Chapter 29
Red could not for the life of himself stop from panting as he faced down Blue. He could barely keep himself from falling over as bad as his legs were shaking. Nothing he could have done in the past year or so since he'd traveled the region could give him the confidence to face Blue. Red had been humiliated too many times by Blue to give any hope of defeating him.
The space between them was cleared of both the living and the dead, Blue's Alakazam having telekinetically cleared it of any obstructions. Blue had chosen for his Alakazam to be out as well as his Raticate to be beside the Psychic-type. The Pokemon freed from below deck sensed the impending conflict between the trainers and retreated back, their happy and relieved faces now becoming frightened. Their presence only brought Red more stress.
I'm not just fighting for the survival of me and my Pokemon. He thought. I'm fighting for theirs as well.
"Come on, Red Drake," Blue chided with his full name. "I'm giving you the gentleman's honor of first choice. Don't tell me I wasted my good graces on a coward."
Red held one sweat-wetted hand over Leta's Pokeball, his other hand dripping with perspiration hovering over the other three at his side. His Butterfree was the only Pokemon he was sure of that he was sure of to send out to fight. The others were a complete toss up. Drawing on the thorough research Red had conducted of the strongest Pokemon in Kanto over the last year, he searched within his memory the entries in his PokeDex that were most useful for deciding his battle strategy against Alakazam.
Said to be the strongest Psychic-type in the world… He thought. It's power is the epitome of every advantage its type has. Psychic-types can read minds so any secret technique I have up my sleeve could be worthless. That Alakazam would know any weakness or power of my Pokemon's signature moves, so long as I'm thinking about it right now. I'm too scared to think about anything except the Alakazam so that's safe…for now. However, when Psychic-types battle they're forced to withdraw their mind-reading range so as to use that psychic energy for attacking purposes. But…but…that's not by any means their only strength.
Red then began reciting from memory the three most prominent Psychic-type techniques used by Pokemon. The Psychic-type itself had its own entry in the Pokedex. While every type had this, the Psychic-type's was especially lengthy and complex. Said to be the most powerful type aside from possibly Dragon, the strategies used to employ it were immense.
Confusion, Psychic, and Psybeam. Red thought. Those are the techniques most Psychic-types use. Confusion is the most versatile of these as it's able to come in many different forms from transparent arms to mental distress it can target by linking its mind to them. In some cases, Confusion can be used to mind control someone if the connection is strong enough. They both have weaknesses in that the arms have pain receptors like flesh and blood limbs and in the latter case if the enemy target has a stronger willpower then it can end up backfiring and damage the user's psyche.
Red then tried to remember the information about the other two. The trainer's weakness of crumbling under pressure he had tried to make up for with the daily memorization and reminders of Pokemon information. Any spare moment he wasn't directing his Pokemon's training, Red was researching the advantages each Pokemon and type had.
But Psychic is just a concentrated bit of raw energy one can either batter the target with a strong physical push or just damage their nervous system and mind. He remembered. And Psybeam, the least versatile, is the one that can do the most direct damage as it's a laser of pure light. And those are just the most well-known moves a Psychic-type can exhibit. The mechanics of Psychic-type moves involve the user's psyfield.
He shook his head, remembering the oddity of the next bit of information.
Psyfields are the telekinetic energy stored around the Psychic-type's body. Red had memorized. Sort of like the heat fields surrounding Fire-types except with them the majority of their heat is stored inside the user and heat fields are just the little bit that leaks out. Almost the entirety of a Psychic-type's psychic energy is stored outside their bodies and whoever enters that field of psychic energy they can read the minds of. The closer you get to the Psychic Pokemon, the source of said field, the more your mind can be read. But to execute moves, the Pokemon has to concentrate that energy and turn it into attacks. The size of this psyfield varies and Alakazam is the Pokemon with the largest known psyfield.
He then went over the next part of the Psychic-type's entry.
But that can be countered by breaking the Psychic-type's focus. Red thought. A psyfield is manifested by the Psychic-type's mental exertion and if they sense something within that field that disturbs them it weakens their concentration. Bug-types have a very odd kind of brain and neurological system that sends out a mental frequency that disturbs the Psychic-types who can naturally read minds. And the closer it is to them the louder this frequency is to the Psychic-type. The only question now is…what Pokemon should team up with Leta to fight it?
