When Reiko had woken up that morning, she really hadn't expected to be shoved into an enormous metal cage –blood and coins littering the floor all over– to battle another trainer for some asshole's entertainment.
Yells and cheers erupted from the stands all around her, the small subterranean room filled to the brim with less than respectable people, all of whom sounded very excited for the fight about to begin. Atop the highest balcony, sitting on his chair and enjoying a fruity drink, was Nox. He smiled down at her, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
All you have to do is win one fight, he had told her. Show me a true spectacle, and I will give you the information you want.
And she had agreed to it, like an idiot. Then again, it wasn't like she had many other choices. And if winning a single Pokemon battle was all it took…
"Silence."
The voice boomed through the speakers, silencing everyone in the room. On the other side of the cage, the person who had given the order took a step forward, hands in his pockets. He was short but lean, with combed back black hair and a tight leather outfit full of tiny pockets and belts, inside which gleamed a multitude of small knives.
He adjusted the small microphone stuck to his cheek, and spoke once again.
"You seem to be new, so it wouldn't hurt to go over the rules." His voice was low and monotone, with no feeling behind it. "Hi; my name is Nico and I'll be your opponent. This will be a one on one battle. We'll both take a random Pokemon from these boxes and fight until only one trainer is left standing."
There was a moment of silence as he placed a hand on the small table next to him, grabbing a Pokeball from the box on top.
"Though this is technically a Pokemon battle, the trainers are part of it too. You can order your Pokemon to attack me or do it yourself; in fact I recommend you do, as the moment a trainer is out of commission they will immediately lose, whether their Pokemon is still up or not. We're not technically allowed to kill each other, 'cause if we do our reward will be cut in half but…" He shrugged nonchalantly. "Accidents happen."
Reiko gave a decisive nod, trying to ignore the knot in her stomach. "Yeah, I know. Nox explained it to me already. I chose my weapon too," she said, pointing with her thumb to the bokken hanging from her back.
"I see…" For a moment she thought she had seen a hint of disgust flash through the boy's face. "Then we better get started, I guess. Choose your fighter."
The room erupted in screams once more as both contestants walked toward their respective boxes, ready to choose a partner for the battle. Coins and drinks flew through the air, landing on the floor of the arena. Gold and red shone together under the strong, artificial lights hanging from the ceiling.
Reiko looked over the box, and frowned. There were only three Pokeballs inside, while Nico's seemed to be overflowing with them. Was it because he was a veteran? Did you win a new Pokeball every time you beat someone? Whatever the reason, she wouldn't stay here long enough to find out.
Knowing better than to worry about her choice, she simply grabbed one at random and headed toward her side of the arena. Nico already waited for her. He stood with his legs far apart, leaning slightly forward. His eyes were dispassionate, but ready.
"Are you ready?"
Reiko nodded, trying to push her feelings on the matter as down as she could. She couldn't hesitate. Not now.
"Yeah…" She unsheathed her bokken with her right hand, while holding her Pokeball with her left. "Bring it."
The light of their pokeballs opening simultaneously flooded the room for a second, and as soon as it dissipated Reiko could be seen running forward, bokken in hand and a grim look of determination in her eyes. A round, blue Pokemon with extremely muscular arms and a spiral on his stomach had appeared at her side, a creature she recognized well from her days training around the Seafoam Islands. Poliwrath, probably accustomed to this, needed no further instruction to run toward their opponents as well.
The light disappeared on the other side too, leaving behind a creature which Reiko couldn't identify. It looked like a purple balloon with four thin ribbons as extremities and a mouth that was just a yellow X. It's color scheme seemed… familiar. Where had she seen…?
"Use Gust!"
Nico's voice boomed, a sudden and clear anger behind it. The unidentified Pokemon used its four ribbons to push itself up in the air and, after inflating its body to its limits, spat out a torrent of air toward them. Its force hit Reiko off guard; she felt her feet slide free of the ground and the world spun around her as she was sent flying. Gritting her teeth, she landed on one foot and dug the tip of her bokken into the ground, using it as an anchor to keep herself in place.
