Lantana
Market District
Vito
Dozens of small shops dotted either side of the road, and background conversations filled the Market District. as Vito ran down the long, winding trail. Local shops easily set themselves apart from the larger business from other regions, and Vito smiled as he passed by a personal favorite or two.
With Enotrian businesses, the signs out front were hand crafted in classic Enotrian hand writing, and the doors were open wide, inviting you inside to a warm smiling face that'd be more than happy to help you find whatever you wanted, even beyond the boundaries of their own store. Many of these shops housed people Vito knew well.
Outsiders by and large outed themselves by the way they conducted themselves, comparatively. Closed doors, Galarian signs, and unhelpful attendants that barely knew the town. They were out of place in the warmer setting, and because of that, didn't last all that terribly long.
"Come join The Legione!" An all too familiar voice called out. "Join us today for a better Graecia and a better Enotria!"
Vito looked over and briefly stared at Enzo. The older boy was meters away and held out a flyer, calling out to anyone and everyone who walked past him. Some walked past Vito and headed into the Worker's District, while others walked by to take their children to school.
Enzo turned his head, and for a split second, he looked at Vito. His eyes widened, and he fell silent for a split second before swiftly turning his head away.
Vito almost didn't notice. The entire process was as quick as it had begun, but seeing it all happen made him smile.
Guess you're done with your bullshit now, huh?
Vito diverted his gaze, his eyes focused on the red Pokemon Center that loomed above The Market District. It wasn't necessarily a big building, but it was larger than most of the buildings in the area. It was also the same one where his mentor was staying… if he hadn't left already.
He swallowed hard at possibly seeing Emile again. Exactly how did the older trainer feel? Would he still want to travel with him?
These thoughts were soon interrupted by the feeling of electricity shooting through his body. Adrenaline pumped through his veins as he felt his arm involuntarily twitch. He yelped in pain and turned his head again, this time looking at Pikachu.
The yellow rat squeaked and pointed at the Pokemon Center, all while glaring at Vito.
"Fine, fine… I'll stop thinking and go in…" He huffed, before smiling at the little guy. Ass.
Vito started to walk again, keeping his eyes focused on the Pokemon Center. He passed those walking on the street before entering the center lobby. Looking around, he was greeted with old posters and fliers for events that had long since ended, and a large, blocky TV. His eyes briefly looked at the relics before settling on a blonde nurse who leaned back in a chair behind her desk.
Vito smiled as he saw the familiar face and stepped forward.
The nurse raised a brow and leaned forward, putting her phone away. "Vito!" She called out with a small smile. "I figured you'd have been out already."
"Not yet, Lucrezia. Actually, I'm here looking for someone… a trainer from Kalos, by any chance?" Vito asked.
"Oh, you're with the pretty man?" She mischievously smiled. "Where'd you meet him?"
Pretty man? Lucrezia must have had weird tastes, but who was he to judge?
"Bellissimo Mare, I told him I'd help him deliver something to Florentina," Vito replied. "And he said he'd help teach me a few things… I think he's holding up to his end." Vito scratched the back of his head.
"Oh, how kind of you!" Lucrezia giggled. "I'm sure he'll help you… speaking of, he's still in his room. He left last night and came back, and I haven't seen him out since. His room is the first door on the right!"
"Thanks, Lucrezia!" Vito rushed off, darting to the left and then rushing up the stairs, before suddenly stopping in front of the door on the right. He swallowed hard as he looked at the door and could feel his heart race, albeit slightly. His arm was stretched out and his hand nearly touched the door knob. Opening it was a simple matter.
Yet, Vito did not have the willpower to open it.
Before he could even decide, the door seemingly opened on its own like magic and Vito was greeted with a rather… peculiar yet familiar scene.
"Ah, shit!" A shirtless Emile screamed as he fell back onto his bed, with Frère biting onto his bare arm. "You dare bite me, again?" He called out. "Fine then, it's time this ends! Our battle shall be legendary!"
The trainer raised his head and then bit down on Frère's body. Both Pokemon and trainer yelped and growled as they bit each other, both of them refusing to let go.
Vito watched the scene unfold in disbelief, and he turned his head to his right, meeting the rather dumbfounded, wide-eyed gaze of Pikachu and a smiling Belle who stood beside him.
"Does this happen often?" Vito asked Belle.
