Chapter 5- Run!

One thing about Floccesy is that it is bigger than what was presented in the games. Well, that could be said about Aspertia as well, but it is all the more visible now. Where the game presented it as just a couple of houses and a barn, I faced what could reasonably be called a big village or even a town if one was generous.

But before exploring the town, my first order of business is to find where to stay. Maybe I can ask the Pokémon center when I check Nike in. We met a Lilipup not too far from the city and he managed to get a couple of Bite in before he was defeated. Nike being Nike she also finished all her Mago berries. Oran berries were used to bring her back to health, but we can never be too cautious.

Speaking of which, the way the berries work seemingly magically is still fascinating. It’s apparently linked to how the energies that flow through the world interact with certain plants or something similar. Another thing I want to research about.

“Welcome to the Floccesy Pokémon Center. What can we do for you.” One of the nurses- which I note is not of the Joy family, asked me.

Not every nurse is a Joy, but it seemed the flaming red-haired has become a trademark at some point and since people like it, it stuck. One of the rare pieces of shared culture throughout the world. Most of the time anyway.

“Hello, I would like to check on my partner, please. We met some Pokémon on the way, and I want to make sure everything is fine.”

Nike jumped off my head and onto the counter before smiling at the blonde nurse while I handed her the ball.

“What a cutie! Certainly, it will only take a few minutes.” She said as an Audino came pushing a cart along and moving to the back.

I can see that Nike is still uncomfortable with being too far away, but she does not protest. Meanwhile, I moved to the information desk to the side. An old lady was sitting there and reading a paper. When she saw me approaching, she put it down and gave me a kind smile.

“Hello there young lad, what can Grandma Elodie do for you?”

“Hello,” I bowed lightly my head. Nothing like respect to make a good first impression. “I am a new trainer, and I would like to know if there is a place I could stay for a couple of days.”

“But of course, young man. There should be plenty of rooms available in the center for traveling trainers. Can you give me your trainer card for a minute?”

Once I handed it to her, she moved to a computer, inserted the card in the reader, and continued.

“Luckily, the season is officially on, so it will be free. Otherwise, you would have had to pay you need to pay 25 poke dollars per night, how long will you stay?” she asked me.

“That’s fine thank you for your help.” I hesitated for a minute before answering three days

“You are most welcome.”

After the registration was done, I received the card to the room and waited for Nike. It did not take long before the nurse called for me. I picked her up and moved to the room. With the night having already fallen we just sleep. Tomorrow our hunt for a Riolu commences.

*

As usual, Nike is the one to wake me. Unfortunately for me, she is much more used to her powers, resulting in the bed cover being psychically lifted from me, leaving me unprotected from the harsh elements of the room.

“Sweety, you don’t need to be that mean,” I grumbled as I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

Her only answer is a giggle. God dammit. Fine!

Aside from waking up, it does not take long before I am ready to go. The plan is to look for them through the morning, and if nothing turns up come back to the center. Looking at the sighting report, they were seen not far north of the town.

We make our way to the canteen area for a quick breakfast. I decide to get a simple egg and bacon while Nike is gorging herself on an assortment of berries prepared by the center. After that, it is out into the wild. Or rather, pseudo-wild.

“Nike, you have sensory abilities, so I count on you to help me.”

“Te!”

I can feel her focusing and the hat on her head twitching about. It took a few seconds before she pointed straight ahead. We continued to trudge through the forest that was growing thinner as we walked. The first day brought us nothing, unfortunately. We looked for hours before we decided to go back for lunch, yet the afternoon was just as fruitful as the morning. The second day though, things changed as we walked deeper. It meant stronger Pokémon, but with Nike, avoiding them was not hard.

After hours of walking, the change in the terrain became more noticeable. By that point the ground was rocky, and the few trees present were far in between. After pointing the direction, I let Nike focus on the Gem and I can feel her moving the energy. The radiance of the gem was already reduced by now and she seemed to be using it which was a good sign.

A few more minutes of walking brought me to an area covered in rocks. Some were whole but the large majority were broken.

This is a sign of fighting type if I ever saw one. I can even see small fists on some of the rocks. Although, where are the Riolus? Welp, nothing to it, I guess. At least I confirmed that they are in the area. We might just skip lunch from the center and camp here while waiting. Hopefully, they will come. And also, not being outright attacked will be nice.

