white haired man moved their hands to their belts, where their only Pokeball resided.
However, the sharply dressed boy simply let out a laugh, half incredulous and half sarcastic.
"A pleasure, Vard." He raised his palm. "Let's say you actually do blow it up. Well, I'm curious as to what method you'd employ to accomplish such a thing, but…"
He formed a satisfied, smug smile and crossed his arms.
"I'm afraid the world isn't ready to see me blown to bits, and I'm sure the same applies to someone of your… uniqueness." He slightly bent his knee and put a hand over his stomach, in the form of a mocking bow. "My name is Mycroft, by the way. Enchanté."
Her mind was in the process of going through every possible escape route, should go south. Which, knowing her luck, could happen any second.
What if they were the ones to send her the letter? She thought. No, there's no way they'd bother with something so elaborate if they already knew where she was hiding.
"This is something else," she whispered to no one, leaning against the nearest wall. It was cold as all ****.
Close to her another man laid down between two of the seats, fingers playing with a rusty Pokeball. He had short, brown hair and wore a messy white shirt with the image of a sunflower painted on the middle.
After a couple minutes of fiddling with the device he pressed the button on the front. A flash of light blinded him momentarily, and from it emerged a small, blue bird with two wings that looked like they were made of cotton. His soft brown eyes set on his trainer.
"The **** do you want?" he asked with a bored expression.
"Bluu!" the creature replied excitedly.
He narrowed his eyes and let out a sigh of irritation, "Ah, dunno why I bother. Hope you don't end up being a weak piece of **** or whatever cause I'm gonna throw you off this thing."
The Swablu didn't seem to understand his words and started bouncing on top of his legs. The man looked towards the girl standing a few feet from him and studied her carefully.
She seemed tough, that was for sure. Alert and probably ready for any kind of fun that might happen that night. Not the kind of girl he'd want to mess with.
"Yo, Flaca." He winked at her. "What do I call you? Name's Silver."
She took the butt of the cigarette to her mouth and exhaled deeply, closing her eyes as she tasted it. A thin line of smoke escaped her lips, turning her eyes itchy.
"Sabrina," was her simple response. "And don't call me…"
Before she could finish a sudden jolt almost threw both of them to the ground. Silver leaned into the wall and tried to look through one of the nearby windows, eyes narrowed in concentration.
The landscape outside stood still. The train had stopped.
Sabrina took a step back and grabbed her only Pokeball, biting down on the cigarette almost strongly enough to break it. There was no need for panic, she assured herself. It had probably just been…
The sound of shattered glass made its way from one of the nearby wagons towards them.
She cursed under her breath and opened the Pokeball, its light forming the shape of a yellow, triangular Pokemon with small blue eyes and a big mouth of perfect white teeth. The Snorunt started bouncing in place happily while Sabrina briefly considered kicking her before remembering she might need the stupid thing. Next to her Silver got to his feet, eyes glued to the door leading to the ninth wagon.
What do we do? his expression seemed to ask.
"We ambush whoever that was and beat them up in the most cowardly way possible," she replied, dropping the cigarette to the ground and stepping on it. "I hate complications."
Sharing a nod they walked towards the door, kicking it in unison.
"Those things are ugly," the garish man spoke, hands on his pockets and looking very casual for the situation.
"Alright!" the first yelled, smiling widely at his Croagunk. "Can't have a party without a main event, and we're not gonna make them wait! Keroro, get ready!"
Siegfried raised an eyebrow, surprised by the boy's sudden change in attitude. Where had his apparent mild mannerisms gone to? And… were his eyes a different color or was the exhaustion messing with him?
"Itsuki, we are under attack," he told his Tyrogue, deciding not to think about it too much. "Stay alert. We should go where the others are…"
Before he could finish two dark blue creatures jumped inside the wagon, moving so fast they had trouble following them with their eyes. They landed in front of their Pokemon and brandished their sharp claws in unison, forming a wide and sadistic smile. A long, red feather adorned their heads, growing from the back of their left ear.
The Sneasel jumped forward and slashed at their opponents, who barely got out of the way before their bodies could be shredded by their claws.
The redhead jumped from her seat as soon as the windows started to crack, as if she were expecting such a thing to happen.
"Let's go!" she yelled with a commanding tone, and started running to the door leading toward the ninth wagon, grabbing Mycroft by the arm.
They heard the sound of shattering glass, too close for comfort.
Vard smiled, "Looks like I only needed to proliferate my intentions for the wagon to start exploding. Sometimes I even surprise myself!"
He was the first to cross the door, pushing it aside with a flourish of his arm and showing himself to Siegfried's group. There were two strange, dark Pokemon between them, which Vard didn't seem worried about.
"There's no time to admire my hair!" he exclaimed, taking a Pokeball from his belt. "I don't know your intentions you foul beings, but I will not let you harm these innocent bystanders!"
The light from the Pokeball materialized on top of the man's hair, and from it emerged what appeared to be a brown cylinder with two small eyes and a pink nose, its body hidden under a pile of dirt.
I wonder where the dirt comes from every time, Vard thought to himself.
"Everyone, stand back! The overwhelming power I'm about to unleash might drive you all mad!" He threw his hand forward. "Digda, Sand Attack!"
From his mouth the Diglett spat a small torrent of dirt that hit the Sneasels in the eyes, rendering them momentarily blind.
"Keroro, Cross Chop!"
"Itsuki, Mach Punch!"
Without being able to see where the attacks came from the dark creatures couldn't defend against the blows of the Croagunk and Tyrogue, and with their overwhelming weakness to fighting attacks they fell unconscious immediately.
All nine passengers finally converged in the same wagon and the eyes of the newcomers fell on the immobile bodies of the recently defeated Pokemon. The girl with the black wool hat stared doubtfully, ready to order an attack were it necessary.
However she saw the confusion in the faces of the rest. They probably had nothing to do with what had happened. In the other extreme of the wagon the red haired girl spoke:
"What was…?"
The door separating them from the eighth wagon was torn from its hinges, falling to the ground with a deaf thump that turned everyone's attention to it. The cigarette almost fell from Sabrina's mouth as she saw what was on the other side.
Oh you cannot be serious.
Three tall figures walked through the recently made hole, cloaked in black robes. Identical red masks covered everything except their eyes.
A Spearow flew close to the one on the right, while the one on the left had her hand on top of the head of a Drowzee. However that paled in comparison to the creeping horror that sent shivers through their spines as they saw what the one in the middle was holding in his hands. A thin wooden pole with a curved blade at the end of it, as long as the man's torso.
A scythe. That's a goddamn scythe, Sabrina thought, eyes wide like plates.
"So this is the talented group of trainers he was talking about…" They heard his rough voice muffled through the mask. "They don't look like much."
The woman with the Spearow nodded, "Still, I'm sure they'll entertain us all the way to Saffron."
Okay yeah, **** this.
"Son of a…" Sabrina whispered as she took a step back, looking at her Pokemon. "Adler, Powder Snow at his arms! And don't screw it up!"
Attack first, ask questions later. That's the rule she'd committed herself to and she wasn't about to break it when a tall bastard with a scythe appeared in what was supposed to be a pleasant travel towards her next job.
The Snorunt spat a cloud of icy mist that made its way towards the three… reapers, she decided she'd call them. However it didn't seem enough to freeze anything as it barely bothered them.