Gardevoir nodded, bringing her hand to her mouth and clearing her throat, loud enough to silence her trainer and Frère.
Both Pokemon and trainer stopped what they were doing and looked up at Gardevoir, then their eyes met Vito's.
"Vito!" Emile gently pushed Frère off of him and got up with a smile. "What are you doing, kid? We leaving already?" He asked, reaching for the same dark button-up shirt he had been wearing yesterday.
"Uh… no," Vito said after clearing his throat. "I came to apologize."
Emile fell silent and tilted his head, then he looked over to Frère.
Frère merely shrugged in response.
So, Emile looked to Belle, hoping she would have a satisfying answer, but she, too shrugged.
Did he somehow forget? How the hell could he have forgotten about everything last night!
"For last night," Vito added, his voice becoming slightly irate.
Emile raised a brow again, but a smile crept on his face as he walked forward and wrapped his arms around Vito. "What are you on about?" He laughed.
Tight. This hug was too tight! What the hell is happening, how was Emile holding Vito so damn tight?
Vito could feel the air leaving his lungs, this was it. This was the end. No matter how much he struggled, it would all be fruitless. It was time to say goodbye to the dream that was life now. Soon, Emile's thin yet surprisingly strong arms would crush what little bits of life remained-
"You didn't do anything wrong you goofy brat." Emile continued. "If anything I should be the one apologizing." He released Vito and clapped him on the back.
Oh thank Lupa, fresh air!
Vito took a deep breath, now finally developing a new view on the world and forever cherishing oxygen. "Yeah… no shit!" He breathed out. "You're a fucking skeleton, how do you have a grip so tight!"
"Eh?" Emile raised a brow. "I haven't lost that much weight over the years have I?" He murmured to himself.
Oh for Lupa's sake, things were getting off topic… why was Emile like this?
"Anyways! The reason why I came over here is to apologize!" Vito shouted, hoping to get things back on track.
"And I told you, I should be the one apologizing for it. I didn't realize how much it affected you." Emile shot back.
"So you're fine with me traveling with you?" Vito quietly asked.
"Kid, I'm sticking to training you like you wanted me to. If anything, I'm following you around until we get to Florentina." Emile patted Vito's head, ruffling the boy's hair. "So unless you don't want me to travel alongside you…"
"No!" Vito exclaimed, pushing Emile's hand off of his head. "I want you to travel with me!"
"Then its settled." Emile smiled. "Now! I think we're gonna do some shopping before we leave, no questions asked."
"Wait wait wait," Vito cut Emile off. "I'm catching my first Pokemon here, and I have two choices that I wanted your thoughts on," he said as he reached into his pocket for his phone. "The first gym is in Carbone, led by Oreste Calcolo, a Rock specialist."
Two, and only two. There were plenty of other Pokemon around that he could catch, Rattata, Pikipek, etcetera… but in a normal fight, there was a good chance he would lose against Oreste. He needed an advantage, and these two choices would be it.
Vito brought his phone to Emile's face and showed him his choices.
The trainer raised a brow and nodded his head, then scratched his chin, "hm'ing" several times as he continued to look at the phone.
"Smoliv," Emile started off with the first choice, "Appear to be rather common in Enotria. It doesn't surprise me that a lot of them are here… but they're rather timid Pokemon."
"I know that much," Vito said. "There are plenty of them in the fields that I worked with. One of them kinda spat olive oil on me once…"
"Well, what you might not know then is that Smoliv aren't exactly optimal offense-wise, but the entire line itself are heavily defensive. Another thing to know is that they can manipulate the terrain and make small havens perfect for grass types on the battlefield," Emile pointed out.
"And things like that basically make the battlefield a Pokemon's playground, right?" Vito recited.
"Yes, exactly!" Emile cheered as he ruffled Vito's hair again. "You're learning already, I'm so proud of you."
"Stop it!" Vito slapped his teacher's hand away. "Tell me about the other one, asshole."
Emile chuckled and looked back at Vito's phone. "Lotad," he started off, "A grass and water type. Not a bad choice if you wanna go toe to toe against a Rock specialist."
"They're not, but I don't know anything about these guys… I've seen them before, though. They can be spotted sometimes in the lake," Vito said.
"Well… on the outside, they appear dimwitted, and that's because they pretend to be lilypads to deter predators. In actuality they're quite kind." Emile explained. "They're also quite slow, but like to move a lot. I think it's because of what they evolve into… and while they can't do anything fancy like Smoliv, they're excellent ranged attackers."
