David adjusted the backpack on his shoulders.
For a moment things were right. Then the backpack shifted back. The pain in his back continued. Whatever edge was poking into him was there to stay. It was almost worth the effort to stop and adjust, but packing everything after the Pokemart had taken too long already.
The backpack had always been fairly full with the included equipment, but the addition of a Potion, herbal poultice and four food sachets had strained its limits.
On the plus side, he only had 20P left so that didn’t take up much space.
His crate and 2 remaining Aspear berries were swinging around behind his back in a paper bag. Given the larger order, he’d been able to convince the Pokemart cashier to throw in the bag for free. With a piece of string it’d been a small job to tie the handles to his backpack’s drawstrings. After spending all of his hard earned Poke, it was the least they could do.
The city had started to come alive so David’s red scarf was tugged up and his wide brimmed hat down. The disguise kept his identity hidden but made it more difficult to ask for directions. Between people’s wariness and his muffled voice, he was starting to regret his fashion choices.
As he walked through the city there were plenty of signs for the gym, but few for the dojo. It was like they took any opportunity to direct you to the gym, sticking teeny plaques up where there wasn’t space for text, just the concentric orange circles emblem, but leaving out mention of the dojo where room was readily available.
David was about to attempt to flag down another pedestrian when his backpack shook.
‘Pidgey.’
It took a second for David to realize he was going to have to unpack everything to get her ball out.
“Crap.”
Pidgey appeared in a bright flash that David forgot to close his eyes for.
As Pidgey let out her usual low shrill, he tried to blink the fuzz out of his eyes and focus on his belongings scattered over the ground. Pidgey’s shrill cut out and she began to squawk.
David’s head rose to Pidgey’s blurry form as she grew more agitated.
“Pidgey? What’s wrong?”
Pidgey began to spread her wings but stopped with a pained squawk when her right shuddered. Her wings retracted and she hopped towards David.
David’s vision began to clear as he scanned the area. What had she seen? Had Team Rocket caught up to him?
A woman fed three Meowth in one corner. An elderly woman stepped through a sequence of movements with a hunched Machoke. A man sprayed an Oddish with something off to the side. A teenager meditated with her Abra.
The park was quiet with a steady stream of traffic passing by on the road. David didn’t recognise anyone. He turned back to Pidgey who had hopped in front of him and turned to face forward.
“Pidgey?”
She let out a shrill squawk and shook her retracted wings a little. She didn’t linger on anything, frantically swiveling her head.
It took another few seconds for him to realize that it was her first time back in the city. He instantly felt worse for not considering it in advance.
Slowly David reached out a hand and patted Pidgey’s head. He smoothed out the ruffled feathers on her crest.
“It’s okay Pidgey. We’re okay. It’s just us.”
It took a few minutes and a relocation to put their backs to a tall bush, but Pidgey calmed down. She ate her sachet breakfast while he repacked.
-.-
David stood in front of a sprawling complex.
A three storey mansion stood at the heart of all the buildings and drew the eye immediately. It was old, likely the oldest thing he’d seen in Saffron, with wooden walls and hewn stone. The effort and attention to detail in its construction was obvious even from this distance. Each floor was separated by a tiled roof that curled at the edges. Statues seemed more like moving figures.
The buildings around this central mansion were a mix of architecture styles, some of the same age but none were as tall. Instead they decreased in height as they spread further from the heart of the complex and grew more modern. Beside him at the edges of the compound, the buildings were a single storey and made of concrete. The blank walls formed a barrier of sorts around the complex.
After Pidgey ate, David was able to get directions to the dojo from the elderly woman with the Machoke in the park.
The dojo was in the north-east of the city and the complex was surrounded by older buildings. Most of the area was in good repair but sections showed signs of poor maintenance. The streets themselves were in need of some restoration work. Tarmac had given way to stone slabs as he neared the dojo and several of the slabs were cracked or crumbling.
David grimaced as he took in the complex. It was big, nearly a city block itself. How was he going to find Fred in all of this?