Come to think of it, I wondered how accurate the lore about Riolu is.

I remember that Hatenna dex’s entry for example mentioned that they were not able to filter out the emotions and that they were flowing constantly which clearly is not true. That would be one hell of an existence. I would know.

Humm guess I can try it out.

I sat down and put myself in the lotus position. My aim was to try and spread my ‘aura’. I am not talking about the same aura used to imprint the Pokeballs but rather the one Riolu and Lucario are said to be able to sense. Or maybe they are the same?

Regardless of the semantics I sit down and try to meditate, visualizing spreading my presence, or rather my mind in a small distance around me. The only Pokémon in the area that should sense it if I can do it are the ones, I want. And thankfully with the town in walking distance, there should not be any powerful Pokémon.

*

Riolu was confused. What did the golden Lucario mean? He continued to think but nothing came to mind. His way home was faster than the other way. Jumping through the forest and mountain, he made quick work of the distance.

When he reached his pack, nothing changed. They were still doing their light training. This was displeasing. He came to let them know that he was back, but he had no intention of staying. He would rest and visit another pack with a Lucario.

When he saw them training, he decided to go to his usual spot. Yet when he got close, he froze. There was an aura coming from the spot. A powerful aura …yet weak? He could not describe it. The aura was powerful, yet it felt rough, untrained. But full of potential. He liked it.

Perhaps another Lucario came by? No, the aura was off. Then what was it? He felt a similar aura before but could not remember where. And the aura was different. Drawn by curiosity he got close. As he did, he noticed another presence. Smaller. Different.

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The smaller aura noticed him. It sent a wave of emotion. Curiosity and excitement.

The mind was young and eager. It was different from when he exchanged emotions with his kind. For them, he felt the emotions. This one seemed to transmit it to his head. The feeling was odd.

Soon he saw the source of the bigger aura and froze. Human. He seethed. Humans were a pest. They forced their way on everything around them. Incapacitate the Pokémon kind by force and enslave them. Forcing them to fight. He did not like them. He did not trust them.

All they did was cause suffering. Some of the Riolu of his pack were once taken away. They did not want to but it did not matter to the human. They came back years later, but they were no longer the same. The stories they told enraged him.

Kidnapped from their family. Forced to perform in front of people. They did not like it but were not listened to. They were fighters, not attractions. And when they failed, they were starved and then forced to work again.

They told the pack that other humans were the ones who rescued them and brought them close to home. But by now Riolu had already stopped listening and went to train to vent his rage.

That was why seeing a human spreading their aura made Riolu realize what they wanted. To capture his pack member once more. That was unacceptable.

He jumped out and faced the intruder.

“Leave!” He said.

He felt the confusion of the small Pokémon and anguish as well. The human stirred. When they saw Riolu they smiled. Riolu’s twisted perception saw it as vicious and predatory. That was why he did what he did.

In the back of his head, he heard the words from the golden Lucario.

‘Remember young one. Trust your senses and doubt your prejudices. Now leave. you interrupted my training for too long.’

He ignored it.

*

“Riolu!” came a cry from the thicket.

Joy spread through me as I opened my eyes. Yet that did not seem to be the right emotion to have. I locked eyes with red eyes on a small, black, and blue furred Pokémon. But the expression on its face was anything but friendly.

Nike also seemed to notice it as she sent me a sense and danger and got into position. Apparently, the aura I spread was not appreciated.

Yet before I had the time to even give an order the Riolu already started attacking…me!

I scrambled as fast as I could, my heart thundering in my ear as I watched claws extend from the fist of the Riolu glow in what was clearly metallic luster. That was definitely a move. Metal claw? Anyway, I moved out of the way and the small Pokémon’s fist slammed into the rock behind me leaving an imprint similar to the others.

I dashed opposite to him hoping to have the time I needed. Yet in my mind, I feel a panic and anger that is definitely not my own. In front of me, Nike is positively brimming with psychic energy, her antenna moving wildly.

I don’t even need to give out the order that bubbles of psychic power form and speed toward the Riolu that is only now turning around. With the attack coming from his blind spot, he does not have time to dodge. Or so I thought until a coat of white light enveloped him and the next instant he was standing to the side.