The garish looking man was the next to act. From behind his back he grabbed what looked like a folded shuriken, each blade as long as a sword. Smiling, he jumped forward with weapon in hand, aiming at the one in the middle.
"SUCK MY D…!"
His war cry was cut short as his foot slipped on one of the big pieces of glass, sending him forward to the ground face first. The shuriken flew to the side and one of its blades stuck to a nearby chair.
Even the three strangers trying to kill them couldn't help but stare in confusion as the man got to his feet, clothes covered in glass, and looked around with a slight blush on his face.
"Ah… did any of you see my shuriken flying around? It does that."
That was enough to bring everyone back to reality, and those who'd just been staring in disbelief grabbed their Pokeballs, releasing their partners into the shaking wagon.
"Geek, it's your turn!" the red haired girl yelled. "Pound!"
"Sousuke, these are your opponents." the quiet man spoke. "Bite."
"L-Ludovic, do your best!" Mycroft ordered, voice shaking. "Quick Attack!"
From the simultaneous light of the three Pokeballs appeared a green, bipedal reptile with a red stomach, an angry looking chubby creature with red eyes and a canine looking Pokemon with black dreads. The Treecko, Larvitar and Riolu threw themselves at the man with the scythe before he had time to react.
"Spearow, cover us!" The cloaked woman yelled.
The flying Pokemon flapped his wings energetically, creating a strong gust of wind that hit all the trainers and managed to throw Geek and Ludovic back. Sousuke, being made of stone and considerably heavier, was the only one to get close enough to attack, but before he could close his maw around the man's leg the Spearow flew down and intercepted it, hitting him in the face with its wing.
Silver threw his hand forward, "Flancito, throw a… uh… ****ing, Dragon Rush or something, at that guy's arm!"
Swablu surrounded her soft wings with a dark red energy and flew towards the one with the scythe. She crashed against his shoulders and almost managed to topple him to the ground, but he stomped back strongly with one foot and smiled under his mask.
"Looks like you know how to defend yourselves…" he whispered, and set his dark eyes on the trainer who'd just ordered the attack. "Good, that makes it all the more interesting!"
He moved so fast Silver almost didn't have time to react. The blade of his scythe cut through the air in an arc, tearing through his shirt and scratching his shoulder and part of his arm as he jumped backwards. He landed next to Sabrina and almost collapsed from the pain and his poor footing. Droplets of blood fell from the folds of his shirt to his hand.
Next to him everyone's Pokemon did their best to try and pierce the psychic barrier the Drowzee had created, while the Snorunt at Sabrina's feet hopelessly spat ice forward, which evaporated as soon as it left her mouth.
"They do know how to play…" the cloaked girl said sarcastically. "I can see why Mullac is interested in them."
As soon as she uttered those words a wave of psychic energy hit all the Pokemon on their side of the wagon. The Tyrogue, Croagunk and Riolu fell to their knees, grabbing their heads in their hands as they let out a pained cry. The rest flinched but managed to resist it for the most part, although it certainly stopped them in their tracks.
The man with the scythe raised his hand to the side, "In any case, I doubt they're good enough to get to Saffron alive. Sorry kids, but it looks like this is your last stop."
Sabrina clenched her teeth, hands closing into fists. She looked down to her own Pokemon and almost heaved at the sight of her pathetic attempts.
This isn't working.
If there was any time to bring out the big guns, this was it. Whatever those robed bastards were talking about was irrelevant; all that mattered was that she left the train alive, and that wouldn't happened if she didn't do something. Fast.
Her backpack fell to the ground with a weak thump and she kneeled down to open it, smiling at what was inside. Without doubt she grabbed a heavy, worn out crossbow from its folds and raised it with difficulty, its weight making her arms shake.
Even though she couldn't see their faces she greatly enjoyed the gasps of surprise coming from the reapers' mouth.
Weren't expecting this, were you?
"Get back!" she yelled to the rest. "And you, Silver, try not to die! I'm gonna need all of you to get out of this one!"
She raised the weapon to her shoulder and took a deep breath, which wasn't easy in the middle of such a commotion. She focused her eyes on the man's hand and pulled the trigger. He tried to move out of the way but the bolt was too fast and it lunged into the back of his hand. Letting out a cry of pain he let the scythe slip through his fingers, as his two companions stared at him in horror.
"Nice one, Flaca!" Silver let out a high pitched laugh. "I owe you one!"
Before anyone could stop him he ran forward and threw himself to the floor, grabbing the ghastly weapon with his right hand. The cloaked man attempted to step on him but he managed to roll to the side and get on his feet without much trouble. Something that surprised the rest of the group as he still had a pretty ugly wound on his shoulder.
"Agh, you…!" The robed man screamed, taking a couple steps backwards. "How did you…!?"
"Come on pendejo, you're gonna wet yourself 'cause I stole your toy?" He brandished the scythe with a strange familiarity, pointing it at its previous owner. "Party's only getting started and I ain't leaving without your head as a trophy!"
Everyone stared dumbfounded at his bravado, and even Sabrina couldn't help but whistle.
Siegfried took a step forward and pointed towards the two Pokemon still obstructing them, "Itsuki, destroy that barrier."
The Tyrogue didn't need to be told twice. With a strong punch he shattered the psychic wall in front of them, sending a jolt of pain through the Drowzee's body, who fell to one knee and almost slammed into the ground. She had one eyed closed, and her breathing was irregular.
"L-Ludovic, finish that tapir abomination, s'il vous plait!" Mycroft ordered.
"That's what I'm talking about! Keroro, to the bird!" Rhin followed.
Riolu disappeared in a flash and materialized behind Drowzee. With a resounding kick he sent her a few feet forward, where she fell unconscious. Meanwhile Croagunk jumped with his powerful legs and buried one of his thin hands in the Spearow's gut, throwing him to the ground.
Burning anger could be seen through the holes of the leader's mask, and his two partners stared at each other worriedly as their Pokemon fell before them.
"This… can't be happening…" he spoke between gasps, grabbing his own bleeding hand. "How did Mullac find these trainers before B… no, it doesn't matter. None of you will leave this train alive!"
A few of the trainers smiled at his words. A couple of them furrowed their brows and took a step backward, and Vard simply threw his palm to the skies again as he spoke.
"Evil beings who dare importunate Vard and his incredible friends…!" his voice broke through the cold entering through the wagon, filling everyone with a strange kind of warmth, "you will suffer the wrath of this rapacious breeder!"
He pointed at the three robed creatures, and everyone followed the scream that came out of his mouth.
"Attack!"
All Pokemon with the exception of Digda jumped forward, and the combined power of their assault almost destroyed the wagon they were in. Screams of agony came out of their opponent's mouths as they all collapsed to the ground, covered in blood and barely breathing.
As soon as the three of them stopped moving the train came back to life. The sudden jolt put all of them in alert and ready to fight, until they saw the landscape passing by through the windows. Mycroft and Rhin let out sighs of relief.
"Well, that was convenient," the red haired girl said. "Think we were supposed to kill them to advance?"
"Looks like it."
Ñako started walking towards the three presumed corpses. For a moment most of them thought he was about to loot them, but he simply kneeled to the side of one of the seats and grabbed the strange shuriken stuck to its side.