Cinder was out of the question. Almost the entirety of his elemental techniques had been sacrificed to form his signature move, Sentimental Flame. And that signature move depended on Cinder's state of mind. Blue's Alakazam could easily break that state of mind with a simple Confusion or Psychic. But his remaining options weren't good either.
His two remaining Pokemon were both Poison-types, meaning basically any direct Psychic attack would undoubtedly kill them from such a Pokemon as Alakazam. Selven was far more versatile in his capabilities as a Grass-type but he doubted it was anything compared to Blue's Psychic-type. Hurzer wasn't as defensive as the Venusaur but his signature move was far more forceful and direct. Not to mention that Selven's signature move was incredibly chaotic.
He remembered that Psychic-types often had trouble stopping simple, direct attacks without much complexity that were also ranged attacks. Selven also could do the same with his Razor Leaf but Hurzer's signature move was more powerful than that. It would be a perfect match up.
Yeah! Red thought. I got it. Leta will be out there to weaken Alakzam's mental faculties while Hurzer will do the heavy lifting of trying to take it out.
He then gripped the two chosen Pokeballs adhered to his belt and flung them forward. The Butterfree appeared aloft in the air while the Nidoking materialized standing on the deck of the SS Anne, glaring angrily. Blue smiled wildly.
"Good," he said. "You seem to have learned something on your way out of Pallet Town. And your Pokemon you've chosen seem good choices against mine. In theory at least."
Red worried at that last part. He wasn't sure how much of it was just Blue trying to get to him and how much was fair warning to keep him on his A-game. He began wondering if Blue had trained his Alakazam to ignore the mental distress Bug-types put Psychic-types through but Red looked to see the Psychic-type had begun shaking. It no longer stood tall and stoic but its legs quivered, its once proud and emotionless gaze now undercut with fear. It made sense as Red had done more reading on potential counters to Psychic-type Pokemon in the Pokedex.
Psychic-types can be trained to ignore the odd mental frequencies Bug-types emit. He remembered. But it comes at a great price. The Psychic-type must be taught at an early age to dull its reading of mental frequencies, undercutting not only its mind reading capabilities but its precision at manipulating its own psyfield. This is why Kevin the Rocket grunt I fought could fight Leta without batting an eye but only could use Confusion to conjure invisible hands. The capabilities it had of using any other Psychic-type technique were mutilated. So Blue chose not to remove that weakness against Bugs.
"Alright," Blue said. "From this point on…no more civility. I'm going to treat this as a real Pokemon battle. I'm going to aim for taking you down, Red. And I won't spare your Pokemon their lives just because I feel sorry they have to be in the hands of a third-rate trainer. So don't be slow about changing Pokemon unless you want me to target you directly."
"You'll have to get past my Pokemon in order to do that," Red said.
"Just like in a real Pokemon battle," Blue said. "Now, let's get this started."
"Gladly," Red said. "Leta, Quiver Dance! And then move toward Alakazam!"
The Butterfree wasted no time in executing the move. She began to flap her wings at a frequency that made the limbs look like black and white blurs. After a moment of rapidly flapping her wings, Leta then circled in the air as gracefully as a dancer on stage. In seconds she closed the distance between herself and the Alakazam, Red beaming with pride at the sight. As she neared the Alakazam, the Psychic-type's expression became more fearful and it's shivering increased.
Quiver Dance is a move many flight capable Bug Pokemon can learn. Red remembering. It temporarily increases speed and power of the user by stimulating a hormone only found in Bug-type Pokemon. Surge said that Leta learned Quiver Dance faster than most Pokemon do. And learning it didn't even cost her her signature move.
"Sonic Clone," Blue ordered. "Cruel Armor: Physical."
His Raticate sprung to the right, its clawed feet bouncing sideways. It became a cream colored blur as it sped across the deck of the SS Anne, so fast that it looked as though it was in multiple places at once. Red recognized this as similar to the Double Team technique but something was far different.
The afterimages created by such speed had a certain vibrancy that normally shouldn't be possible. The mirages the Raticate created of itself were vibrating, the mirror images themselves shaking at a frequency that was particularly abnormal. Red was confused as the illusory Raticates were violently shaking before the air around him started flowing faster.
His clothes began to whip from the sheer force of the Mouse Pokemon as everytime it ran it seemed to create an odd air frequency. The amount of wind it produced was frightening until Red saw the trail of torn wood the Raticate left behind. Then he became more afraid.