Steadying my nerves, I tried to suppress my trembling by clenching my fist. I can’t allow myself to make a mistake again. Nike for her part is far from having regained her cool and soon the psychic glow envelops her once more.

“Nike calm down! We need you at your peak to get out of here!”

Yet it seemed that my words were ignored. Another barrage of psychic bubbles is sent toward the fighting type that tries his best to avoid it. However, this time one of the bubbles makes contact sending him flying a few meters back.

Despite eating a super effective move, he quickly shakes himself and starts charging Nike who is now panting like a bellow due to the exertion from her training combined with reckless attacks she just launched.

As quickly as I could, I pulled out her Pokeball and with a shout of “return”, a red beam of light enveloped my small partner and not a second too soon. The Metal claw of the Riolu smash where Nike had been an instant earlier. I mean sure Pokémons are hardy creatures but that does not mean I want to see Nike beaten up when she is defenseless.

Without waiting to see the result I dash in the opposite direction to the Riolu, with Nike out of shape I have no reason to stick around. As I ran, I quickly noticed footsteps coming from behind me. Fast!

I tried to find a cover, but the trees were already sparse around me. Yet running was the only option I had. It was not until the entire environment changed that I realized that I was running deeper instead of going back to the city. The Riolu was relentless and turning around was simply not an option at this point.

I knew what I had to do but my leg had already started to tire and burn from the prolonged exertion. That’s when I spotted an opening from the rock outcropping. The probability of it being inhabited was high yet I had no other choice with an angry Riolu on my ass.

Fate, however, did not seem to like my idea. I did not even have time to get close before the Riolu clad in a white aura leaving a trail behind him appeared. It stared me down and I was once again reminded that this was neither a game nor an anime. My life was on the line.

Sensing my distress, Nike’s ball popped out, and out came the small Pokémon. She seemed to have recovered since she was no longer panting. With the blue fighting type distracted, I took the opportunity to press the emergency rescue button from my phone. It is going to burn a hole through my savings but better than dead.

“Nike listen to me now! We need to work together if we want to get out of here!”

She did not reply but I could feel her acquiescence. Now that she had calmed down, we could fight and I already regretted calling for help. The Riolu was strong, but the difference was not as big as my panic made me believe and we had the type advantage but it was too late for regrets.

The still enraged Riolu ran forward with again the steel type energy coating its claws.

“Nike avoid and use Play nice!”

Despite speed not being a strong point of Hattena, the Metal Claw were driven by anger and therefore, predictable. A hop to the side put her out of danger and the white coat covered her pseudo limbs and wrapped them around the Riolu in a handshake. Yet the flinching did not happen and instead, he coated himself in white light and tackled Nike.

Damn it! I wanted to set up a bit by making him hit less hard but since that did not work, we might as well go on the offensive. Nike got up and immediately used confusion as I ordered. This time it hit the Riolu and sent him tumbling as well.

Where Nike stood immediately, the Riolu was visibly shaken, and it took him a couple of tries to stand back up.

Please let him be confused!

His eyes seemed dazed, and he tried to focus on Nike. His claws once again popped out and the metallic shimmer covered his paws.

He moved opposite to Nike but the result was far from what I wanted. What he attacked was a rock close to the opening I wanted to use as a hiding spot. As he did, it did not take long for a Pattrat to poke his head out with an annoyed look, saw Rolu running rampant and started to scream his lungs out.

Soon two others came out of the opening but if it was only that we could have managed. Yet the Watchog that followed was something else. It took one look at the situation and the next instant dashed toward the Riolu and Swiped his leg with a Low kick. The leg could be already seen swelling.

What it did next was to grab the Riolu by the head and its eyes started to change colors as if they were spreading from the center out. The Riolu struggled for a bit before going completely limp. If not for his chest rising faintly, I would have missed that it probably used Hypnosis.

After it was done it turned toward us. My heart leaped in my mouth, and I could feel the blood draining from my face. This was an opponent that we could not defeat no matter how we tried. Cold sweat covered me before I even knew it. Yet I had one chance. There was only one thing I could do that could let me get out of here safely.

And I did the only thing I could think of. I asked Nike to tell her that we did not want to attack her and raised my hands slightly and palms toward her to show that I would not try anything. It was clear that this was her nest, and these were her young. That would explain the extreme prejudice yet apparent mercy. She knew that Riolu could not hurt her and simply put him to sleep. This was clearly a matriarch.