The wind's roar deafened her to the cheers of the audience. Through narrowed eyes she saw her partner Poliwrath being pushed back as well, his face contorted in effort as he tried to fight against the strength of the wind.
This won't work for him, she thought. As soon as that thing runs out of breath we'll…
She barely noticed the gleam of the knife as it flew toward her. She moved by instinct alone; the edge cut through the fabric of her shirt, avoiding the skin under her arm by mere inches.
Eyes wide, she looked at Nico across the arena. He held one of those thin, silver knives between each finger as though they were claws, and judging by his posture, slightly hunched forward, he was getting ready to throw another one at her.
"Dig!" She bellowed, jumping up to her feet.
Poliwrath anchored himself with one hand and raised the other high before bringing it down with all his strength, creating a hole in the ground. He jumped inside and disappeared, leaving Reiko alone in the arena. She grit her teeth and focused all her attention on Nico, whose next knife had just left his hand and was headed directly to her stomach.
She dove forward, dodging the knife as it flew over her and rolling on her shoulder once it met the ground. Another two knives flew, but she pushed herself to the left with one hand and blocked the remaining one with her bokken, making it bounce to the side. She noticed the wind getting weaker as the seconds went by. Not much longer until…
It stopped. The strange Pokemon, now as prune as a raisin, ran out of air and prepared to inhale again, but Reiko yelled an order before it could.
"Now!"
The ground creaked under the Pokemon. There was a cloud of dust and small chunks of earth and sand flew everywhere as Poliwrath shot himself up like a bullet, furious eyes set on his opponent. His muscles tensed to its limits, hands closing around the creature with the force of an iron grip.
Or… so had Reiko expected. In reality, Poliwrath's hands phased through as if the Pokemon weren't even there, closing only around the air itself. Both him and his trainer froze, realization dawning on them.
"Looks like you forgot to do your homework. Drifblim are ghost Pokemon," said Nico, not an ounce of a smile on his voice. "Now, throw him!"
The creature's ribbons closed around Poliwrath's wrists like handcuffs, immobilizing him for long enough to throw him halfway across the room. As soon as it had done so, it began to inflate again.
"Shit…" Reiko bit her lower lip, feeling her hands start to shake. "If we can't hit it with physical attacks then we'll focus on Nico!"
A large cloud of sand was raised where Poliwrath landed. He shook his head, veins of anger forming at the sides of his face, and nodded decisively. Unfortunately, they had no time to counter-attack.
"Gust; in a circle!"
Drifblim opened its mouth and released another, even more powerful storm. They braced themselves. However, the gust of wind… missed them. It curved around the edges of the cage for a moment before looping back in on itself; then, once it did, everything inside that circle became chaos.
Reiko felt herself pulled from all directions, the hurricane they were trapped in blowing with such strength that the mere act of keeping her feet on the ground was grueling, almost impossible. Drifblim seemed to have found its rhythm. The more air it spat out the more it came back to it, allowing it to blow more and more wind as the seconds went by, trapping them inside and leaving its trainer to attack as he pleased.
And that he did, the bastard. Four knives flew at her in succession, wrapping around the cage before assaulting her from the right. She stepped –or tripped, it was hard to tell– past two of them and dodged the other two by jumping forward. Then three more. They came slightly apart, probably trying to prevent her from jumping to the sides. Reiko held her breath and waited, until…
An explosion of pain shook her arm, stealing the air from her lungs. Stunned, she looked to the left and found one of the knives sticking out of the muscle just under her shoulder, a thin line of blood coating its edges.
W-wha…?
Before she could process any more of the pain she saw a figure jump toward her, and a second after the world blurred. Poliwrath pushed her to the side with a shove of his hand, blocking the two knives flying through the air and squinting as they scratched his skin.