"Agh, there we go..." He smiled as he pulled it out and made it spin on his hand. "So… there's eight of you, and with me it'd be nine. In my town we call that a pretty nice group."
He folded it back to its original size and hung it on his back, turning towards the rest of them.
"And speaking of my town…" he smiled. "The name's Ñako, and I'm from Fuchsia."
The rest of them with the exception of Vard exchanged looks of Is this really the time?
"You might have heard of me; I used to flirt with Koga's daughter every chance I got. I was also feared by the local mafias and had the title of sex symbol." Most of them raised an eyebrow at his words. "That's all a lie of course, except the flirting part. Anyway, my point is that it's a good time for introductions and stuff."
A few of them shifted in place, unsure if it really was the time for such a thing, especially with what they assumed were three corpses still in the same wagon as them. After a few seconds of silence the owner of the Tyrogue took a step forward and spoke with a calm, low tone.
"I'm Siegfried, from Viridian." He performed a short bow. "I think it would be most fortuitous to tend to the wounded, especially our friend with the scythe."
The man with the disheveled white hair spoke next, holding a small revolver on his right hand. Everyone close to him silently wondered why he hadn't used it during the fight.
"Wolfswift," he whispered. "Ready to break this party."
"My name is Mycroft." The sharply dressed man introduced himself again. "I'm from Violet, and I'm traveling towards Saffron. You already met my Riolu, Ludovic, and… I think that's it. Any questions?"
The red haired girl nodded slowly, "I'm Samantha, or Sammy if you'd like. I'm here because of a letter I received."
The boy with black glasses spoke next, smiling brightly.
"Of course, how impolite of me! My name's Rhin, and I'm from Viridian City. I'm a tarotist by trade and my amphibian friend here is Keroro!"
Silver was barely listening, eyes fixated on the Swablu flying around him. Both his scythe and shoulder were dripping with blood, though he didn't seem to mind.
"The **** are you looking at with that flan face?" he asked, shaking his head. "Think I forgot about that Dragon Rush that did nothing!?"
He realized everyone was staring at him, and promptly let out a nervous laugh.
"Ah… can't be the only jerk who doesn't say anything." He scratched the back of his head. "They call me Silver and I'm from the Orange Islands. Came to Kanto for a vacation after they kicked me out of my old job."
Without prompt Vard took a step forward, and as he'd done twice already he raised his palm to the ceiling. Those who had previously met him expected him to break into a poetic spiel, but he only said three words.
"I… am Vard!"
The girl with the black hat felt everyone's eyes fall on her. She had to take a few seconds to think the situation over. Did they really want her to…? Judging by the looks they were giving her, they did.
I must look like an antisocial dick, she thought to herself. And they say appearances lie.
She didn't want to associate herself with these people, even if they'd just helped her survive a horror movie situation. Still, it was possible she'd need them in the future, so she didn't have much choice. Even the weird guy with the shuriken (why did he look so familiar?) had introduced himself. She let out a deep sigh.
"Sabrina. I'm from…" she smiled to herself, "let's say I'm from Saffron, why not."
She couldn't help but roll her eyes as she felt the tension evaporate from the air. As if knowing these people's names could ever make her trust them.
As soon as she thought that, the sound of coughing reached them from behind. They turned quickly towards the pile of bodies, where the leader was slowly pushing himself upwards with his bloodied hands.
There was a strange gleam in his eyes, a mix of hate and a twisted form of happiness.
"You… you're all a bunch of talented trainers, aren't you?" He laughed through the blood spurting out of his mouth. "It's a shame you'll never make it to Saffron. This train isn't gonna stop, and when… once it reaches the last station…"
Light shone inside the wagon, and everyone turned towards the windows. Through it they could see the outline of a gigantic city in the distance. They were approaching fast.
"It'll crash…" the man struggled to keep himself conscious, still smiling. "You'll all die with it."
And with that he collapsed, and didn't move again.
The trainers stood frozen for a couple seconds, until Ñako took a Pokeball from his belt. From its light appeared a yellow creature with closed eyes and thin limbs, who appeared to be sleeping.
"Well, that sounds lovely but…" he said with a nervous smile as he grabbed the Abra by the arm. "That ain't the end I want. See you later suckers! Ah… you come with me."
Without further explanation he grabbed Mycroft by the shoulder and urged his Riolu to do the same.
"Paja, Teleport!"
The four of them disappeared in a flash of light, leaving the rest understandably startled.
"We need to jump!" Siegfried raised his voice for the first time, walking towards one of the doors and forcing it open. "The train has to slow down when it nears the station, even if it won't stop. That will be our chance!"
He threw himself forward, his Tyrogue hanging from his back. The rest of the trainers stared for a couple heartbeats before they started running around the wagon and prepared themselves. Sabrina, not caring about keeping appearances anymore, ran to the pile of bodies and grabbed the chubby psychic Pokemon laying down on the floor, still unconscious. Silver and Wolfswift followed her example, stealing the Spearow and one of the Sneasel respectively.
"Adler, we're going. And you pal, you'll come with me," Sabrina said, the Drowzee hanging on her back. "As for the rest of you… hey, it was fun."
"Alright! Spearow in hand, scythe with daddy…" Silver recounted, smiling to himself. "That's what I'm talking about."
Vard laughed, "Excellent! Everything went according to plan, except for the firefighters falling to the train in parachutes!" he steadied the Diglett on top of his hair and pointed to the exit. "Now we must fly, my friends!"
With their new Pokemon in hand they ran to the door and jumped, bracing themselves for the impact. Vard covered himself with his pink cape mid fall, though it did little to protect him from the ground as he slammed into it. Sabrina was ready to suffer a similar fate, but just before her body reached the platform a purple glow surrounded her and she landed as if she'd only taken a short hop.
The rest didn't have as much luck, and after they painfully got to their feet they saw that Ñako, Mycroft, Sammy and Sabrina were the only ones unharmed.
The train sped through the station, leaving them behind. Between them and the rails was a tall, metal fence. A white envelope hung from it.
"Wh-what happened!?" Rhin jumped in place, eyes wide open. He looked extremely confused, and his eyes had returned to normal. "How did I get here? What happened to the fight in the train?"
Mycroft gulped and looked at Ñako, not quite understanding why he'd been chosen to be saved by him.
"T-thank you. I don't know why you got me out of there but…" he smiled, though not very enthusiastically. "Mycroft doesn't forget these things. I owe you one, je suppose."
They made their way towards where the others had fallen and saw as Sammy walked to the fence and grabbed the letter stuck to it. She opened it and coughed as to grab everyone's attention.
"This must be from the person who sent us here," she exclaimed. "Did he want us to jump to this exact place?"
"Why are you not hurt?" Ñako asked.
Sammy ignored him, "Here, the letter says…"
"Well… judging from those people in the train we can assume that whatever work relationship we might have with this guy has an expiration date," he said. "Still, it's not like I have anywhere better to go, so I think I'm gonna follow this letter."
He then grabbed the collar of his jacket, and sighed.
"By the way, do you think I should buy a scarf? They say they look good on ninjas."
Okay, now they were definitely staring at him weird. He gulped and blamed his performance anxiety.
"What? Can't you tell by my clothes?" He gesticulated towards his garish outfit. "I'm a ninja!"