"So what? If I wanted to go with an all-out offensive, there's a good chance something like Razor Leaf or Water Gun would hit?" Vito asked.
Emile nodded, handing Vito's phone back to him. "Pretty much."
Vito took his phone back with a smile. "So, which one would you go with?"
The teacher merely shrugged. "Dunno." Emile flopped back into his bed.
Frère approached his trainer and rested his head on Emile's chest, soon finding himself lovingly petted.
He didn't know!? How did he not know what he wanted to choose! It's one or the other, surely someone with his experience would know what he would want!
"For starters, catching a Pokemon isn't as easy as one, two, three," Emile explained. "Second of all, it depends on what I want."
Vito groaned. This wasn't giving him the answer he wanted!
"Deciding what you want is always a problem, but I think once you go out there, the answer will find you," Emile continued. "If you want, I can come out and help you."
"No way!" Vito shook his head. "I wanna try and knock this out myself, but uh… can I get your number just in case?"
It was at that moment a small green PokeGear appeared in front of Vito, its cover flipped up and the exposed screen displaying a phone number.
"Oh… thanks, Belle!" Vito pulled out his Poryphone and began to copy the number into his contacts. "You let her use your PokeGear?"
"She likes to play Nikke," Emile shrugged. "Among other gacha games…"
"I have no idea what that is and I don't know what those are," Vito replied. "But you do know that this isn't the 90's anymore right? Who uses a PokeGear? It's like buying a Poketch."
"You say that, but PokeGear's are just as capable as that rusty Poryphone you have there." Emile huffed. "That and Poketch's are just fine. There was this dual-type specialist I briefly met in Sinnoh who had one, and it worked just fine. I was rather impressed with it."
"Well, you're both a bunch of boomers," Vito declared as he finished copying Emile's number then turned around. "Anyways, I'm headed out! Wish me luck!"
"Luck!" Emile waved Vito off.
The Wandering Teacher
Lantana
Vineyards
Vito
What the fuck?
Vito blinked as he gazed off into the distance. Lantana's vineyards were the finest in Enotria, with beautiful plains stretching as far as the eye could see. On those plains were lush green vines stripped of their grepa berries.
It was a common yet overwhelmingly beautiful sight. The Enotrian government put this on commercials when inviting foreigners to Enotria: "Come and see our beautiful vineyards, eat our delicious food, and experience the old city of Capitoline!" Someone would say with an over-the-top Enotrian accent while viewers would see the beautiful vineyards and other landscapes the region had to offer.
However, those commercials showed Pokemon and people working together on these very vineyards, and what was Vito seeing?
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing. Not a damn thing in sight, not a single person or Pokemon, and that was very discomforting. Hell, Giuseppe had said he was heading to work!
"You seeing this shit, Pikachu?" Vito looked over at his friend.
Pikachu nodded. He was silent, and had tilted his head. He constantly looked around, panning his head back and forth.
"C'mon, lets see if we can't try and find someone… maybe we can find a Smoliv or something."The trainer sighed as he began walking through the plains.
Ugh, this was creepy. There were supposed to be Sunflora roaming about, various ground types redoing the fields and preparing for the next season. Yet, everything was just abandoned.
"We can't do anything because the Pokemon refuse to aid us!"
That caught Vito's attention. It was a weird thing to say, as he knew that the Pokemon that lived alongside the people of Lantana were always helpful, even friendly. Even now, Vito could still remember the joy he felt when he danced with a Sunflora when he was a child, or how he would play with a Dolliv who was about to leave for their journey.
The trainer ran towards the source of the voice, and soon came across a small group of farmers conversing with each other in a circle.
"Hey, what's going on?" Vito called out to them.
"Vito!" One farmer called out with a smile. "I figured you'd be gone by now."
"I'm planning on catching my first Pokemon here," Vito informed them. "What's going on?"
"It's as he says." Another farmer spoke up. "The Pokemon are angry… Giuseppe took off and is trying to see why, but he's been gone for a few hours."
Shit.
Vito withdrew from the group and ran.
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Only Lupa knew what had happened to the old man while he was out there. Something was wrong; it must have been if Giuseppe had gone out alone.
