David blinked the sun out of his eyes and focused on the weight on his stomach.
Pidgey had not been happy when he released her last night. Or was it early this morning? Given the state her ball had been in when he found it, he wasn’t surprised.
He’d stopped his mad run through the woods after the mix of tiredness and growing pain had caught up with him. Running in dark woods was more an exercise in picking yourself off the ground over and over again than a test of endurance, but he reached his limits eventually anyway. The growing storm didn’t help.
Stumbling into a hollow by a thick tree, he’d dug Pidgey's pokeball out of his bag in the pitch black. The pokeball was on top of all his stuff, just as he’d left it, but someone had shifted everything around in their search through his bag.
They’d done something to her pokeball.
In the dark it was hard to make out but when David held the pokeball up to the brief moonlight that made it through the clouds and rain he had been able to make out the uneven additions to the pokeball for what they were. A cage.
It took another few minutes of fiddling with the metallic cage before he got it off. Her pokeball shook the entire time and his fingers were cold and clammy from the rain. Pidgey burst from the ball as the metal braces fell off. The bright flash blinded David and illuminated the area for a split second.
As Pidgey began a series of shrill calls, he’d scrambled to check if her ball was broken. When he was as sure as he could be that nothing was damaged, he’d turned his attention to the raging bird.
Pidgey hopped around, head turning back and forth as she searched the area. Her wings were spread wide and illuminated by swirls of lavender spiraling off of them. The wind buffeted her around but she didn’t seem to care.
She didn’t calm down or return to David for a long time. Nothing he said or did settled the Pokemon.
Eventually after what seemed like hours spent nodding away to sleep and waking up abruptly, she came over to eat one of the flying type sachets he’d set out to try and calm her down. She still refused to be recalled into her ball and pecked towards David’s hand whenever he held it towards her.
In the end David crawled into the unrolled tent, using it as a sleeping bag to ward off the wet ground. He had fallen asleep with his back to the tree and Pidgey watching over him.
Now David reached a hand up and smoothed down the crown of Pidgey’s head. She didn’t shift in her sleep.
“I think it’s just you and me from here on Pidgey,” He said quietly.
Last night had finally driven that point home. He needed to be more careful with who he trusted and what he did. His goal to meet the Legendary Pokemon was far away and no one would hand it to him. Few would help.
He briefly wondered if Beth was okay before dismissing the thought. He couldn’t find his way back to the tunnels to check even if he wanted to. No traces of his path remained and there were no distinguishable landmarks around. As far as he saw it, he and Beth were even. She got him into the mess and she helped him get out of it. That was all.
He needed to act smarter. Everything had gone downhill after the alley ambush in Saffron. It wasn’t his fault but he hadn’t been ready. He had known that Team Rocket existed and what they would become. What lengths they would go to on their mad crusade. He should have prepared.
He’d let his guard down again when he ‘left’ Saffron. That was his mistake. He should have camped further out or in a more hidden spot. It couldn’t happen again.
David gently lifted Pidgey off his stomach and placed her down on the ground beside him. The roosting Pokemon didn’t react.
He needed to start acting smarter now. Today. He’d run far last night, but today was a new day and with Pokemon in the world, there might be a way for Team Rocket to track him. He was tired from last night but awake. It was time to pack up and set off again.
-.-
Before he left, David searched through his backpack. Nothing was missing. Team Rocket hadn’t taken anything. Not the 20P, not the berries, not the Potion or herbs. It confused him, that a criminal organization hadn’t stolen anything, but he wasn't about to go back and complain.
Pidgey was still sleeping so he paused to make something he’d been sorely needing. All of his encounters so far had shown he needed to be able to react faster and this was the first step.
With the spool of string, he crafted a necklace sling to hold Pidgey’s pokeball. He’d been aiming for a woven belt like Fred and the other dojo members’ but it quickly became clear that this was beyond his rope tying skills. The sling pouch he created was messy. It was a far cry from the dojo belt and even further from the stylish belts he’d seen most trainers wearing, but it was a start.
David placed Pidgey’s ball in the sling and hung it around his neck. He crouched down and gently picked her up. Now the ball was within easy reach if he needed to recall her or send her out in an emergency.
He might not know where he was but he knew Celadon was to the west. He set off with the morning sun on his back.
The landscape didn't change as he walked and David began to feel somewhat confident in the idea that he was still on Route 7. Sure he hadn’t experienced much of this world yet, but there had been a big difference between Route 7 to the west of Saffron and Route 8 to the east. Too large a difference for it to make sense, but it at least made it easier to know where he was.
The trees he walked past were the same thick trunk variety that had surrounded the clearing. The ankle high grass was as familiar as the occasional stream full of small Magikarp and the ever growing tadpoles. He even saw some Meowth darting through the trees.
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It was this familiarity that made it so surprising when he stepped through some trees and into a world of ash.
The air was bitter and smoky.
A line of orange grass split the woods in two. Past the orange, the ground was black and gray. There were no fires or embers remaining, but it had to have been a powerful blaze to leave desolation like this. Close to him the thicker trees had survived, scarred and flame licked, but alive. The trees further in had no such luck.
David followed the dividing line of grass around to the left for a minute, hoping to find the edge of the burnt area, but the ash continued as far as he could see.
He was left with two choices. Continue along the boundary in the hope the area was small and that he wouldn’t be straying further from civilization, or carry on west through the ash. He would leave footprints in the ash, an easy trail for pursuers, but he would also travel faster and the ash might mask his scent.
Pidgey chose that moment to wake up. Squawking and shifting, she squirmed out of David’s hands. After an unsteady landing and few hops she settled and looked back at David.