Shit! Focus! She yelled inside her own mind, landing a few feet to the side. Her hair flew everywhere, slapping her on the face and obscuring her view. The knives are looping back because of the wind! I can't keep dodging them, I have to stop their momentum somehow!
She rose to her feet and grabbed the bokken with both hands, a flare of pain shooting down her shoulder as soon as she closed her fingers. Lights danced in front of her eyes and her vision blurred. Breathing heavily, she grounded herself and tried her best to ignore the pain.
"Shoot them off the air with water!" She yelled.
It didn't take long for the cage to become a whirlwind of knives. At least a dozen of them flew through the air erratically, forcing Reiko and Poliwrath to keep their eyes peeled for those who came straight at them. Two approached; one from above and one from below. Reiko breathed in deep and jumped up, spinning horizontally as they flew past her and striking one with her wooden blade, throwing it directly to the ground. A stream of water flew past her ear, shooting down another one. Two down. That still left about ten more, and that number was going up.
It felt as though the hurricane were taking the air from her lungs; she jumped and dove and spun all around the arena, unable to stop for even a second as the number of knives increased, leaving less and less space for her to dodge. Blood began to pour from two scratches on her leg and ankle. Poliwrath was breathing heavily, a knife sticking out of his shoulder and another one lodged into his foot.
Four of them came at her from different directions. She allowed herself a moment to think and then drove her bokken into the ground, using it as a lever to help her jump further. Another one came from above; still in mid air, she spun the palm of her hand on the handle of her weapon and kicked it down with all her strength.
I… I can't keep this up! She thought, head spinning. My muscles feel like they're on fire. I need to do something!
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
She saw the gleam as she fell, but couldn't dodge, still in mid air. A sharp pain burst just above her eye and her vision went momentarily red, drops of blood falling down her face. The sand cushioned her fall somewhat, but did little else as she let out a pained grunt, fingers curling against her palms. The cut above her eye bled profusely. It felt hot on her eyelid and cheek, slowly running down her chin. Hot… so hot…
The metallic whistle alerted her to the knives before her eye could see them. Another five. Coming from all directions. There was no way she could dodge them, not without…
Help me… just this once…
It happened so fast. The blood pouring out of her wounds came to a boil, evaporating instantaneously and covering the outline of her body with a dark red mist. Her wounds closed. Reiko exhaled, a puff of black smoke escaping her lips. The sand under her feet began to crystallize, and she felt as though the entirety of her were about to burst into flames.
Then it moved her. The muscles of her legs contracted with such strength that she rose to her feet in an instant. Her body danced between the flurry of knives, moving with the wind like a flame. Her bokken struck every one of them down, right before the wood disintegrated into a hundred black, smoking pieces, its ash carried into nothing by the hurricane itself.
The crowd cheered. Poliwrath and Nico simply stared, one in awe and the other with panic written all over his face. Reiko allowed herself a moment to smile.
Right until the heat rose. The satisfaction on her face was replaced by agony as she felt herself burn from the inside, the flame which had saved her now turning against her as though it wanted to turn her body to ash. She opened her mouth to breathe but even the air was burnt away before it entered her lungs.
Shit, I'm…! I-I'm gonna die!
Left without options, she trusted her instincts and screamed out the first idea that popped into her mind.
"NAMINORI!"
Thankfully Poliwrath had been raised in Kanto before ending up where he was, otherwise he wouldn't have understood her trainer's order. Wasting no time, he slammed both hands against the ground and summoned a gigantic wave all around him, flooding the entirety of the arena.
Reiko felt it wash over her, taking the pain away like it had never been there. The torrent of water followed the direction of the wind, curving around the arena and swallowing everything within it, turning into an enormous whirlpool. The world spun around her; she couldn't tell up from down or where she was. Though at least the knives weren't after them anymore.
Then she felt Poliwrath's hand close around hers. Her eyes flew open and she saw her partner, looking straight at their opponents past the whirlpool, just over the next curve of the water.
Reiko nodded, and readied herself.