The woodlands was the most likely place, wasn't it? Damn it, Giuseppe, you can't tell me not to go someplace and then go there on your own!
Pikachu squeaked in his ear, his tiny claws digging into his trainer's shoulder in an attempt to hold on. It hurt just a little bit, but it paled compared to the pit of fear he found himself stumbling in at the thought of something bad happening to Giuseppe.
He moved deeper and deeper until finally, he came across various trees that stood high and tall, covered with lush green leaves.
Vito's pace soon trekked into a slow walk, but as soon as he took his first step, the ground beneath him began to rumble and shake violently. His heart almost jumped out of his chest from the sheer suddenness of it all.
"What the fuck!?" He shouted as he suddenly fell on his rear.
Pikachu yelped, jumping off of his trainer before he could fall. The electric mouse landed on the ground before quickly running back to Vito and looking up at his face.
"I'm fine, I'm fine…" Vito got up. "What the hell was that, though? I don't recall the news saying anything about earthquakes."
"I don't want to fight you!"
That was Giuseppe's voice, meaning that these Earthquakes weren't random but caused by the old man's Mudsdale!
Vito ran forward with Pikachu by his side. They went deeper and deeper into the woods until finally stopping. His eyes focused on Giuseppe, whose back was turned.
Looking closer, he saw that Mudsdale was in front of the old man, standing between Giuseppe and various grass-type Pokemon—Vito spotted multiple Sunflora, Dollivs, Smollivs, and even two Arboliva facing off against the pair.
"Please!" Giuseppe pleaded. "Just try and talk to us!"
His pleas were ignored. One of the Dolliv shouted, then outstretched its tiny hand.
The rest of the grass-types cried out and moved forward. The wind began to blow in their direction, and suddenly the leaves began to fall from the trees above and rained down like bullets upon Giuseppe!
Mudsdale quickly pushed his trainer to the ground, the large ground-type taking each hit. Leaves cut and sliced away at his skin, but he only looked at the grass-types with what Vito could only imagine was a glare.
The trainer gritted his teeth. There was no way on Earth he was going to stand by and let this continue! He looked at Pikachu. "Just defend Mudsdale, alright? Don't attack the other guys unless they try to attack you first."
Pikachu nodded, sprung off of Vito's shoulder, and charged into the battlefield. The mouse jumped onto Mudsdale and used his massive leathery body like a platform, springing into the air and then unleashing a wide Thundershock, burning away the raining leaves.
"Good job, Pikachu!" Vito shouted.
Pikachu landed onto the ground in front of Mudsdale and growled at the dozens of grass types in front of them, just as Giuseppe finally noticed their presence.
"Vito?" Giuseppe said, his eyes widening as he looked at the younger boy. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to catch my first Pokemon… but I didn't think it would end like this," Vito replied. "Are you OK?"
"Don't worry about me. Go back, leave!" Giuseppe shouted. "The situation might get worse!"
"Hey, I can do this! I'm a trainer now!" Vito interjected. "Besides, they really don't seem to like you already."
The two Arboliva stepped forward, spherical balls of grass energy forming in front of them, which were then shot at Pikachu and Mudsdale!
Mudsale moved forward, taking both energy balls. He didn't let out a single scream of pain, but Vito could hear his breathing get heavier and heavier.
"Dammit!" Giuseppe cursed. "This isn't going to be good. Fine, Vito. If you wanna help so bad then I want you to-"
The Arboliva to the right cried out, then started to sing loudly, drowning out anything Giuseppe was saying.
As Vito listened to it sing, he could feel the once-cool weather start to become hotter and hotter. Why was its voice making the temperature increase?
Before he could ask, Vito saw Giuseppe's eyes widen.
The older man returned Mudsdale to his Pokeball and looked at Pikachu.
"Pikachu! We need to retreat. Forget about them for now!" He ordered, gripping Vito's hand so tightly that the younger boy was certain he would lose all feeling in it at any moment.
"Wait, what the hell? Why?" Vito cried as he was forcefully dragged away by Giuseppe, Pikachu following the two.
Before Vito could even respond, Giuseppe pushed him onto the dirt and fell right beside him.
Orange energy shot from the woodlands. The blinding beams caused the earth to rumble as they blasted forward. Nearby leaves were turned to charcoal, and despite Vito being far from the blasts, he could feel a scorching heat envelop him.