Everywhere the Mouse Pokemon raced across it ravaged the deck. Pieces of boards were flung into air and thrown into the wild wind, the flurry of wood almost obscuring the Raticate's true form. Red had to stagger back as the wind emitting from the Raticate was beginning to blister his skin.
And it wasn't just Blue's Raticate that was creating such force. The mirages themselves would only stay visible for a moment but before disappearing the illusions themselves would emit incredible force. It was amazing to watch as the Pokemon's own afterimages were creating their own wind.
That speed it's running at is unreal. Red recognized. Blue must have taught his Raticate how to use Double Team before improving upon it. Not only is it unreasonably fast but it's a self-perpetuating wall of force. Somehow he's created a technique that allows the mirages themselves to create an air frequency so tough it's nearly impregnable to pass through. What an impressive signature move.
And then came the Alakazam's signature move. It's body as well as the Raticate's became coated in a layer of light that almost looked like an armor of transparent material. It was like the two of them were wrapped in some shiny film. Red recognized this as some variant of Reflect, a move that protected a Pokemon and its allies from physical threats. Except in this case, it seemed to increase the Raticate's power.
Not only was the Raticate surrounded in such a thing but the mirages were as well. The illusion's themselves were coated in such an incredible, shiny film that they now shined. And with this the speed and force at which the Raticate traveled and the mirages it created began to increase as well. The amount of debris torn from the deck of the ship increased, forcing Red to stagger backwards to not get hurt.
This was all too much for Leta. In the span of about two seconds both of Blue's Pokemon performed immensely powerful signature moves. And the sheer force of the air frequency the Raticate whipped up flung the Butterfree back as she attempted to near the Alakazam.
Leta nearly was thrown over the ship before flapping her wings strong enough to stop in midair. She flapped her wings harder now as she attempted to stay aloft despite her wounds. Greenish-yellow blood dripped from Leta's body as small wounds had been opened from heading straight into that wall of wind.
Red's heart sunk, not just from the idea that he was on the losing side of this battle from the get go, but that his most fun loving and lighthearted Pokemon was wounded. The Butterfree was now further away in the air than she had been before performing Quiver Dance. This had a rather obvious effect on Blue's Alakazam as it wore a less nervous and wasn't shaking as much. It was very obvious that physical distance between the Butterfree and the Psychic-type had a visceral effect on Alakazam.
Red turned away from Leta in midair to glare at Blue. The Raticate had stopped running, it's illusory copies disappearing as a result and so did the intense wall of wind it had whipped up. Blue looked smug as both of his Pokemon stood coated in transparent armor.
"I see you've already recognized the gap between our capabilities as trainers," Blue said. "Very arrogant if not brave of you to think you had a chance against me."
"What gives?!" Red shouted. "I don't think I've ever seen a Pokemon travel that fast! And your Alakazam's Reflect…it isn't normal either. It seems that…that it increases the physical power of its wearers."
"Why certainly," Blue said. "That's what signature moves are. An advancement of a pre-existing technique. I taught my Alakazam both Light Screen and Reflect with the intent of making a technique that would not only protect them against attacks but enhance the user's attacks as well."
Red almost fell to his knees he became so scared upon realizing the terror of his opponent's words.
"So you mean to say that your Psychic-type's Reflect is not only a deterrent against the enemies physical moves but an enhancement of the user's?" Red said through gritted teeth.
"Of course," Blue admitted with a shrug. "Perfect, isn't it? The other version of Cruel Armor increases the special attack of the wearer's while also cushioning the blow against non-physical moves."
Red tried his best not to look horrified as Blue laughed maniacally.
"And the best part is," he said. "You were so worried about my Alakazam that you didn't even realize that my Raticate might have a devastating signature move as well. Sonic Clone creates an air frequency that combines the illusions of Double Team with sonic vibrations formed from the speed my Raticate travels at. The mirages themselves carry the vibrations, meaning that not only does the move obscure my opponent's vision but also does significant damage if the enemy gets too close to those illusions."
Red's gritted teeth became a gaping mouth as he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"So what you've done is-?" he said. "Is-is…create moves that defend your Pokemon as well as increase their power?"
"Clever isn't it?" Blue asked. "The power of hard work. Something someone with genetic gifts can't understand."
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
"Excuse me?" Red said. "I thought you said that you hated me because I wasn't born with inherent talent."