Poliwrath swiped behind him with such strength that the water momentarily boiled, and they were shot forward, out of the whirlpool. Reiko had only half a second to breathe before she saw it. Nico stood in their trajectory, protecting himself with one last knife, a look of terror on his face.
He stabbed forward, but missed the side of her face by half an inch. Reiko grabbed his wrist in mid air, and then everything became a blur as the impact came.
Water spilled out of the cage in all directions, no longer directed by the intense gusts of wind. The room felt like it held its breath for a moment. Then, once everything settled, Reiko was seen kneeling on top of Nico, her wet hair falling over her face like a curtain and her opponent's knife now pressed against his chest. Similarly, Poliwrath had his opponent grabbed by one of its ribbons, dark energy covering his hands, allowing him to touch it.
Reiko's lips trembled. Her lungs felt like they were about to burst. She spat out a bit of water, and whispered.
"You lost."
----------------------------------------
Palmer stumbled his way out of the club, his mind going either at two or a thousand miles per hour, it was hard to tell. Everything around him was slightly blurry. His muscles felt as though they weren't obeying his brain. And worst of all, the music felt the loudest it had ever been.
He found the man he was looking for as soon as he walked out the door. The bouncer looked over his shoulder, raising an eyebrow.
"Out already?" he asked, his accent even less clear now that he was drunk. "You want…?
"Poke…things. Balls! Pokeballs, yes!" Palmer gesticulated wildly with one hand, pointing at the boxes behind the man. "I need mine and my friend's!"
"Whoa, whoa, calm, friend." The man raised a hand at him. "Only person who leaves this here can get it back, and only with voucher."
"B-but…!"
"Sorry. Those are the rules."
Palmer blinked a few times, mumbling to himself. If that was true… it looked like he needed to resort to extremes.
"Well… I'm sorry, but I need both those belts back," he said. "I'll have to fight you for them!"
The man tilted his head, then let out a roar-like laugh, placing a hand over his stomach as he leaned forward. He whispered a few things too in between chuckles.
"Oh… man… funny!" He continued to laugh, shaking his head. "Sukin Syn ya…"
Palmer perked up his nose, eyes going wide. He felt his face grow abnormally hot.
"You…"
Palme's fist traveled fast, slamming into the bouncer's nose and pushing the man back against the wall as if he'd weighed half what he did. His knees went weak and he fell like a sack of potatoes, cursing in another language while he held his bleeding nose with both hands.
Palmer, still frowning, walked over to the table and picked up both his and Reiko's belt. Then, just before opening one of his Pokeballs, he looked over his shoulder and whispered:
"My mother was a saint."
----------------------------------------
"You lost."
Nico's face went from surprise to rage, and before she could do anything he snarled out his response.
"Not yet… Drifblim!" He bellowed, voice shaking. "EXPLOSION!"
A multitude of gasps were heard above, but Reiko didn't falter. She simply smiled, and waited.
Nothing happened. Nico's eyes went wide.
"Looks like… we both forgot…to do our homework," she said between gasps, the sound of her heartbeat in her ears. "Poliwrath's ability is called Damp. Nothing will be able to explode… as long as he's around."
The last of her explanation was drowned out. Screams and claps filled the entire room, bouncing off the walls and into Reiko's skull. It sounded like the laugh of a Mightyena. She fucking hated it.
Amidst the chaos, she saw Nico close his eyes in defeat and sigh. The back of his head touched the ground.
"How did you do that?" he asked, voice barely audible. "How did you dodge that last attack? It looked like…"
He couldn't will himself to finish his sentence. He simply scrunched up his face, eyes still closed, and breathed in deep. Reiko recognized that gesture.
"Let's just say... a friend helped me out."
Nico let out a dry laugh, though it sounded more like a sob.
"Figures. The knives were the only advantage I had, and even they were taken away."