Sammy rolled her eyes before turning her attention back to the letter. Everyone else simply looked at him as if trying to determine what kind of drugs he was on. He supposed it was a good time as any to change topics.
"Oh, by the way, it's very likely one of us works for the guy who left this letter here." He pointed with his head towards Sammy. "We should find out who they are, hit them, torture them, get information out of them, steal from them, kill them and then say they died in a boking accident. I mean a boating accident."
Siegfried took a step forward and cleared his throat, wanting to get attention to the current issue.
"I agree, and I also think we should visit this strange person, even if we don't trust him," he explained, calm as always. "I'm sure most of us don't have a better alternative, and as they say… unity makes strength."
Sabrina laughed. A low pitched, dry laugh so full of disdain she regretted it as soon as it left her mouth. Everyone turned towards her and she silently cursed for not being able to contain herself.
She muttered something under her breath and nodded, which was enough to make some of them turn their heads.
God, why does this have to happen to me? she lamented herself, sighing.
All she wanted was some easy cash, enough to get her off the rotting region and towards somewhere nice and warm where they could never find her. Perhaps Dewford or Pacifidlog. The beach would certainly fit her.
She was so focused in her own fantasy that she barely noticed Adler grabbing her by the ankle. Looking down she saw wetness appear on the small creature's eyes.
Oh no…
She began to cry. Really ****ing loudly at that.
"Wait, no! Adler!" She took a bag out of her backpack and showed it to her. "Look, food!"
But it was in vain. The Snorunt kept wailing with all the strength of her lungs, and Sabrina could feel everyone's eyes on her again. Her cheeks turning red, she lowered her head and whispered low enough for only her Pokemon to hear.
"You… you did well." She heaved as she said those words. "You weren't completely useless."
Adler stopped crying immediately and forming a huge grin she grabbed the bag of food and shoved it into her mouth. Sabrina gave her a look colder than the night around her and shook her head. She'd catch the first Pokemon she encountered, even if it was a Togepi. All so she could get rid of this waste of space.
She returned her to her Pokeball as soon as she stopped eating, heading to where the rest of the group was a moment after. They seemed to have reached some sort of agreement, since they were all looking towards the distance past the fence, where the outline of Saffron could be seen.
Sabrina felt a tug inside her chest, and her fingers curled into fists. To think she'd have to come back to this place…
"Uh… Vard?" Ñako's voice took her out of her thoughts, and she turned around to see the guy with the stupid pink afro staring at the stars. "You haven't said anything yet. You coming with us to meet this guy?"
Vard closed his eyes for a second and breathed deeply, as if considering his options carefully.
"Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos."
Without another word he headed towards the door of the fence, leaving eight confused people behind.
"I… guess that's a yes?" Ñako shrugged.
And with that the rest of the trainers followed him, walking towards something that could easily be both a chance at a new life or a death sentence. Sabrina had experienced more than her fair share of both and had managed to **** up said opportunities wonderfully.
She took a deep breath and raised her gaze towards the city, eyes full of determination.
Not this time.
-Ñako falling on his face was indeed a crit miss.
-Similarly, Sabrina pulling off that crossbow shot was due to a lot of successes.
-Vard is the best.
-The scythe was not meant to be stolen, but the DM let it happen because he's awesome.
Here's some art of the characters courtesy of the DM Yuki.
Author Notes: This one might take some explaining for it to make a bit more sense. This fic is a translation and adaptation of a DnD-like Pokemon campaign played a few years ago by some friends, which is why the cast is so expansive at the beginning and the characters act wildly different. I imagine it as The Adventure Zone meets Pokemon, in a way.
The reason I'm adapting it is because, honestly, this is one of the greatest Pokemon stories I've ever seen and both the DM and the characters managed to weave together such an incredible, creative world that I can't help but be amazed with it, and I hope all the readers will be as well. Of course I'm adapting this with full permission of the DM Yuki, the man who came up with all of this. Full credits go to him and all the players.
With that said, please enjoy.
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Lost Anthology
Lost Anthology
That night the station had been swallowed by a harsh cold, enough to pierce lungs and turn skin as pale as marble. The only visible light nearby belonged to a rusty lamp sitting atop a metal pole. It twinkled in and out once every few seconds, threatening to plunge the whole place into darkness.
No train had circulated through those tracks in years, and by all means the place should've been abandoned. And yet, strangely, three dark figures stood behind one of the platforms. The first two leaned back on the freezing benches sprinkled all around. The third was the one closest to the rails, arms crossed and expression darkened.
The clock struck midnight, startling them with its buzzing, electronic gong. Two round, yellow lights could be seen approaching from the east, making the ground rumble the closer they got.
The train that greeted them had certainly seen better days. The rectangular advertisements at the sides had been turned into an incomprehensible garble of bright colors. The windows were so dirty they could barely make out the light inside and the ceiling and lower parts of the wagons were covered in a thick layer of rust.
It opened its gates with a whirring sound of nails against chalkboard. Its front lights illuminated a worn sign that read Viridian City Train Station.
Two of the three people looked at each other for a moment, and set foot inside the ninth wagon. The remaining dark figure turned away from them and entered through the tenth.
The train stood still for a few seconds before roaring back to life, disappearing into the night soon after.
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The inside of the train wasn't much better than the outside, they realized.
The seats were made of cheap plastic and a grey, dirty carpet covered most of the floor. The edges of the windows were being consumed by a thick layer of filth that made it impossible to see anything through it. Some of them feared the ceiling would collapse any second, as its whirring roars threatened to do.
The train gained velocity at a slow, steady pace. At a distance the persistent sound of something crinkling against metal didn't sit well with some of the passengers, who shifted uncomfortably in their seats and focused their senses on their surroundings.
There were three on the ninth wagon. Looking curiously at the door was a tall man with a messy appearance, wearing a garish red and black jacket and a gigantic yellow thread that hung from his hip toward his left leg. Next to him another young man tapped his foot impatiently, hands on his pockets and worry clear on his face. His brown hair was somewhat covered by a pair of black triangular glasses that hung above his forehead, and the only thing protecting him from the cold was a jacket with a fuzzy white collar. The man who'd entered the wagon alongside him was standing in the middle of it, staring past one of the windows with a look of concentration.
The one with glasses ruffled his hair nervously and grabbed a tarot card from the deck holster hanging from his hip. Closing his eyes he threw it upwards, managing to catch it flawlessly. When he opened them again the image of a winged angel with a trumpet met him on the front of the card.
"Inverted Judgement... an unexpected travel?" he whispered to himself. "Wait... that's already happening."
Mom was right, I should've trained more.
He couldn't help but laugh at himself, and forming a soothing smile he turned towards the two men sharing the wagon with him.
"How about you two? Also traveling because of necessity?"
The tallest one stared at him with a curious, somewhat unhinged look. A pair of unfocused eyes could be seen behind his dark, tea shade glasses.
"Necessity, you say?" His voice was strangely calm, and yet they could feel laughter bubbling underneath it. "Let's see, if my math isn't wrong then there's three of us here, plus the four in the wagon in front of us and two in the one behind. Either this is all a coincidence or we all got the same letter and we came here because we're the perfect group of credulous idiots."
Without giving time for a response he turned towards the door leading to the next wagon, hands inside the pockets of his jacket.
"I'm going to make friends, wanna join me?"