There were no guards or greeters at the entrance, so he wandered unhindered. He quickly found himself distracted. There was lots to see inside the complex. The inner wall of the single storey concrete buildings at the complex’s exterior was all glass, allowing a view of the training rooms inside.
All sorts of equipment littered the rooms. Some were familiar, and wouldn’t be out of place in a gym back home. These were clearly designed for human use.
Others were bizarre or out of scale. Weights larger than David’s torso, pools full of sand, punching bags made of metal, and cracked walls reinforced with steel beams the size of trees.
Many of the rooms were empty but a few were occupied. The Machop line was the most common Pokemon that he could see but David paused to watch a Mankey and a baby Hitmonchan train.
The Mankey was all violence as it snapped punches at a rotating wooden pillar. It twisted and flipped between squeals as the pillar spun and sent branches flying at the Pokemon. A trainer stood behind it calling out instructions, but with the furious way that the Mankey attacked, David wasn’t sure that the Pokemon was listening. It was hard to equate the anger to the soft creamy look of its fur.
The baby Hitmonchan was a relaxing contrast. It was steadily pushing a weight across the floor while its trainer did pushups and crawled along beside it. The baby Pokemon was clearly related to Hitmonchan but had a few differences. Its skin was a light pale color unlike the tan of its older form. Horizontally facing spikes spread across its head instead of the front facing crown that the Pokecenter guard had.
What surprised David was the number of non Fighting type Pokemon that he could see. As the buildings grew taller, the size of training rooms grew until he came across one with a class inside. Inside the larger room an Ekans hung from a bar, lifting weights off the ground while beside it a mass of blue vines did the same.
On another side of the room, a Graveler and Doduo carried weights back and forth. The Graveler held the weights steady in the air with all four of its arms, its craggy skin too uneven to balance the bar on its back. Each step was measured and steady but the rock Pokemon was too large for the exercise to look like anything other than a tremendous effort.
The Doduo sprinted back and forth. Its two heads dipped up and down as it ran to try and shift the weight strapped across its back to the other head, but its feet were firm and its body balanced. As David watched one head snapped at the other, resulting in a brawl between the two. The Pokemon slowed but continued running even as its heads fought.
A cough behind David made him spin around.
A man in a white outfit, a robe with multiple layers all crossing at the front, dipped his head slightly as David faced him. His outfit was similar to the martial art uniforms from home but more.. formal. The folds looked less for ease of movement and more for appearance.
“Can I help you?” The man asked.
“I’m looking for Fred?” David hedged. It was mostly true. He had been before he got distracted at least.
“Fred who?” The man smiled.
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“Fred.” David confirmed weakly. He had no idea what Fred’s second name was. “Gingery-red hair, about yay tall and likely with a Machop?”
“Ah. Fred.” The man confirmed in understanding. He relaxed a little, but still shook his head. “I will take you to him but please keep in mind that it is impolite to watch another training.”
“Oh. Sorry.” David winced.
The man gave another short nod and gestured further into the complex.
-.-
David knocked on the door with a little trepidation.
The man in the formal outfit had pointed out one of the doors in this older style building to him before turning around and disappearing. The man had been polite, but hadn’t responded to any small talk on the way here.
David didn’t know if this was Fred’s house or the complex’s security.
After a few seconds the door swung open. Fred was frowning when he opened the door, but his expression brightened as he saw David. He gave David a deep nod.
“Give me a minute.”
The door swung closed again.
David blinked but moved to the side with a sigh. He leaned against the building’s wall to take the backpack’s weight off his back while he waited.
A minute or two later the door swung open and Fred rushed out. He took a step or two away from the building and looked up to scan the path.
“David?” Fred called, straightening a less formal version of the white outfit.
“Here,” David said and pushed off the wall as Fred turned.
Fred’s outfit was a little rumpled but it was clean if a little worn. A yellow belt hung around his waist with a pokeball suspended in the weaved fabric.
“Oh,” Fred said, fixing his clothes. “Well come on, you’re a little early but they’ll probably like that.”