Reiko frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Come on. You can't tell me you didn't realize." Nico opened his eyes, the slight shine of tears on them. "This Drifblim only knows four attacks: Gust, Hex, Explosion and Shadow Ball. Your partner is immune to three of them. Nox pulled a fast one on me and I didn't realize until it was too late."
Even though her mind was still hazy and her body felt wrung out, Reiko realized that didn't make sense. "But… we chose our Pokemon. It was random."
"You're really naïve for being such a good fighter," said Nico. "I'd bet anything all the Pokeballs in our boxes have only Drifblim and Poliwrath. This is just Nox' way of showing he's gotten bored of me."
Reiko tried to say something, but the room went quiet in a heartbeat. Then she heard clapping from above, slow and loud. Nox' figure met her as she turned around and looked up at the balcony, frowning against the strong lights hanging from the ceiling.
"And here I thought all that bravado of yours was gonna be just that." Though she couldn't see his face, she heard the smile in his voice. "Who would've thought that you'd end up being such an entertaining fighter?"
His words were met with screams and cheers of approval. A shower of golden coins fell from the stands toward the arena, mixing with the wet soil and blood, glistening like miniature suns. Reiko clenched her teeth, fingers curling into fists.
"What's gonna happen to Nico?" she asked, more a growl than a question.
"Hm? Oh, him?" Nox tilted his head, using a finger to scratch his cheek. "What do you care? You emerged victorious, did you not? All you should be worrying about is coming up here and receiving your reward. I am a man of my word, after all."
More cheers, more laughs. Reiko looked down, eyes covered in shadows. Then she whispered a question toward Nico.
"Did you… choose this?"
The boy looked up, confused. "W-what?"
"This place, what you were doing… were you fighting here because you wanted to?"
He didn't answer for a few seconds, simply looking down at a small group of coins littering the ground in front of him.
"…No. I just… I got my trainer license taken away and needed a way to make money fast. And… this is the only thing I know how to do." His voice was full of sorrow as he spoke. "It was supposed to be just a couple of fights. Never thought I'd end up like this."
Reiko nodded to herself. She closed her eyes and sighed, accepting what she was about to do. Unlike Percy, she'd never been one to worry over what was the right thing to do; she simply took action in the way she believed and worried about the consequences later.
"Poliwrath… follow his orders as soon as I'm gone from here," she said. "And you… get ready."
"W-what are you…?"
She looked up, locking eyes with Nox as the cheers began to wane.
"So… all I gotta do is get up there and claim my reward?" she asked, almost shouting.
Nox smiled. "But of course. Just wait there and I'll send someone to guide you up h–"
"There's no need. I can get there myself."
Nox blinked a couple times. "I beg your pardon?"
Reiko grabbed the rune hidden within the folds of her clothing and crushed it between her thumb and index finger. Immediately a glyph of light formed beneath her feet. She clenched her teeth and concentrated; gaze set behind Nox.
The air seemed to shift, and a second after she materialized there. The world itself seemed to come to a pause. Reiko allowed herself half a second to breathe and get used to the weakness and pain now covering her body, and then she moved. Her fingers closed around Nox' wrist and in a flurry of movement he ended up in front of her, arm pulled back and Nico's knife pressed against his throat.
"A-wha…!?"
Gasps filled the room. Two bouncers approached, eyes wide, and raised their hands. One of them held a Pokeball and the other one a gun.
"Stop!" she bellowed, pressing the knife harder. "Make any sudden movements and I'll slice his throat!"
Both men froze. The whole room seemed to be holding its breath, the only noise that could be heard that of the music blasting in the floor above.
"W-what the hell do you think you're doing?" Nox' voice wavered, his eyes full of panic. "I thought we had a deal."
"Guess I got tired of you leading me by the nose," she replied. "I decided I'm gonna take the information I want my way."
He parted his lips to reply, but let out a shaking laugh. "Are… are you insane? I was going to give you that information! Now you've fucked yourself and I'm gonna…"
She moved the knife a fraction of an inch, earning a yelp of pain from him as small drops of blood began to run down the cut toward his collarbone. The two bouncers squinted, hands shaking. The crowd all around her began to whisper.