I wonder if they got my sarcasm, he thought to himself. Wait… they're complete strangers. Ah, nevermind…
The one who hadn't spoken yet approached him with a gentle smile and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Forgive me, partner, but wouldn't it be courteous to introduce ourselves?" His tone was low and soothing. "I know what you're thinking: 'This person who doesn't even know me is accusing me of impoliteness!'"
The garish man stared at him as if he didn't understood half the words coming out of his mouth. Either that or he was extremely drunk.
"In any case…" he continued, still smiling, "my name is Siegfried, it's a pleasure to meet you. Well… technically it depends on you whether you want to introduce yourself or not and… ah… I'm sorry, I tend to ramble sometimes."
The man he was speaking to showed him a smile that, he realized, couldn't belong to anyone entirely sane.
"Name's Ñako." He winked playfully. "What about mister tarot over there?"
"You can call me Rhin." The third man also smiled, saving the card inside the deck. "A pleasure."
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Four other people were in the tenth wagon. Leaning against one of the chairs at the back was a young girl with bright red hair, eyes lost on the barely recognizable landscape outside. Standing close to her but looking in the opposite direction stood a well dressed boy wearing a scarf, a white beret and a long, brown coat. A man with disheveled, spiky white hair sat down far from everyone else, a constant frown on his face.
But strangest of all was the one who'd just stepped inside through the Viridian Station. He wore a wide, bright smile and a simple-minded look, yet what surprised the rest of the passengers the most was his strange hair. A puffy, pink afro.
A dry chuckle came from where the white haired man was sitting, his eyes going from the newcomer's unusual hair to the window next to him.
He let out a sigh, mist escaping his lips, "I don't like it."
The young man with the pink afro turned towards him and smiled.
"There is no need for such praise, my young fan!" he spoke, startling everyone with the volume of his voice. "I can see in your eyes your incipient admiration!"
They all turned to look at him, with varying degrees of surprise and confusion. They stood quiet for a few seconds, and the eccentric man took this as an opportunity to keep speaking.
"If that's what you wish, then I shall introduce myself." He raised his palm toward the ceiling, his hair glistening under the fluorescent lights of the wagon. "I… am Vard!"
The two other men exchanged a puzzled look, and the girl at the back simply looked away, disinterested. Vard interpreted this as a result of his endless charm having boggled the minds of his poor companions. He needed to act fast, to regain their attention.
"Now, my indecipherable friends…" His expression turned darker, perhaps unconsciously. "Let's say… I make this wagon explode."
That certainly got the girl's attention, whose sharp yellow eyes quickly turned towards Vard. Both her and the white haired man moved their hands to their belts, where their only Pokeball resided.
However, the sharply dressed boy simply let out a laugh, half incredulous and half sarcastic.
"A pleasure, Vard." He raised his palm. "Let's say you actually do blow it up. Well, I'm curious as to what method you'd employ to accomplish such a thing, but…"
He formed a satisfied, smug smile and crossed his arms.
"I'm afraid the world isn't ready to see me blown to bits, and I'm sure the same applies to someone of your… uniqueness." He slightly bent his knee and put a hand over his stomach, in the form of a mocking bow. "My name is Mycroft, by the way. Enchanté."
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In the middle of the eighth wagon stood a short, dark haired girl with a thick wool hat covering part of her head. Specks of ash fell from the cigarette she was holding in her right hand. Her eyebrows seemed glued together and the incessant tapping of her feet didn't help with the calm demeanor she was trying to portray outwardly.
Her mind was in the process of going through every possible escape route, should go south. Which, knowing her luck, could happen any second.
What if they were the ones to send her the letter? She thought. No, there's no way they'd bother with something so elaborate if they already knew where she was hiding.
"This is something else," she whispered to no one, leaning against the nearest wall. It was cold as all ****.
Close to her another man laid down between two of the seats, fingers playing with a rusty Pokeball. He had short, brown hair and wore a messy white shirt with the image of a sunflower painted on the middle.
After a couple minutes of fiddling with the device he pressed the button on the front. A flash of light blinded him momentarily, and from it emerged a small, blue bird with two wings that looked like they were made of cotton. His soft brown eyes set on his trainer.
"The **** do you want?" he asked with a bored expression.
"Bluu!" the creature replied excitedly.
He narrowed his eyes and let out a sigh of irritation, "Ah, dunno why I bother. Hope you don't end up being a weak piece of **** or whatever cause I'm gonna throw you off this thing."
The Swablu didn't seem to understand his words and started bouncing on top of his legs. The man looked towards the girl standing a few feet from him and studied her carefully.
She seemed tough, that was for sure. Alert and probably ready for any kind of fun that might happen that night. Not the kind of girl he'd want to mess with.
"Yo, Flaca." He winked at her. "What do I call you? Name's Silver."
She took the butt of the cigarette to her mouth and exhaled deeply, closing her eyes as she tasted it. A thin line of smoke escaped her lips, turning her eyes itchy.
"Sabrina," was her simple response. "And don't call me…"
Before she could finish a sudden jolt almost threw both of them to the ground. Silver leaned into the wall and tried to look through one of the nearby windows, eyes narrowed in concentration.
The landscape outside stood still. The train had stopped.
Sabrina took a step back and grabbed her only Pokeball, biting down on the cigarette almost strongly enough to break it. There was no need for panic, she assured herself. It had probably just been…
The sound of shattered glass made its way from one of the nearby wagons towards them.
She cursed under her breath and opened the Pokeball, its light forming the shape of a yellow, triangular Pokemon with small blue eyes and a big mouth of perfect white teeth. The Snorunt started bouncing in place happily while Sabrina briefly considered kicking her before remembering she might need the stupid thing. Next to her Silver got to his feet, eyes glued to the door leading to the ninth wagon.
What do we do? his expression seemed to ask.
"We ambush whoever that was and beat them up in the most cowardly way possible," she replied, dropping the cigarette to the ground and stepping on it. "I hate complications."
Sharing a nod they walked towards the door, kicking it in unison.
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Two of the men in the ninth wagon threw their Pokeballs into the air at the same time. From Rhin's appeared a blue creature with an amphibian face and two long, thin arms. The one belonging to Siegfried was a short anthropomorphic fighting Pokemon with white sweatbands on his wrists and three protrusions coming out of his head.
"Those things are ugly," the garish man spoke, hands on his pockets and looking very casual for the situation.
"Alright!" the first yelled, smiling widely at his Croagunk. "Can't have a party without a main event, and we're not gonna make them wait! Keroro, get ready!"
Siegfried raised an eyebrow, surprised by the boy's sudden change in attitude. Where had his apparent mild mannerisms gone to? And… were his eyes a different color or was the exhaustion messing with him?
"Itsuki, we are under attack," he told his Tyrogue, deciding not to think about it too much. "Stay alert. We should go where the others are…"
Before he could finish two dark blue creatures jumped inside the wagon, moving so fast they had trouble following them with their eyes. They landed in front of their Pokemon and brandished their sharp claws in unison, forming a wide and sadistic smile. A long, red feather adorned their heads, growing from the back of their left ear.
The Sneasel jumped forward and slashed at their opponents, who barely got out of the way before their bodies could be shredded by their claws.
-------------------------------------
The redhead jumped from her seat as soon as the windows started to crack, as if she were expecting such a thing to happen.