"Merda… that was So.. eam!" Giuseppe said.
Vito's heart pounded beneath his chest. He blinked twice, his vision readjusting to his surroundings after being blinded by the awesome power of the grass type's combined attack. His ears were still ringing even after the attack had subsided.
He stared forward, his eyes unfocused as muffled shouting filled his ears. Firm hands gripped his arms and pulled him forward, his ears popping as he stood upright.
"Are you alright?" Giuseppe shouted.
Vito's hearing soon returned, and he nodded in response before looking into the woods. He couldn't see the grass types now, but he knew damn well what they were capable of.
Pikachu wouldn't have lasted long against any of the group; hell, him and Mudsdale wouldn't have lasted that long… thinking about it was enough to make Vito sick to his stomach.
The ringing soon died down, but Vito's heart still fiercely pounded beneath his chest, though he calmed down when he felt Pikachu's reassuring weight on his shoulder.
"Why are the grass types acting like this?" he asked Giuseppe.
"I… I do not know." The elderly man breathed. "I believe we might have harmed them somehow. With the way they are grouped together, they are clearly defending something or someone. Whatever that might be, I am not so sure."
"Well there's gotta be a way to find out!" Vito said. "If someone got hurt, then we should help them!"
"I agree, Vito." Giuseppe nodded. "But they're not going to simply let us through."
"Maybe the water types can help us out?" Vito suggested. "They're friends with the grass types, right? Maybe they can mediate or something?"
"It's possible… but I wouldn't bet on it." Giuseppe scratched his chin in deep thought. "The water types of Lantana have not had as much interaction with us compared to the grass types."
"I'll go meet with them," Vito said. "I'll get their help, right now that's the only thing I can think of."
"I see… you know you'll have to go around the woods, yes?" The old farmer raised a brow. "I am not going to discourage you, but if you're going to reach the water types, you'll need to go around."
Bleh.
"I know." Vito grumbled. "But it'll be worth it. What will you do?"
"I'll have to talk with the other farmers," Giuseppe grumbled. "This won't affect us too heavily now that the season's over, but what about the next season? Besides, if we did hurt the Pokemon then… we need to find out who did it and why."
"Agreed… I'll start going now." Vito said. "Ready, Pikachu?"
Pikachu let out a cheerful cry and patted his trainer's head.
Vito smirked and began to run to the right of the woodlands, hoping that things wouldn't get worse all the while.
----------------------------------------
Lantana
Woodlands
Two hours had passed since Vito had ran to the right of the woodlands, and every time he took a step, his shoes made a squishing sound. His socks were drenchedt. The white fabric was practically sticking to him now.
If you wanted to go see the water types, Going through The Woodlands would be a quicker and more dry option, but with the grass-types sudden aggression, the only path was around… this would lead you into nearby wetlands.
"Pikachu, I think I hate this already," he complained to his partner.
Pikachu replied by patting his trainer on the head, although it did little to alleviate Vito's frustrations.
After several minutes of walking, he and Pikachu found themselves on the edge of the marshlands that led into the lake. On one end, this was a good thing as it meant they were getting closer to the water-types.
On the other end, it also led to Vito suffering from the cold water. Already, he couldn't wait until they finally reached them.
As he walked, he found himself distracted by his Poryphone vibrating in his pocket. He groaned as he pulled it out of his pocket, who the hell could have been trying to get his attention at a time like this?
"Emile?" Vito read, raising a brow as he looked at the name. He hadn't recalled giving the older trainer his number, but as he read the message it all made sense.
"Hey, brat. Your phone automatically gave me your contact info. I thought I'd shoot you a message while I was out in town. Is everything going alright?" The first message read, and then another one popped up. "By the way, Belle wants to know what games you have on your phone."
Vito raised a brow and had to hold back a chuckle. For being a psychic, Belle was oddly interested in gaming. Unfortunately, she'd be out of luck with him.
"Everything's going OK I think. Grass mons are mad. Idk why." He replied back, and then began to move forward. "Ill let u know if I need anything." He sent another message.
"Understood." Emile texted back. "Be careful."
Vito put his phone away and continued walking towards the lake. His face contorted as he heard a loud squish each time he walked, but his frustrations were soon alleviated, and his eyes widened.
In front of him was a strange, blue creature. It was rather small, and from Vito's estimates, the creature was smaller than Pikachu. It also wore a lilypad large enough to cover its back, and it definitely appeared as if it were wearing it like a hat.