“Good morning Pidgey. We’re heading west. Towards Celadon.”
Pidgey tilted her head but made no noise in response. David pursed his lips and pointed towards the burnt section of the forest.
“Can you sense any Pokemon?”
A Pokemon must have started this. Or a Pokemon at the command of a human. There’d been no thunderstorms in the last two weeks but there had been rain. It would take a lot of heat to burn up the damp woodlands.
Pidgey had proven capable of detecting and warning him of Pokemon in the past. If she didn't have an issue he would carry on west.
Pidgey turned towards where he was pointing and examined the ash. With small short hops, she moved past the orange grass and onto the ash. She dug her talons into the ground and kicked up a small cloud.
Pidgey turned back to him and tilted her head again.
“Alright. No nearby Pokemon then,” He muttered, peering towards the burnt trees anyway. He inhaled. The air tasted smoky too. Hope there would be no issue inhaling some of the smoke.
“Well, want to hop or shall I pick you up again?” David asked and mimed picking her up.
Her earlier tumble to the ground had shown him that Pidgey wasn’t ready for flight yet. Her right wing unfolded without causing her pain, but it didn’t move smoothly. She needed more rest.
Pidgey waited a beat after his words before starting to claw up the ground underneath her. As the dust kicked up, she settled down into a roosting position and began to sway side to side. She spread her wings out and began to rub them into the dirt and fluff her feathers out.
“Hopping then,” David said with a groan. There was no way he was picking her up with all of that ash on her. He covered his mouth and stepped back as the ash was kicked up and blown his way.
-.-
The ashlands were far too quiet.
After weeks of camping in the woods or walking through Saffron, David had grown accustomed to some level of noise. Here, the soft crunch of his footsteps and the whump after Pidgey landed from a hop were the only sounds that regularly disturbed the silence. There was the occasional Pokemon cry from above or in the distance but they were rare and far between.
This wasn’t to say the area was devoid of life. Some areas were less charred and sprigs of green appeared luminescent against the gray ash and black soil. Other areas were warm and steam rose from the ground in light wisps that were clear in the sunlight.
David hurried through those hot areas. Pidgey hadn’t kicked up a fuss so they should be safe, even if she seemed to be growing tired of playing in the ash. She was still dusty but between the hopping and a lot of shaking, the excess dirt had fallen away.
David was still in no hurry to pick her up again. He only had one set of clothes.
The land of ash was turning back into woodlands when the cause of the destruction made itself known. Pidgey barely started a low squawk when a howl drowned her out.
David moved closer to Pidgey and bent to pick her up. Not fast enough. An orange blur raced through the trees. Pidgey let out a louder squawk but quieted as the Pokemon made itself known.
This Growlithe could not be compared to the Pokemon he had seen following the Saffron city police. It paced towards them, standing as tall as his stomach even with how its creamy hair was matted down and grayed with ash. The black fur on its body wasn’t found in stripes but thick patches, disturbed only by thick scars, signs of brutal battles and wounds serious enough that fur could no longer grow above them.
It snorted as David began slowly backing away with Pidgey in his arms. Embers scattered to the ground and set it alight again. Even the ash seemed to burn once more in sharp bursts before spluttering out.
David’s heart raced. Was the Pokemon hungry? Was walking in its territory an offense? Was he to be entertainment?
He reached a point where his heart could race no more, slowing down instead as cold gripped him.
“Easy now.” He murmured, continuing to back away.
The Pokemon huffed again, sending sparks flying and Pidgey began to squirm in David’s arms. She had escaped his grip earlier, but he wasn’t willing to let her go now. This Growlithe had the same feel to it as that Persian in the tournament or the Golbat in the alley. Pidgey wasn’t competition to this creature. She was a snack.
Pink streaks appeared around the Growlithe’s legs and David tensed. He couldn’t outrun the creature, the speed at which it approached them made that clear. But if he got enough trees between them...
Squeaking roars rang out behind the Growlithe and smaller blobs of orange approached through the trees. The Growlithe let out a low Roar that built until it rose to a crescendo before spitting a thick ember at David’s feet.
David turned and ran, spurred on by some force.
He darted through the trees. His heavy backpack jostling back and forth, attempting to upset his balance as he weaved.
The squeaking roars grew louder and louder as the clumps of orange grass grew more common. Soon he could hear thuds from Pokemon landing on ash behind him.
The impacts were seconds behind as patches of green started to appear. He pulled from some well deep inside him and put on a burst of speed. There was nothing left in the world. Just the empty space behind him and the thuds of his pursuers.
It wasn’t enough.
A heavy weight smacked into his heels and he was sent stumbling until he slammed shoulder first into a tree. Pidgey squeaked in his hands but he didn't let her slip.
A loud growl rang out from behind him. Grimacing at his aching shoulder, and the pain in his knee, David slid on the tree to turn around.
Several small Growlithe paced around, wiggling as they prepared to pounce on him.
The large Growlithe from before shimmered into place in the center of the pack, leaving pink streaks in the air. It inhaled and David’s breath caught. A thick stream of fire shot along the green grass between the pack and him before moving up the nearby trees. Small flickers of flame shot out from the smaller Growlithe.
David pushed himself off from the healthy tree and began to move. His body shook in pain. They were letting him go. He’d be on fire already if they weren't.
He glanced back at the flames one last time and a cold weight settled in his stomach. The pack of Growlithe had become invisible amongst the flames and rapidly blackening trees. Their fur blended in perfectly.
As he left the ash and flames behind, Pidgey began chirping.