"Let's go!" she yelled with a commanding tone, and started running to the door leading toward the ninth wagon, grabbing Mycroft by the arm.
They heard the sound of shattering glass, too close for comfort.
Vard smiled, "Looks like I only needed to proliferate my intentions for the wagon to start exploding. Sometimes I even surprise myself!"
He was the first to cross the door, pushing it aside with a flourish of his arm and showing himself to Siegfried's group. There were two strange, dark Pokemon between them, which Vard didn't seem worried about.
"There's no time to admire my hair!" he exclaimed, taking a Pokeball from his belt. "I don't know your intentions you foul beings, but I will not let you harm these innocent bystanders!"
The light from the Pokeball materialized on top of the man's hair, and from it emerged what appeared to be a brown cylinder with two small eyes and a pink nose, its body hidden under a pile of dirt.
I wonder where the dirt comes from every time, Vard thought to himself.
"Everyone, stand back! The overwhelming power I'm about to unleash might drive you all mad!" He threw his hand forward. "Digda, Sand Attack!"
From his mouth the Diglett spat a small torrent of dirt that hit the Sneasels in the eyes, rendering them momentarily blind.
"Keroro, Cross Chop!"
"Itsuki, Mach Punch!"
Without being able to see where the attacks came from the dark creatures couldn't defend against the blows of the Croagunk and Tyrogue, and with their overwhelming weakness to fighting attacks they fell unconscious immediately.
All nine passengers finally converged in the same wagon and the eyes of the newcomers fell on the immobile bodies of the recently defeated Pokemon. The girl with the black wool hat stared doubtfully, ready to order an attack were it necessary.
However she saw the confusion in the faces of the rest. They probably had nothing to do with what had happened. In the other extreme of the wagon the red haired girl spoke:
"What was…?"
The door separating them from the eighth wagon was torn from its hinges, falling to the ground with a deaf thump that turned everyone's attention to it. The cigarette almost fell from Sabrina's mouth as she saw what was on the other side.
Oh you cannot be serious.
Three tall figures walked through the recently made hole, cloaked in black robes. Identical red masks covered everything except their eyes.
A Spearow flew close to the one on the right, while the one on the left had her hand on top of the head of a Drowzee. However that paled in comparison to the creeping horror that sent shivers through their spines as they saw what the one in the middle was holding in his hands. A thin wooden pole with a curved blade at the end of it, as long as the man's torso.
A scythe. That's a goddamn scythe, Sabrina thought, eyes wide like plates.
"So this is the talented group of trainers he was talking about…" They heard his rough voice muffled through the mask. "They don't look like much."
The woman with the Spearow nodded, "Still, I'm sure they'll entertain us all the way to Saffron."
Okay yeah, **** this.
"Son of a…" Sabrina whispered as she took a step back, looking at her Pokemon. "Adler, Powder Snow at his arms! And don't screw it up!"
Attack first, ask questions later. That's the rule she'd committed herself to and she wasn't about to break it when a tall bastard with a scythe appeared in what was supposed to be a pleasant travel towards her next job.
The Snorunt spat a cloud of icy mist that made its way towards the three… reapers, she decided she'd call them. However it didn't seem enough to freeze anything as it barely bothered them.
The garish looking man was the next to act. From behind his back he grabbed what looked like a folded shuriken, each blade as long as a sword. Smiling, he jumped forward with weapon in hand, aiming at the one in the middle.
"SUCK MY D…!"
His war cry was cut short as his foot slipped on one of the big pieces of glass, sending him forward to the ground face first. The shuriken flew to the side and one of its blades stuck to a nearby chair.
Even the three strangers trying to kill them couldn't help but stare in confusion as the man got to his feet, clothes covered in glass, and looked around with a slight blush on his face.
"Ah… did any of you see my shuriken flying around? It does that."
That was enough to bring everyone back to reality, and those who'd just been staring in disbelief grabbed their Pokeballs, releasing their partners into the shaking wagon.
"Geek, it's your turn!" the red haired girl yelled. "Pound!"
"Sousuke, these are your opponents." the quiet man spoke. "Bite."
"L-Ludovic, do your best!" Mycroft ordered, voice shaking. "Quick Attack!"
From the simultaneous light of the three Pokeballs appeared a green, bipedal reptile with a red stomach, an angry looking chubby creature with red eyes and a canine looking Pokemon with black dreads. The Treecko, Larvitar and Riolu threw themselves at the man with the scythe before he had time to react.
"Spearow, cover us!" The cloaked woman yelled.
The flying Pokemon flapped his wings energetically, creating a strong gust of wind that hit all the trainers and managed to throw Geek and Ludovic back. Sousuke, being made of stone and considerably heavier, was the only one to get close enough to attack, but before he could close his maw around the man's leg the Spearow flew down and intercepted it, hitting him in the face with its wing.
Silver threw his hand forward, "Flancito, throw a… uh… ****ing, Dragon Rush or something, at that guy's arm!"
Swablu surrounded her soft wings with a dark red energy and flew towards the one with the scythe. She crashed against his shoulders and almost managed to topple him to the ground, but he stomped back strongly with one foot and smiled under his mask.
"Looks like you know how to defend yourselves…" he whispered, and set his dark eyes on the trainer who'd just ordered the attack. "Good, that makes it all the more interesting!"
He moved so fast Silver almost didn't have time to react. The blade of his scythe cut through the air in an arc, tearing through his shirt and scratching his shoulder and part of his arm as he jumped backwards. He landed next to Sabrina and almost collapsed from the pain and his poor footing. Droplets of blood fell from the folds of his shirt to his hand.
Next to him everyone's Pokemon did their best to try and pierce the psychic barrier the Drowzee had created, while the Snorunt at Sabrina's feet hopelessly spat ice forward, which evaporated as soon as it left her mouth.
"They do know how to play…" the cloaked girl said sarcastically. "I can see why Mullac is interested in them."
As soon as she uttered those words a wave of psychic energy hit all the Pokemon on their side of the wagon. The Tyrogue, Croagunk and Riolu fell to their knees, grabbing their heads in their hands as they let out a pained cry. The rest flinched but managed to resist it for the most part, although it certainly stopped them in their tracks.
The man with the scythe raised his hand to the side, "In any case, I doubt they're good enough to get to Saffron alive. Sorry kids, but it looks like this is your last stop."
Sabrina clenched her teeth, hands closing into fists. She looked down to her own Pokemon and almost heaved at the sight of her pathetic attempts.
This isn't working.
If there was any time to bring out the big guns, this was it. Whatever those robed bastards were talking about was irrelevant; all that mattered was that she left the train alive, and that wouldn't happened if she didn't do something. Fast.
Her backpack fell to the ground with a weak thump and she kneeled down to open it, smiling at what was inside. Without doubt she grabbed a heavy, worn out crossbow from its folds and raised it with difficulty, its weight making her arms shake.
Even though she couldn't see their faces she greatly enjoyed the gasps of surprise coming from the reapers' mouth.
Weren't expecting this, were you?
"Get back!" she yelled to the rest. "And you, Silver, try not to die! I'm gonna need all of you to get out of this one!"