Vito smiled and pulled out his phone again, this time going to the GlobalDex app and opened up the scanning function and as soon as his camera met with the Pokemon, information began to appear on the app.
"Lotad: The Water Weed Pokemon. This Pokemon likes to inhabit peaceful waters like lakes and rivers. It will also ferry other Pokemon that can't swim." The app informed, along with a list of moves the Pokemon could learn and locations where it could be found.
"Holy shit!" Vito gasped. "This thing's the best!"
The Lotad raised its head and looked at Vito.
The two stared in silence, which lasted only seconds. Just engaging in this strange stare-off was enough to make Vito's heart race. Just catch the bastard already. His mind screamed at him.
Vito however, knew that there was something much more important at stake here, and it was more important than simply his first Pokemon.
Before Vito could raise his hand and introduce himself, the Lotad shrieked and cried.
"Wait!" The trainer pleaded.
Lotad turned away and began to waddle off at a rather brisk pace. The tiny water type had darted into the woods near the lake, screeching and crying all the while as it moved.
"Wait, seriously! I'm a friend, friend!" Vito shouted as he gave chase.
Pikachu squeaked and squealed, hoping that his words could help Lotad see reason, but it was to no avail.
The chase lasted for only moments until Vito was blasted by three streams of water. As soon as the cold, high-pressure water slammed into him, he felt his breath leave his body.
It hurt like hell, and even worse was how the water sent him falling on his butt with his back impacting a nearby tree!
Vito turned to the left. His chest, arm, and back hurt like hell, but he didn't feel too banged up. His eyes went wide and his heart stopped as he gazed at several Pokemon, and all of them glared at him.
The first was a large Bibarel with thick, dark brown fur. It loomed over a Lombre and two Psyducks, along with the Lotad from before.
Pikachu was already on the ground on all fours, growling as the enemies before it.
This wasn't good. Pikachu was outnumbered, and while there were strong chances that he could have taken on the Psyducks, he definitely couldn't have handled the Lombre or Bibarel.
"Wait!" Vito shouted. "Please, I don't want to fight! I came here for your help."
The large Bibarel barked and pointed at the woods behind Vito, then continued to bark some more.
At first, Vito was confused as to why the Bibarel pointed deeper into the woods, but the meaning swiftly dawned on him as he saw the water type's intense glare.
"Yes, I know! Humans hurt the grass types, but that's why I'm here!" The trainer tried to explain.
However, the water types all shouted and cried in their tongue. Their collective voices drowned out Vito's pleas, and they stepped forward. Then, the Lombre raised an arm.
As it did, knots of grass wrapped around Vito's ankles with a vice-like grip. The boy's heart began to race, and he struggled, but to his horror, he was unable to free himself.
Electricity began to spark and crackle. Regardless of what Vito wanted, a fight would break out here, and the trainer knew well that it wouldn't end in his favor.
That was until a loud, singular shout filled the lake.
The rest of the water types stopped what they were doing and looked to the nearby lake.
Vito turned his head as well and saw a tall Pokemon with pale blue skin. It walked on two legs and had webbed feet and hands, along with a cream-colored beak and a red glowing jewel on its forehead.
The Pokemon walked towards the group and raised his hand at the other water types, then looked at Vito and Pikachu.
Pikachu growled and yelped at the Pokemon, electricity crackling all the while.
The Pokemon on the other hand barked only once at the electric-type.
It was a brief conversation, but it ended with Pikachu standing down. The electricity that once crackled with life soon died down, but despite his partner's standing down, he was still glaring at the taller Pokemon.
The blue Pokemon slowly marched towards Vito and it got down on its knees. Its raised its webbed arms and grabbed Vito's cheeks, and its red eyes stared into the trainer's soul while the red gem on it's forehead started to glow.
When Vito saw the gem glow, he could feel something racing through his mind. It was like a Rattata zooming around in a maze, clearly trying to find a way out.
"Wh… what are you doing?" Vito questioned.
The Pokemon did not respond; it just gazed at Vito's brown eyes. The Pokemon's stare was emotionless, almost as if it had suddenly become lifeless.
Yet as each second passed, Vito could feel the Rattata in his mind scurrying deeper and deeper, like it was looking for something.