“Is there anything I could say to stop you?” David asked one last time.
Fred shook his head and set off.
David sighed and followed as Fred led him further into the complex.
“What’s with the outfit?” David asked as Fred continued to adjust it.
“Oh you like it?” Fred turned back and thumbed his belt. “Now Machop can say his name, we were qualified to try for a new Kyu.”
The yellow belt did look newer than the rest of his outfit.
“A man showed me the way in and he had a..” David paused as he compared Fred’s ruffled clothes to the man’s. “More formal outfit.”
Fred snorted. “That was probably someone on greeting duty. Those aren’t real Gis, they’re for the tourists or ceremonies.”
“Ah.” David said like he understood what Fred had just said, but knowing that he didn’t and that he was one of those tourists.
The buildings around them fell away to an open yard. David grit his teeth as he realized where they were. Fred came to a halt in front of the central building, the heart of the complex. This was not going to be a small conversation with some security or manager then.
Fred turned to David and hummed. ”When we go in, be polite but don’t worry about copying what I do. They just care that you’re respectful.”
“Anything I should avoid?” David asked, eyeing the old building. Intricate carvings surrounded the entrance. His hands were growing a little clammy.
“Try keep quiet until we get to the council. And be, you know, respectful.”
David glared at Fred but he had already opened the door and slipped inside.
The walk through the building was tense for David. He quickly discovered that if he wasn’t careful, his trainers would squeak against the polished floor. Light steps were difficult with his backpack so he walked slowly through the building and up the steps to the second floor.
The trainers and Pokemon they passed along the way were silent, either deep in meditation or acknowledging them with only a nod as they walked past.
Fred led him to a room in the center of the building before moving ahead to speak in a low whisper with an attendant standing watch outside a door. After a second and a shake of their head, the attendant slid the panel behind them open and stepped in. Fred returned to David and gave him a nod.
A minute or two later the attendant returned and gestured David and Fred inside.
David walked inside slowly behind Fred, taking the time to examine the room. He expected the room to be a show of wealth, for the walls to be covered in wood carvings and woven banners. Instead the room was bare. The wooden floors were well worn with clear differences in color where people walked often. The pillars in the room were scratched and weathered.
Five cushions were arranged facing them in a half circle, and five figures sat on them. Three of the figures wore Gis similar to Fred’s. The other two wore more everyday clothes.
David came to a sudden stop, his runners squeaking lightly, as Fred went down on his knees in front of him and bowed his head to the five. David flinched and made to follow before remembering Fred’s words. Instead he settled for an awkward half bow.
Fred stood up again without a word from anyone before walking forward to the circle. He sat down on the ground and gestured David closer.
David slid his backpack off his back, set it down and joined Fred. Now part of the circle he was able to get a good look at the five sitting on cushions.
‘So these are the dojo’s “masters”.’
Three of the masters fit what he expected. Their skin was wrinkled and worn but they had a certain air to them. The two women sat straight, controlled and unmoving while the third, a man who sat directly opposite David and Fred, was bent forward with age. Unlike his peers the man looked tired and weary. All three wore black belts, metal pokeballs held in the intricate weaves, but the man only had two compared to the women’s five each.
The other two masters sat on either side of David and Fred. They wore everyday clothes aside from brown belts with a full set of six pokeballs. Both men, they differed in age. One seemed to be in his late twenties or early thirties and the other was middle aged.
All five, bar the master in the center, were in incredible physical shape with corded muscles visible on their forearms. All five were focused on David and Fred.
“Fred, why have you come before us today?” The center master asked. His voice was strong and carried across the room clearly.
Fred bowed his head forward again before straightening.
“Masters. I come before you with a friend, David. A visitor to Saffron, he was attacked by criminals in our city.”
The air seemed to tighten when Fred finished. David felt his heart beat faster and his blood rise. A weight pressed upon him as the center master turned his gaze to him
“Tell us your story young man.”
Almost involuntarily, David began to run through the events for the fourth time.