She raised the weapon to her shoulder and took a deep breath, which wasn't easy in the middle of such a commotion. She focused her eyes on the man's hand and pulled the trigger. He tried to move out of the way but the bolt was too fast and it lunged into the back of his hand. Letting out a cry of pain he let the scythe slip through his fingers, as his two companions stared at him in horror.
"Nice one, Flaca!" Silver let out a high pitched laugh. "I owe you one!"
Before anyone could stop him he ran forward and threw himself to the floor, grabbing the ghastly weapon with his right hand. The cloaked man attempted to step on him but he managed to roll to the side and get on his feet without much trouble. Something that surprised the rest of the group as he still had a pretty ugly wound on his shoulder.
"Agh, you…!" The robed man screamed, taking a couple steps backwards. "How did you…!?"
"Come on pendejo, you're gonna wet yourself 'cause I stole your toy?" He brandished the scythe with a strange familiarity, pointing it at its previous owner. "Party's only getting started and I ain't leaving without your head as a trophy!"
Everyone stared dumbfounded at his bravado, and even Sabrina couldn't help but whistle.
Siegfried took a step forward and pointed towards the two Pokemon still obstructing them, "Itsuki, destroy that barrier."
The Tyrogue didn't need to be told twice. With a strong punch he shattered the psychic wall in front of them, sending a jolt of pain through the Drowzee's body, who fell to one knee and almost slammed into the ground. She had one eyed closed, and her breathing was irregular.
"L-Ludovic, finish that tapir abomination, s'il vous plait!" Mycroft ordered.
"That's what I'm talking about! Keroro, to the bird!" Rhin followed.
Riolu disappeared in a flash and materialized behind Drowzee. With a resounding kick he sent her a few feet forward, where she fell unconscious. Meanwhile Croagunk jumped with his powerful legs and buried one of his thin hands in the Spearow's gut, throwing him to the ground.
Burning anger could be seen through the holes of the leader's mask, and his two partners stared at each other worriedly as their Pokemon fell before them.
"This… can't be happening…" he spoke between gasps, grabbing his own bleeding hand. "How did Mullac find these trainers before B… no, it doesn't matter. None of you will leave this train alive!"
A few of the trainers smiled at his words. A couple of them furrowed their brows and took a step backward, and Vard simply threw his palm to the skies again as he spoke.
"Evil beings who dare importunate Vard and his incredible friends…!" his voice broke through the cold entering through the wagon, filling everyone with a strange kind of warmth, "you will suffer the wrath of this rapacious breeder!"
He pointed at the three robed creatures, and everyone followed the scream that came out of his mouth.
"Attack!"
All Pokemon with the exception of Digda jumped forward, and the combined power of their assault almost destroyed the wagon they were in. Screams of agony came out of their opponent's mouths as they all collapsed to the ground, covered in blood and barely breathing.
As soon as the three of them stopped moving the train came back to life. The sudden jolt put all of them in alert and ready to fight, until they saw the landscape passing by through the windows. Mycroft and Rhin let out sighs of relief.
"Well, that was convenient," the red haired girl said. "Think we were supposed to kill them to advance?"
"Looks like it."
Ñako started walking towards the three presumed corpses. For a moment most of them thought he was about to loot them, but he simply kneeled to the side of one of the seats and grabbed the strange shuriken stuck to its side.
"Agh, there we go..." He smiled as he pulled it out and made it spin on his hand. "So… there's eight of you, and with me it'd be nine. In my town we call that a pretty nice group."
He folded it back to its original size and hung it on his back, turning towards the rest of them.
"And speaking of my town…" he smiled. "The name's Ñako, and I'm from Fuchsia."
The rest of them with the exception of Vard exchanged looks of Is this really the time?
"You might have heard of me; I used to flirt with Koga's daughter every chance I got. I was also feared by the local mafias and had the title of sex symbol." Most of them raised an eyebrow at his words. "That's all a lie of course, except the flirting part. Anyway, my point is that it's a good time for introductions and stuff."
A few of them shifted in place, unsure if it really was the time for such a thing, especially with what they assumed were three corpses still in the same wagon as them. After a few seconds of silence the owner of the Tyrogue took a step forward and spoke with a calm, low tone.
"I'm Siegfried, from Viridian." He performed a short bow. "I think it would be most fortuitous to tend to the wounded, especially our friend with the scythe."
The man with the disheveled white hair spoke next, holding a small revolver on his right hand. Everyone close to him silently wondered why he hadn't used it during the fight.
"Wolfswift," he whispered. "Ready to break this party."
"My name is Mycroft." The sharply dressed man introduced himself again. "I'm from Violet, and I'm traveling towards Saffron. You already met my Riolu, Ludovic, and… I think that's it. Any questions?"
The red haired girl nodded slowly, "I'm Samantha, or Sammy if you'd like. I'm here because of a letter I received."
The boy with black glasses spoke next, smiling brightly.
"Of course, how impolite of me! My name's Rhin, and I'm from Viridian City. I'm a tarotist by trade and my amphibian friend here is Keroro!"
Silver was barely listening, eyes fixated on the Swablu flying around him. Both his scythe and shoulder were dripping with blood, though he didn't seem to mind.
"The **** are you looking at with that flan face?" he asked, shaking his head. "Think I forgot about that Dragon Rush that did nothing!?"
He realized everyone was staring at him, and promptly let out a nervous laugh.
"Ah… can't be the only jerk who doesn't say anything." He scratched the back of his head. "They call me Silver and I'm from the Orange Islands. Came to Kanto for a vacation after they kicked me out of my old job."
Without prompt Vard took a step forward, and as he'd done twice already he raised his palm to the ceiling. Those who had previously met him expected him to break into a poetic spiel, but he only said three words.
"I… am Vard!"
The girl with the black hat felt everyone's eyes fall on her. She had to take a few seconds to think the situation over. Did they really want her to…? Judging by the looks they were giving her, they did.
I must look like an antisocial dick, she thought to herself. And they say appearances lie.
She didn't want to associate herself with these people, even if they'd just helped her survive a horror movie situation. Still, it was possible she'd need them in the future, so she didn't have much choice. Even the weird guy with the shuriken (why did he look so familiar?) had introduced himself. She let out a deep sigh.
"Sabrina. I'm from…" she smiled to herself, "let's say I'm from Saffron, why not."
She couldn't help but roll her eyes as she felt the tension evaporate from the air. As if knowing these people's names could ever make her trust them.
As soon as she thought that, the sound of coughing reached them from behind. They turned quickly towards the pile of bodies, where the leader was slowly pushing himself upwards with his bloodied hands.
There was a strange gleam in his eyes, a mix of hate and a twisted form of happiness.
"You… you're all a bunch of talented trainers, aren't you?" He laughed through the blood spurting out of his mouth. "It's a shame you'll never make it to Saffron. This train isn't gonna stop, and when… once it reaches the last station…"
Light shone inside the wagon, and everyone turned towards the windows. Through it they could see the outline of a gigantic city in the distance. They were approaching fast.
"It'll crash…" the man struggled to keep himself conscious, still smiling. "You'll all die with it."
And with that he collapsed, and didn't move again.
The trainers stood frozen for a couple seconds, until Ñako took a Pokeball from his belt. From its light appeared a yellow creature with closed eyes and thin limbs, who appeared to be sleeping.
"Well, that sounds lovely but…" he said with a nervous smile as he grabbed the Abra by the arm. "That ain't the end I want. See you later suckers! Ah… you come with me."