The trainer then found himself relieving the events from earlier: the grass types trying to harm Giuseppe, the intense heat from the grass types' combined Solar Beams, and the conversation he had with Giuseppe after it all.
Then he started to relive more memories and experiences. The racing of his heart when he had asked Emile to train him, the awful fruity and acidic taste of the wine he tried on his birthday, and-
"No, please… stop!" Vito pleaded and closed his eyes. He squirmed and struggled, but he could feel this strange Pokemon's grip grow a little tighter, forcing him to remain in place and relive memories.
He was able to smell the awful stench of sulfur mixed with smoke clogging his lungs, the feeling of helplessness as his vision was clouded with black and-
Nothing.
The memories faded away as soon as they appeared, and Vito found himself in the present day, looking at the Pokemon who now had removed his hands from him.
The Pokemon turned to the other water types and cried, pointing at Vito's ankles as it barked orders.
The water types nodded. The Psyduck approached the blue Pokemon immediately while the other Pokemon distanced themselves from the Pokemon. The Lombre from before raised its arm again, and the grass wrapped around Vito's ankles disappeared.
Vito's heart raced as he tried to make sense of everything that had happened. Why was he suddenly reliving those memories? It didn't make sense unless…
"Did you just read my mind?" He asked the blue Pokemon.
It sounded ridiculous, but it was the only thing that made sense. It had to have been. Why else was he suddenly reliving memories, especially ones that were best kept under lock and key?
The Pokemon nodded, and it all made sense now. This Pokemon must have been a psychic type of some sort and needed to read Vito's mind to see if he was possibly telling the truth.
"So you know that I'm telling the truth, right? That I'm here to help the grass types?" Vito smiled.
The Pokemon again nodded.
"Then please, help me help them… they're angry right now, but if you could talk to them-"
The water types that had stood off to the side immediately growled and shouted but found themselves stopping by the glare of their leader.
The Pokemon then turned to Vito. It nodded, then stepped towards Vito and outstretched its claw.
Vito took it and found himself pulled upright by the water type.
Pikachu, who had been watching the entire ordeal, let out a chirp of joy before he ran and jumped onto his trainer's shoulder.
The reassuring weight of his partner made Vito exhale in relief. It was more than enough to make him forget about the memories he relived. "So hey, what do I call you?" He asked the Pokemon.
"Gol. Duck." A voice in Vito's mind rang.
It didn't hurt as bad as when Belle communicated with him, but it certainly made his head feel heavy. He could still feel the Rattata from before zooming around in his mind.
"Child." Golduck said, patting a nearby Psyduck on the head. "Take you to plant ones."
Child?
Vito turned his head to Psyduck and then back at Golduck. So that's what Psyducks could evolve into?
The Psyduck quacked as it stepped past Vito and then began to step into the woods.
"Hey, wait!" Vito called out as he began to chase after the gold duckling.
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Vito followed closely behind Psyduck. The two had walked through the woods in relative silence. There was nothing around them, not even bug types… it was just an eerie silence that filled the air.
Psyduck didn't seem discouraged, however. He walked with his head held high and chest puffed out as he led Vito and Pikachu through the woodlands.
Seeing it made Vito smile a little. Despite everything that happened, this goofy, prideful Psyduck was eagerly leading him onward to the grass types.
"Flora!"
Vito recognized the high-pitched cry, and looking onward, he saw the same group of Sunflora from before.
It wasn't just one either; it was all of them, and each of them glared at Vito, their smiles turning into furious frowns. Seeing a Sunflora frown was rather rare, as the species were normally happy all the time.
Yet here they were, staring at Vito with the fury of a thousand suns.
He could feel the wind pick up, and dozens of leaves appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Each one pointed at the group.
Pikachu didn't need to be told. He jumped off of his trainer's shoulder and unleashed volts of electricity, swiftly turning them into charcoal!
The Sunflora cried and shouted. All of them growled, and Vito was certain they were cursing his very name.
"Psy!"
Psyduck stepped forward and began quacking and yelping.
That appeared to get the Sunflora's attention, and the group looked at the yellow duck, listening to his quacking. As they listened to him speak, they looked amongst each other and then back to Vito.
Vito's heart raced. Anything could happen after this point. Would the Sunflora let Vito on through? Would they attack again?
The possibilities were endless, and a bead of sweat dripped down his forehead as the anxiety enveloped him.