"I hate you because you're praised for being the son of an evil crusher of the innocent," Blue said. "Being born into such a household should mean scolding, not praise. But Lance…it was always rumored that he and the Dragon Clan that descended from Blackthorn City could control and empower Dragon-type Pokemon. The Drakes have always been Dragon-type trainers and since this rumor was never confirmed to be true…some have speculated it to be more than a rumor."
He then frowned.
"How coincidental that touching your Charmeleon forced it to evolve in your battle against Misty," Blue said. "To me…that confirms that you're nothing more than a spoiled brat who had everything handed to you. All you have is power to you on a silver platter to such an extent that you don't have to train as hard as the rest of us. Which is why Lance had the power to defeat my father in battle."
Red shook his head, trying to ignore Blue's chiding. While he knew of his heritage descending from the Blackthorn City Drake, or Dragon Clan, Lance spoke very little of it. It was almost like he didn't like his relatives and wished to not be associated with them. Red sighed, trying to think of a strategy to win.
Hurzer's signature move is probably my best hope now considering I doubt Leta isn't fast enough to complete her signature move before that Raticate does. He thought. It's just too fast. It's one of the few ranged moves that is actually dependent on the physical strength of the user and not their special attack. But it's also one of the few kinds of attacks that telekinetics like Psychic Pokemon have no defense against, their ability to deflect it with psychic energy is mitigated. But Blue will still probably order Alakazam to use telekinesis to slow down Hurzer's attack.
Red smiled.
And while the Alakazam's Cruel Armor protects against attacks that rely upon muscle power, I know that Reflect only cushions the blow instead of negating it. He remembered. And Alakazam has very poor physical defense so that attack would kill Alakazam without the force being reduced at all. But between its armoring and the telekinetic deflection…I don't think it'll be a killing blow. It would definitely cripple the Alakazam but it won't be lethal. Of course…Alakazam is using a lot of its psyfield to create the Cruel Armor. The more psychic energy employed to create the Reflect variation, the less power it has for its other Psychic-type moves. That could be used to my advantage.
Red then stared at the Raticate again.
And does that thing's Sonic Clone technique have enough force to block ranged attacks? He thought. It could certainly obscure Hurzer's aim…but Hurzer could mitigate that with it's signature move as well. But…if it tries to counter both Raticate and Alakazam then it won't have enough time to properly attack either. It depends…which one is more of a threat…?
Just as Red thought about which of Blue's Pokemon he should attack, it was Blue who gave the next order.
"Alakazam," Blue said. "Use Psybeam on his Butterfree. Raticate, use Hyper Fang on his Nidoking."
Red began to panic as the Alakazam began to gather psychic force around his body, a multicolored light forming around the two spoons it had in its hands. After crossing the two spoons in front of one another it then pointed the silver utensils up at Leta. The Raticate bared its buck teeth with a growl and dashed forward towards Hurzer, the Nidoking roaring in response.
No, no, no! Red thought. Blue's striking at my weaknesses! Once he gets rid of Leta there will be no stopping that Psychic-type's full power from breaking out! Its Psybeam is forming far slower than it normally would and that's thanks to Leta's presence. Being KO'd by that means nothing will stop it from killing every member of my team. I need Hurzer to get a clean hit on it…but first I need to mitigate that Raticate's speed. Time for both my Pokemon to use their signature moves.
"Hurzer use Toxic Spears on the ground!" Red shouted. "Leta…counter Psybeam with Mosaic Distortion!"
His Pokemon wasted no time in deploying their signature moves. Leta was faster than Hurzer as the Quiver Dance had greatly enhanced her speed. For a moment in midair she held her wings still, falling a little as Leta was no longer holding herself aloft.
Light began to gather around the edge of both her wings before spreading into the interior of the limbs. Once the black veins were coated in white Leta started flapping them again. She began by flapping her wings fast enough for them to be white, shining blurs.
However, rather than creating wind with this movement, the particles of light she had absorbed began to spread out in front of her. The twinkling gems of white brightness began to form small, hexagonal tiles in the air in front of her. Once the white particles pieced together like a puzzle they no longer were all white but began to reflect the Alakazam below her.