Without further explanation he grabbed Mycroft by the shoulder and urged his Riolu to do the same.
"Paja, Teleport!"
The four of them disappeared in a flash of light, leaving the rest understandably startled.
"We need to jump!" Siegfried raised his voice for the first time, walking towards one of the doors and forcing it open. "The train has to slow down when it nears the station, even if it won't stop. That will be our chance!"
He threw himself forward, his Tyrogue hanging from his back. The rest of the trainers stared for a couple heartbeats before they started running around the wagon and prepared themselves. Sabrina, not caring about keeping appearances anymore, ran to the pile of bodies and grabbed the chubby psychic Pokemon laying down on the floor, still unconscious. Silver and Wolfswift followed her example, stealing the Spearow and one of the Sneasel respectively.
"Adler, we're going. And you pal, you'll come with me," Sabrina said, the Drowzee hanging on her back. "As for the rest of you… hey, it was fun."
"Alright! Spearow in hand, scythe with daddy…" Silver recounted, smiling to himself. "That's what I'm talking about."
Vard laughed, "Excellent! Everything went according to plan, except for the firefighters falling to the train in parachutes!" he steadied the Diglett on top of his hair and pointed to the exit. "Now we must fly, my friends!"
With their new Pokemon in hand they ran to the door and jumped, bracing themselves for the impact. Vard covered himself with his pink cape mid fall, though it did little to protect him from the ground as he slammed into it. Sabrina was ready to suffer a similar fate, but just before her body reached the platform a purple glow surrounded her and she landed as if she'd only taken a short hop.
The rest didn't have as much luck, and after they painfully got to their feet they saw that Ñako, Mycroft, Sammy and Sabrina were the only ones unharmed.
The train sped through the station, leaving them behind. Between them and the rails was a tall, metal fence. A white envelope hung from it.
"Wh-what happened!?" Rhin jumped in place, eyes wide open. He looked extremely confused, and his eyes had returned to normal. "How did I get here? What happened to the fight in the train?"
Mycroft gulped and looked at Ñako, not quite understanding why he'd been chosen to be saved by him.
"T-thank you. I don't know why you got me out of there but…" he smiled, though not very enthusiastically. "Mycroft doesn't forget these things. I owe you one, je suppose."
They made their way towards where the others had fallen and saw as Sammy walked to the fence and grabbed the letter stuck to it. She opened it and coughed as to grab everyone's attention.
"This must be from the person who sent us here," she exclaimed. "Did he want us to jump to this exact place?"
"Why are you not hurt?" Ñako asked.
Sammy ignored him, "Here, the letter says…"
If you made it to Saffron that means you deserve both my praise and trust. You have also earned the right to work under me.
Do not be afraid by what happened; I needed to know you were capable of surviving a simple test before I could reveal to you who I am or why I'm doing this.
I can assure you that you will be rewarded handsomely if you wish to take on my offer, as I've mentioned in my introductory letter.
I will wait for you in the tenth floor of Silph Co, at the center of town.
Good luck.
Silence covered the station for a few heartbeats until, as usual, Ñako broke it.Do not be afraid by what happened; I needed to know you were capable of surviving a simple test before I could reveal to you who I am or why I'm doing this.
I can assure you that you will be rewarded handsomely if you wish to take on my offer, as I've mentioned in my introductory letter.
I will wait for you in the tenth floor of Silph Co, at the center of town.
Good luck.
"Well… judging from those people in the train we can assume that whatever work relationship we might have with this guy has an expiration date," he said. "Still, it's not like I have anywhere better to go, so I think I'm gonna follow this letter."
He then grabbed the collar of his jacket, and sighed.
"By the way, do you think I should buy a scarf? They say they look good on ninjas."
Okay, now they were definitely staring at him weird. He gulped and blamed his performance anxiety.
"What? Can't you tell by my clothes?" He gesticulated towards his garish outfit. "I'm a ninja!"
Sammy rolled her eyes before turning her attention back to the letter. Everyone else simply looked at him as if trying to determine what kind of drugs he was on. He supposed it was a good time as any to change topics.
"Oh, by the way, it's very likely one of us works for the guy who left this letter here." He pointed with his head towards Sammy. "We should find out who they are, hit them, torture them, get information out of them, steal from them, kill them and then say they died in a boking accident. I mean a boating accident."
Siegfried took a step forward and cleared his throat, wanting to get attention to the current issue.
"I agree, and I also think we should visit this strange person, even if we don't trust him," he explained, calm as always. "I'm sure most of us don't have a better alternative, and as they say… unity makes strength."
Sabrina laughed. A low pitched, dry laugh so full of disdain she regretted it as soon as it left her mouth. Everyone turned towards her and she silently cursed for not being able to contain herself.
She muttered something under her breath and nodded, which was enough to make some of them turn their heads.
God, why does this have to happen to me? she lamented herself, sighing.
All she wanted was some easy cash, enough to get her off the rotting region and towards somewhere nice and warm where they could never find her. Perhaps Dewford or Pacifidlog. The beach would certainly fit her.
She was so focused in her own fantasy that she barely noticed Adler grabbing her by the ankle. Looking down she saw wetness appear on the small creature's eyes.
Oh no…
She began to cry. Really ****ing loudly at that.
"Wait, no! Adler!" She took a bag out of her backpack and showed it to her. "Look, food!"
But it was in vain. The Snorunt kept wailing with all the strength of her lungs, and Sabrina could feel everyone's eyes on her again. Her cheeks turning red, she lowered her head and whispered low enough for only her Pokemon to hear.
"You… you did well." She heaved as she said those words. "You weren't completely useless."
Adler stopped crying immediately and forming a huge grin she grabbed the bag of food and shoved it into her mouth. Sabrina gave her a look colder than the night around her and shook her head. She'd catch the first Pokemon she encountered, even if it was a Togepi. All so she could get rid of this waste of space.
She returned her to her Pokeball as soon as she stopped eating, heading to where the rest of the group was a moment after. They seemed to have reached some sort of agreement, since they were all looking towards the distance past the fence, where the outline of Saffron could be seen.
Sabrina felt a tug inside her chest, and her fingers curled into fists. To think she'd have to come back to this place…
"Uh… Vard?" Ñako's voice took her out of her thoughts, and she turned around to see the guy with the stupid pink afro staring at the stars. "You haven't said anything yet. You coming with us to meet this guy?"
Vard closed his eyes for a second and breathed deeply, as if considering his options carefully.
"Karma can only be portioned out by the cosmos."
Without another word he headed towards the door of the fence, leaving eight confused people behind.
"I… guess that's a yes?" Ñako shrugged.
And with that the rest of the trainers followed him, walking towards something that could easily be both a chance at a new life or a death sentence. Sabrina had experienced more than her fair share of both and had managed to **** up said opportunities wonderfully.
She took a deep breath and raised her gaze towards the city, eyes full of determination.
Not this time.
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Author Notes: A few fun facts for those who like campaign stuff:
-Ñako falling on his face was indeed a crit miss.
-Similarly, Sabrina pulling off that crossbow shot was due to a lot of successes.
-Vard is the best.
-The scythe was not meant to be stolen, but the DM let it happen because he's awesome.
Here's some art of the characters courtesy of the DM Yuki.
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