After Psyduck was done, the Sunflora looked amongst themselves again until they started to nod… and then parted, opening a path for Vito and his small group to walk through.
Vito swallowed hard and started to walk alongside Pikachu and Psyduck. The Sunflora observed him, they still did not smile but it was clear that they weren't going to attack.
Thank Lupa for that…
They walked briefly until coming across the two Arboliva that had faced off against Vito before. The olive Pokemon did not speak but stood side by side and stared at Vito with as much suspicion as the Sunflora were now doing.
"Please," Vito pleaded. "I just want to help, I want to know what's going on…"
The two grass types stared at Vito before looking at each other, and finally, they nodded. The two turned around and began to walk deeper through the trees.
Psyduck quacked and pulled at Vito's pant leg with one hand, using the other to point at the two Arboliva who were walking away.
"You want me to follow them?" Vito raised a brow as he looked down at his guide.
Psyduck nodded, then began to walk forward and started to follow the Arboliva.
Vito swallowed hard, his hands trembled but he stepped forward and followed the three Pokemon into the woods. He wasn't worried about a possible attack, if they had wanted to kill him they would have done so earlier, but…
Looking around, he saw Dollivs, Smollivs, other Sunflora, and Sunkerns looking at Vito with disdain and scorn. Whatever happened was done by a human for sure… and Vito had zero idea of what happened.
Eventually, they reached a clearing, a small patch of land free of trees yet far away from the lake. Vito's eyes widened, and he could feel his heart stop for a second.
In front of him was a large mess of dark green vines filling the patch of land, all of them connected to a central mass of some sort. What took Vito by surprise, though, was the fact that these vines slithered around the grass, twitching and spasming, much like muscles would. Some vines had even entrenched themselves into the ground, still violently twitching.
What the hell was going on?
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone. Immediately, he opened the Pokedex App and scanned this strange mass of greenery. To his surprise, it wasn't a thing but a Pokemon.
"Tangrowth: The Vine Pokemon. This Pokemon has two arms that it can extend as it pleases. Recent research has shown that these arms are, in fact, bundles of vines much like its body." The entry read.
The photo it displayed was different as well. The one in the photo seemed to be "whole," with its vine arms clearly on display along with two large feet, but the best description Vito could give the one in front of him was that its entire body had been completely spread out, with vines flooding the grass like a disease. He also spotted a center mass full of vines connected to large feet.
Vito carefully stepped forward. This mess of vines didn't seem to know he was coming close, which was strange. When he read the entry further, he learned it evolved from Tangela, meaning Tangrowth had to have plenty of survival and combat experience.
Yet, this Pokemon didn't Vito notice at all. Instead, its vines twitched and spasmed more and more.
Pikachu whined, and Vito wanted to do the same as well. Seeing this all made his stomach feel queasy, and he cringed as he saw the vines spasm.
Moving closer, Vito looked at Tangrowth and saw that its wide, bright eyes were moving to the back of his head.
"Oh shit…" Vito cursed.
He couldn't do anything, it was absolutely impossible. He had never once seen this in a Pokemon, but it was obvious that Tangrowth was sick! Someone must have had poisoned him, that could be the only reason as to why the grass types were blaming the residents of Lantana for this.
The trainer reached for his phone and immediately called Emile.
"Come on, pick up, pick up…" He urged.
By the first ring, Vito witnessed the Tangrowth's eyes dart back and forth.
On the second ring, the Tangrowth's eyes rolled to the back of his head again.
"Hey, Vito. What's up?" Emile spoke through the phone. "Ya catch anything good?"
"Get over here right now!" Vito screamed.
"Alright, alright." Emile replied. "What's going on?"
"There's a dying Pokemon here, and I think it's poisoned." Vito said. He was just saying whatever had came into his head now. His heart began to pound beneath his chest like a drum. "I don't know what to do, and I told the grass types I could help it but-"
"Calm down, kid. You're already doing a lot by calling me. I'll get over there and take a look." Emile coolly reassured.
"Then get over here now!" Vito demanded.
"Alright, alright." Emile said. "I'll be over there. Give me a second, I'll have Belle teleport me to you."
"Do you even know where I'm at?" Vito asked.
"Belle will find out." Emile flatly informed before suddenly hanging up.
Vito sighed as he silently prayed to Lupa, Arceus, or whatever existed that Emile would arrive in time.