-.-
“Child. Send for Haruki.” The woman on the right said at the end.
Fred grumbled but got up and went to the door. The panel slid open and closed behind him.
David ran through what he had said again. It was unlikely that sharing it with these instructors would change anything, but the more people he could warn about Team Rocket the better. They might even be able to convince Fred to stay away from it all and out of trouble.
He was glad he’d come. How he’d warned Fred earlier wasn’t well thought out, and if the teen had been hurt as a result of his actions, he would have felt terrible. It was a bit of a cop out, but in telling these people who were in charge of Fred’s home, he felt less responsible.
The masters remained silent after Fred left. The three black belts closed their eyes and started to meditate. David took the chance to examine the master opposite him. He was hunched over and to the side as he meditated. David had to wonder why he was at the center of the group. Unlike the women beside him the old man did not look able to perform or demonstrate martial art forms. He had the least pokeballs too. The three looked similar in age so why was he at the center?
A shudder ran through his body and David turned towards the feeling. The youngest master glared back at him. David winced. Maybe he had been a little obvious with his staring.
The panel slid open behind him and two people entered. They paused on the way in and David heard matching thuds on the ground as they performed the same bow that Fred had earlier. A second later, Fred joined him and another man in a police uniform sat on Fred’s other side.
David stiffened. What was this? Were they turning him in?
“Haruki.” The center master acknowledged with a small smile. “We have another report of Team Rocket. Have the police determined a response?”
Haruki, a man in his late thirties, bowed his head forward again before he straightened up and spoke. “Masters. The police have received several reports on minor offenses but there is never much evidence.”
The panel slid open behind them and quiet steps made their way into the room.
“So they do nothing?” The black belt who sent Fred out spoke again.
Out of the corner of his eye, David could see Haruki visibly stiffen. When he spoke again it was with a strain in his voice, like he was climbing uphill.
“There are whispers. That Team Rocket has the support of-” Haruki’s eyes flicked towards David and he changed what he was about to say. “Backing. All of the Pokemon offenses are related to the League’s code of conduct changes. It is thought to be a.. protest.”
The atmosphere in the room changed. The air tightened and tightened until David felt like he could burst. He blinked blurry yellow and red dots out of his vision.
Then the atmosphere released. The center master seemed to sag further for a moment before drawing himself up a little straighter with an inhale.
“Thank you Haruki. You may leave.”
Haruki did just that. Rising smoothly and making quick steps out of the room. When the panel slid shut behind him, the master spoke again. “Warn the students and all those seeking a license this season. Organize patrols through the old city. Spread word. Do no more.”
David frowned. Who would be backing Team Rocket in Saffron? Team Rocket’s leader was the Ground type gym leader, a gym in a different city. Then a horrifying thought came to him. That leader had a Persian. A Pokemon that was not a ground type. The same Pokemon as that monster from the tournament. All the Meowth around Saffron. Was he from here?
“That’s it?”
Fred’s voice startled David out of his thoughts. He turned to see that Fred was leaning forward, one fist on the ground in front of him.
The elderly master on the right snorted and Fred’s face began to color. Fred opened his mouth to protest and - a hand came down on his shoulder.
“Masters. Thank you for hearing us.” A woman with Fred’s gingery red hair spoke from behind Fred. Fred’s frown deepened and he shook his shoulder to remove her hand but the woman only tightened her grip. “We will leave you to continue your council.”
David turned back to the masters. The center master had a big smile on his face and dipped his head to the woman. With that acknowledgement the woman half pulled Fred to his feet and indicated for David to follow. Fred was red in the face but he made no further protest. David stood up.
“David.” The center master addressed him for the second time this meeting and by name for the first time. “I apologize. We are not able to offer you shelter. This is my failing.”
The master dipped down into a bow, leaning precariously forward with their hunch.
David managed to stumble his way through a confused thank you and left.
The five masters remained where they had been sitting when David and Fred arrived but as the panel slid shut, one seemed to sink lower with age and the youngest glared at the others with anger.