Each piece of solidified light began to turn yellow and brown, just like the colors of the Psychic-type below. The mirror image of the Psychic-type formed into the solid, clear glass-like canvas the Butterfree conjured. Soon the Alakazam's reflection of it charging its Psybeam appeared, its two spoons clasped together as a technicolored aura covered the utensils captured beautifully.
In mere seconds the Butterfree had completed the picture, a feat helped by Quiver Dance's stimulation. Once Alakazam's reflection had been completed the seven colored light around its spoons disappeared. The Alakazam looked down in amazement, obviously confused. Blue grimaced at the sight.
"What?!" he shouted, irritated.
And then came Hurzer's. Purple ooze dripped from the Nidoking's arms enough to pool at his feet. Once the violet poison had formed a large enough pile of liquid, Hurzer bent down to bury his hands in it. As soon as he did, the liquid quickly spread across the deck of the SS Anne in cascades of dark purple.
As soon as the area cleared between Red and Blue on the SS Anne mutually decided as their battlefield was covered in purple ooze. The Raticate nearing the Nidoking abruptly stopped running forward once the liquid solidified. After hardening, blackish-violet barbs protruded from the dark rivers flowing across the deck.
The sharp objects made of poison were no mere spikes as they were fitted with spearheads as tall as a human hand with short long bodies beneath. The heads had serrated edges, meaning even touching them was deadly. And the amount of these spearheads lying around the battlefield were in the dozens.
The Raticate was now trapped in the maze of sharp violet edges and points. It looked around, wishing to scurry away but it was too late. Each direction was a potential poisoning hazard as well as the chance for an open wound. Red was now smiling while Blue glared in disbelief.
"What happened?!" he shouted. "I was in the lead!"
"You were so confident in your Pokemon's signature abilities you forgot about my own," Red said. "My Nidoking learned Toxic Spikes and Earth Power for the sake of creating a combination of the two to form something more permanent and deadly than a set of venom soaked caltrops. Toxic Spikes are easier to remove than my Nidoking's signature move as the spears are far more ingrained in whatever surface they are used on. You won't be able to scatter these things as easily as spikes."
"And your Butterfree was taught Signal Beam and combined its Confusion to create a move that somehow negates any move it paints a picture of," Blue said. "I see."
Red smiled, hoping that his techniques were enough to scare Blue. And while they were something Red had pride in, they had obvious weaknesses. Every second this stalemate went on he wondered if Blue would figure it out.
While Leta's Mosaic Distortion was indeed amazing at preventing any move from being used, it was as fragile as a real mosaic. First off, the Butterfree had to be faster than her opponent to complete the reflection. While she was fairly fast, this meant there were some Pokemon she could never hope to use this signature move against, like Blue's Raticate. Quiver Dance could help with that but the other problem was that Leta had to create the reflection just as her target was using the move.
Lastly, the reflection that Leta conjured could only be so big as the canvas required a large amount of space. With this in mind she could only comfortably negate one attack at a time before having to break the mosaic down and try again. The breaking down of the mosaic added to the time length it took to repair meaning it was useless to try using Mosaic Distortion in succession. Only being able to negate one attack at a time meant that Leta's signature move was only useful when it surprised the opponent.
Hurzer's technique was more simple, just being able to combine the earthen material naturally held within his body to mesh with the poison Nidoking naturally produced. His only weakness was that his body only produced so much poison and soil at a time, like Alakazam only had enough psychic energy to spare before resting. Red was beginning to regret his actions at the start of the battle.
I wanted to end this quickly with type advantage, something I thought I had outgrown. He realized. I wanted Leta to get close to most fully nullify Alakazam's psychic prowess when I should have waited for Blue to make the first move. Then I should have used Mosaic Distortion to negate that move and had Hurzer attack in the time before Blue realized his first move was wasted.
"Now, Hurzer!" Red shouted. "Throw a Toxic Spear at Alakazam!"
The Nidoking obliged, lifting its arm into the air before dark purple oozed from the limb. After enough violet liquid had bubbled up it began to harden and lengthen into a pole. The spear was quickly finished after a sharp pointed head was crafted at the end.
Surge was right…battle experience matters more than sheer power. Red thought. I just hope Blue doesn't realize the weaknesses of these signature moves too early.
But it seemed he didn't have such luck. Soon after Red explained how he formed the signature move, Blue gave another order. Red braced himself as Blue's confident expression returned.
"Alakazam!" he shouted. "Purify those spears with Confusion!"