"Tell me the location of Team Galactic's next drop-off." Her voice was cold and sharp. "If you don't, I'll slit your throat."
"Y-you wouldn't," said Nox, not sounding too sure. "If y-you do that, you'll never leave here alive."
A cold smile stretched across her lips. "Guess I'm fucked either way. Which means I have nothing to lose." Nox muttered a few unintelligible words, but she placed her mouth close to his ear and whispered. "You have five seconds."
"P-Pastoria's side dock!" He yelled out, voice shaking from fear. "A… a week from now at around 9.30 p.m! A Galactic ship's gonna land in the n-northernmost spot for about fifteen minutes!"
"And…?
"T-that's all I know, I swear." He breathed heavily. "T-they never tell us anything else except that and the provisions they need."
Reiko considered the information for a moment, then nodded.
"Good. That's all I need."
"L-listen, if you let me go I promise I'll clear a way out for you. Just…"
"Oh, don't worry," Reiko interrupted him. "I'll let you go."
"Really?"
"Yeah," she smiled. "Because now it's your turn to show how entertaining you can be."
"W-what…?"
In a flash, she spun Nox around by the arm and pushed him forward with a kick to the back. His eyes went wide as he fell toward the arena below. A loud thump was heard; probably the most satisfying sound Reiko had heard that night. The fall wouldn't be enough to seriously harm him, but a bruise or two were the least of his problems right now.
Below, Nox coughed and rose to his knees, his entire body shaking. Across him, Nico stared with eyes wide like plates.
"You know what to do," Reiko said below.
She turned around, finding herself with a gun and a Pokeball now pointed at her.
Right… now I have to deal with this, she thought. Maybe I should've thought ahead a little bit.
"What a-are you waiting for!?" Nox' voice was heard from below. "Shoot her and come get m–"
The building shook. Darkness filled the room for a moment as the lights in the ceiling flickered on and off. Then, making a sound like someone crunching on sand, a huge piece of the ceiling cracked and caved in, falling on top of the cage below, its debris barely missing the two people and Pokemon inside.
Reiko couldn't help but gasp as she looked up, her eyes meeting with those of Palmer's Salamence, the man himself riding on his back. All around the hole created by him were the dancers from the club, looking down with expressions full of wonder and confusion.
"Need a pick me up?" Palmer asked, a lopsided smile on his face. His voice sounded slurred.
Reiko sighed, shaking her head. Great. Just what she needed; to owe that goddamn moron.
"You could say that," she replied. "Make sure you fucking catch me."
Before anyone could react she ran forward and jumped, raising her arm as high as she could. Salamence lowered one of its massive hands, claws closing around her wrist. Both floors of the club looked in amazement and confusion as she was hoisted up toward the dragon Pokemon's back.
Everything shook as Salamence began to retreat, making his way through the limited space within the club and toward the exit. Far below, inside the cage, Nox spat out orders.
"Don't let them leave! Get them!" He screamed at the top of his lungs, face contorted by rage. "And you fucking idiots, open that door so…"
A swoosh was heard behind him, and then a small stream of water crashed with great force at his side, splashing his shoes and making him yelp as he jumped back. On the other side of the arena, Nico had his hand raised, pointing at Nox. Poliwrath stood at his side, hands balled into fists.
Nox shook his head. "What… the hell do you think you're doing? Get me out of here right now or…"
"Sorry boss. No can do."
Nico took a few steps forward, a knife spinning between his fingers, eyes as cold as ice.
"If someone enters this cage, they have to fight their way out," he said. "Aren't those the rules?"
Once again he raised his arm, pointing at the box with Pokeballs behind Nox. The blonde man looked over his shoulder, lower lip shaking.
"So go ahead," said Nico, squinting with anger. "Pick your poison, Nox."
High above, the last thing Reiko heard before they flew away was the sudden cheers of excitement from the audience.