After Nike explained the situation (I assumed that’s what she was doing since ‘we mean no harm would not take this long’, she turned and looked at me with her unblinking eyes before looking back to Riolu and snorted as she made her way back shortly followed by the Pattrat that sill turned to chitter at us.

I finally let myself breathe and slumped to the ground. Nike came to my side, unusually silent. I could feel that she was not feeling good about herself. She was frustrated. She felt weak.

And to be honest we were.

“Girl it’s not your fault it's mine. I clearly bit off more than I could chew.” I sighed.

This was not a game but a reality! I thought I understood. Yet I did not kn-

Before I could think further, I felt Nike against my chest. Despite her gloom, she tried to comfort me with hope for the future.

“Na! Na! Hatte!”

“Thank you for comforting me, Nike!” I smiled despite my tiredness. “But you know, this is just the beginning. Eventually, we will get so strong that we can go wherever we want! Right?”

“Hattena!” she nodded vigorously.

“And we can start now.” My eyes trailed on the prone form of Riolu.

This guy was strong and fast. I don’t know compared to other Riolu but that was honestly impressive. Though I wonder why he hated humans. That anger was clearly not directed at me, it seemed deeper than that. And the worst part is that I could feel that our auras matched.

As I was doing research on Riolu I found a community dedicated to the line. There, trainers talked about how they felt that the Riolu felt right for them. One even mentioned how he found a pack of Riolu yet he was able to single out his partner to be. At first, I was confused about what they meant but now I understand. It was a connection like no other. As they said it just felt right.

I wanted to capture him. Yet, forcing a Pokémon to accompany me just because I knocked it out and captured it was not the type of trainer I wanted to be. Something about forcing sentient creatures to follow your whims just for the sake of it did not seem right to me. Especially when said creature could bend reality as it willed and is universally stronger than humans.

I gathered my strength and stood on shaky legs with Nike taking her spot on my head. I watched the Riolu, bruised, battered, and asleep, clearly out for the count. His swollen leg was more visible from up close and the Watchog clearly used more strength than was needed.

I thought about it and decided to catch him. I did not know if I was going to keep him but leaving him on the ground left me with a bitter aftertaste. We were clearly compatible but if he really did not want to come with me, I could always release him. For now, I will take him to the Pokémon Center and wait for the nights I booked to pass.

If he really did not want to come with me, I had another solution. Around me was a cliff and one of Unova's iconic birds with fierce temperament liked them. A Rufflet and eventually Braviary would make good companions as well. They were always up for a fight.

I took out a Pokeball already imprinted and pressed it against the Riolu. With him asleep, the ball barely shook. I wanted to celebrate but now was not the time. I quickly moved away from the opening and waited for the rescue. I should mark the spot and bring some berries back to the Watchog in case I come back for a Rufflet.

It took all but 15 minutes for a ranger to reach us, riding a Braviary. It was sadly not Ranger Mathew whom I met previously, and we had to explain the situation to him. After a light scolding for being reckless, he escorted us back to the town.

With 500 Pokedolar less, and 500 remaining, made my way to the Pokémon center. The same nurse Joy as before greeted me and I handed the two Pokeballs to her. I did not forget to mention how the Riolu might potentially be violent upon waking up. That got a raised eyebrow and recounted the event upon meeting him.

“Actually, this Riolu might be the one that was causing problems around the area. I will need to check on the record of the pack to see what the cause might be.” She informed me.

Huh, so it was a known troublemaker. I would have loved to know that before going out. I waited in the reception for my Pokémon to heal and made a quick call to Nana and Pops.

“Hello, guys. I wanted to let you know that I am fine and that I caught a Riolu, though I don’t know if I will keep him.” I said.

“Hello, kiddo. And why is that?”

“Well, you see…’’ I explained the situation for the 3rd time today, although I might have forgotten to mention the chase this time.

“A Riolu is an almost perfect partner but with this one, it’s true that it might be hard to manage.” Nana mused aloud.

“Yeah, I intend to wait and see. I still have some daylight left and if need be I will release him tomorrow where I caught him.”

“That is a wise choice.”

We continued to talk until my Pokémons were ready. Nike immediately popped out, but the Riolu stayed silent. I was told he was awake, but it seemed to have somewhat calmed down. Guess the moment of truth arrived.