The Alakazam gestured forward, its spoon held loosely in hand. As the spears on Blue's side of the battlefield on the ground began to wriggle, Red began to shake in fear. While he knew Leta's mere presence was mitigating the Alakazam's telekinetic reach he kicked himself for thinking Hurzer would be that effective a Pokemon. He now began remembering the interaction Psychic-types had with Poison.
Psychics seem to have the ability to nullify the effects of poison. Red thought. He's not removing them, knowing that it would be too difficult to force such grounded objects out of the deck with a Bug-type in the Alakazam's vicinity. He's going to turn the poison into a substance that isn't volatile. Then his Raticate will be able to move around freely. The only question is…should I have Leta risk breaking the mosaic down for nothing in order to construct it again for the purpose of negating Confusion rather than Psybeam? If Leta isn't fast enough it'll be all for naught…but…if she does end up using it…it means that means Alakazam is free to use its more damage dealing move.
Red shivered at the sight of the Alakazam concentrating on the spikes, the objects beginning to lose their dark purple luster. Red hovered his hand over Selven's Pokeball, wondering if he'd have to call out his Venusaur to fight. Selven had a much stronger signature move but it was far too chaotic to trust in sufficiently.
But Confusion is more dangerous. He assured himself. Psybeam is just a concentrated blast of psychic energy while Confusion can be used to move objects. As well as further cushion incoming ranged attacks. It's the move I should have been most worried about. Let's just hope that Quiver Dance gives it enough speed to both break the mosaic and create another before its too late.
"Leta!" Red shouted. "Use Mosaic Distortion to counter Confusion!"
Once again, the airborne Butterfree stilled its beating wings to draw in light, covering the black veins with white brightness. However, the mosaic she had conjured in front of Leta shattered, the pieces falling to the ground as empty white rays. Now the Butterfree was attempting to create another one, the desperation more than apparent.
She was beating her wings faster than she had previously, pushing for every inch of light it could produce in front of it. Leta was spreading the particles of white light out in front of her faster than the one she had forged to counter Psybeam. Just as the hexagonal tiles began to create a mirror image of the Alakazam, Hurzer threw his Toxic Spear.
"Alakazam, watch out!" Blue shouted.
But it was too late. By the time the Psychic-type had noticed it his telekinetic grip on the spears nearest him had begun to weaken as Leta's Mosaic Distortion took effect. Once the objects surrounding the Alakazam stopped shaking, the spear plummeted squarely into the Psychic-type's chest.
Red was surprised how it was driven through the armor surrounding the Alakazam. It cried in pain, the squeal more inhuman than Red thought it would be. Red blood spilled from his open wound to coat the lower half of his body, both of its legs dyed red. In pain it dropped both its spoons as the spear protruded from the center of its body. He smiled at his small victory.
"Alright!" he shouted. "Way to go Hurzer!"
The Nidoking gave a satisfying grunt in response. Red looked to Blue to find the opposing trainer frustrated but not as horrified as he thought the equally aged boy would be. The young man just frowned.
"Use Recover," he said.
Red looked horrified to see the Alakazam take the spear protruding from his chest by the handle before pulling it out, another cry of pain as well as more blood. He wondered how that was possible considering Alakazam was famously weak in terms of physical strength before remembering Cruel Armor increased its muscle power.
The gaping wound quickly filled in, skin and flesh being produced before completely closing in on itself. The process was amazing to watch, like watching a surgeon cut skin in reverse. The hole in its body was gone in a matter of moments, the Alakazam's stoic expression returning. Red's jaw hung open at the sight, only now remembering why Alakazam was considered the strongest Psychic-type on Earth.
It has access to one of the rarest and yet most powerful moves. He remembered. Recover allows the instant regeneration of damage or lost skin cells and even organs. Alakazam fuels this with his psychic power, depleting his psyfield, but it has so much that it's not much of a bother. I was so focused on countering the Alakazam's psychic energy that I forgot why Alakazam is considered invincible despite its frailty. Regeneration is considered almost as valuable as rock solid defense. Why-why did I think I could win this so easily?
"Alakazam!" Blue said. "Use Psychic on Nidoking!"
Red's eyes widened at the order. He now realized that he had played right into Blue's hands. At first, Blue was using Alakazam to counter Leta as an attempt to get rid of the only thing stopping its parade of psychic powers. Now that Leta was too preoccupied with conjuring her Mosaic Distortion, Hurzer was left wide open. Red looked up at Leta as he clung to Selven's Pokeball in reflex as he wished to order her to use Mosaic Distortion again but he knew it was too late.
"Yaaaahhhgg!" Hurzer shouted.
Red whirled his head around to see that half the Nidoking's body exploded upon impact from the telekinetic force hitting his body. Half his face along with his left arm and the majority of his left leg were blown to smithereens. Red blood spewed from the left side of his body that was left gaping open. The portion of Hurzer's body that remained intact fell to the ground with a loud thud, a sea of red spilling onto the deck of the SS Anne. Tears streamed down the trainer's eyes as he saw half the Pokemon's body destroyed.
"Hurzer!" Red shouted.
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The impact felt like a bomb went off on the inside of the Nidoking's body. Pain like he'd never felt before wracked his entire form. Strangely enough he expected the pain to be sharper and more pronounced but it felt more like wind released from inside. Hurzer felt strangely exposed from half his body being turned to mush before he fell.
As he looked up at the blue sky his vision faded, his last moments of consciousness strangely more lucid than he expected. Hurzer could feel the last moments of thought slipping out of him but strangely he was able to think more than he thought he would. The sensation that overcame him most strongly was disappointment. He felt oddly curious about the sensation.
I guess it's because I achieved my final evolution. Hurzer thought. And still died in battle. What a shock.
But that wasn't it. With what little clarity Hurzer had he could tell that that was not the source of his strange emotion. He had never felt this kind of dissatisfaction before, like he missed something that Hurzer could have easily grasped. For whatever reason, he began to think about his conversation he had with Cinder and Selven the night they fought Team Rocket.
Purpose. Hurzer said. Surviving for some other reason beyond just surviving. Living for a reason. They told me it was odd to not want to do more with my life than just try and stay alive as long as possible. They said something about friendship or love…to which I said that was ridiculous.
He now felt the pangs of regret.
And now I feel it was all a waste. He said. I never tried to pursue companionship with anybody. I just thought that we live and die. That Pokemon are too small to try and focus on anything else. That was for humans to bother with and even they were distracted by it. But now…now…
Memories of the earliest days when he was just a Nidoran, running around and trying to find food. When his father was caught by humans, he felt little in the way of regret. When his mother left him because Hurzer was strong enough on his own, he cared only how it would affect his chances of survival. When Red caught him, he only weighed his options on how reliant his trainer could be on providing food.
When he found his comrades died after gym battles, he felt nothing. In the midst of life or death situations Hurzer gave no thoughts to his comrades and thought only of keeping himself alive. Hurzer had never once attempted to bond with Red or any of the Pokemon he'd caught. He fought for Red because being a trainer's Pokemon granted more chances of survival than being in the wild.
As these memories crossed his mind he found a similar pattern. Fight to survive. Kill to survive. Obey to survive. Survive. Survive. Do that. There was no joy in any of it. No companionship built between comrades. No thought of saving others. He had no end goal to survive for, no future plans. No cause to fight for. No one to protect. Just fight to stay alive he supposed.
Goals. Hurzer thought. I…I guess that's what they meant when they talked about survival. Having a goal in mind down the road. Some…some cause to crusade or…or person to cherish. All of it was just so I could live. I existed…for the reason to exist. Because I didn't think I could do anything higher. And now…I see how silly that was.
He then began to panic.
I want to do it over. Hurzer thought. I want to do it all over. I want another chance! I want to decide to do something! Something important! Something I can be proud of! I-I want to get to know Red. And Cinder. And Selven. Even ask him why he thinks he needs to have a cause to be willing to live. I-I need to cherish them.
Hurzer then thought of himself.
But what about myself? He thought. Certainly I could improve myself! Learn new moves! Grow stronger! With Red's help I could do things no other Nidoking has done! His training has gotten me this far! Could I become a warrior of legendary status?
But then it all began to fade. His vision blurred to a dark gray before growing dark. Hurzer began to grow cold as more blood was lost.
I don't want to go just yet. He thought. Give–give me another chance. Please! I won't waste it this time.
But no one responded. And with that he could tell he was gone. There was no hope for Hurzer.
I wasted it. He thought. I wasted it all. Survival…survival is useless because…I never lived for anything. And never died for anything either. What…what more could I have done?
But that question was never answered as Hurzer died seconds later.