PokeWild

“Up!” David shouted, “Up Cloudburst!”

The smoke continued to spread, climbing higher and spreading wider with every second. It was a dirty colour, dark and thick like the sky over an industrial city. Occasionally sections flashed, as if lightning was created within.

David glanced at the expanding smoke nervously. At this rate it would cover the field and hit the spectators before the match was over.

As fast as the cloud expanded, Pidgey flew faster. She rose higher and higher into the sky until David had to alternate between watching the cloud and throwing his head back to try and catch a glimpse of her. Hopefully she could still hear him. At this point there was only one option left for them.

“Cannon!”

It would be easy to mistake the faint glimmers that appeared in the sky as reflections at first. In another world it could have been a far off plane, a drone or a telephone line. Here, people were more wary. Strange lights in the sky meant time to run, however there was little his opponent could do here.

Lavender threads spiralled from the skies, twisting and turning before they buried themselves into the smoke.

David waited.

There was no sound. Pidgey’s attack had missed. The dark-grey smog had more purpose than the purple that flashed through it. The Koffing was using it as cover and disguise.

Across from him, his opponent grinned with her eyes. She’d already slipped her bandanna over her mouth, needing it as the cloud was closer to her than David.

David grimaced. So that was the play. This was going to be a battle of stamina and luck. Every attack tired Cloudburst out. It couldn’t cost much energy to keep that cloud up, not nearly as much as it did to launch attacks. The Koffing only had to keep moving to avoid getting hit. It wasn't like physical attacks were an option either. That smoke looked toxic. Even if he was willing to send Cloudburst into the cloud, she wouldn’t have any better visibility.

He and Cloudburst would need to get lucky, or they were going to lose.

“Again,” he shouted. “Spread wide.”

Once more Pidgey responded and lavender twists split the air.

This time he heard the muffled thumps as the sharp lines cut up the earth. No cry of pain from the Koffing.

This battle was a risk now. The longer they stayed fighting, the more tired Pidgey would grow. The more tired she was, the less sense it would make to fight another battle after this one. If he forfeited now, they could earn the lost bet back in the next match. If he hung on till the end when Pidgey was exhausted, they would lose this battle’s stakes and be done for the day. Was he in for a penny, or in for a pound?

An angry squawk made him wince.

Right. Quitting now might be the safer bet, but it would also stick him with an angry bird that would need to be appeased for the rest of the day. It didn’t matter if the Koffing had impressive Moves that David’d never heard of and a sound strategy. Cloudburst would never forgive him if he forfeited to a smelly rock balloon.

“Again!” David called. It wouldn’t be the last time he shouted it, and he felt a little stupid saying it again and again, but it made Pidgey’s Moves faster and stronger. As little sense as that made, they'd tested it and it did.

This time as the lavender lines disappeared into the cloud he thought he heard a faint gasp.

David searched his opponent's face for confirmation, but the bandana hid her reaction. It wasn’t a bad trick. He reached up and pulled his own red scarf over his mouth and nose. As an added bonus it muted his sense of smell. The air was beginning to smell like rotten eggs.

“Again!”

Lavender twists soared through the air.

“Again!”

Cloudburst dived closer, banking to the side at the last minute to avoid the edges of the cloud. The less time she gave Koffing to react the better. She swung forward. The sky light up only for a second before the lavender lines disappeared into the smog.

“Again!”

For once, David was thankful that he’d run out of things for Cloudburst to practise. She was tiring after this many Gusts. Her wingbeats were slow and her turns wide. There would be no more dives and last minute swoops. She was, however, not out of the fight yet. With little else to practise, she had been using Cannon again and again, fighting Venonat to do so at times. All that practice built familiarity. It built endurance.

“Again!”

The cloud was only a couple of metres in front of him now.

“Again!”

This time it wasn’t a gasp but a full wheeze. The noise didn’t stop.

“Forfeit!”

David relaxed. The cloud was lit up from within by a bright flash. It was over.

Looking up at Cloudburst and attempting a whistle, he pointed behind him and away from the cloud. Usually you were meant to immediately meet your opponent after a battle, but he could barely see them through the smoke at the moment. The after battle formalities could wait a moment.

Pidgey gently glided down before landing heavily. Her chest heaved and she held her wings out instead of folding them to try to cool off.

David pulled his flask and bowl out of his backpack to pour her some water. “Great job. That was eight full Cannons! That’s the most you’ve ever done.”

Cloudburst dipped her beak down to pick up some water before tilting her head back to drink it. Before bowing again she took a moment to smooth out her feathers and preen.

“And..” David started slyly. “It’s technically your first aerial victory.”

It was only very technically an aerial battle. Koffing may have floated in the air, but it was far from a Flying type. Something Cloudburst seemed to agree with. She let out a squawk and hopped towards him, shaking her tired wings.

“Alright, alright,” He laughed. She might have acted annoyed by the idea, but he could tell it did perk her up a bit. She needed it after the battle last night too.

He hadn’t planned on fighting battles in the evening or at night - that was time for training with Venonat, but it was rare to find other Trainers with Flying types. The Zubat trainer was just as glad to find him. From what they said, nocturnal Pokemon were going to be more awkward than David had planned. Most young Pokemon wouldn’t be able to stay awake during the day and even when they could, they’d be weaker in their sleep hours.

Maybe that applied to diurnal Pokemon too, as Cloudburst was trounced by the Zubat. The small bat Pokemon was more agile than Pidgey, leading her through a series of twists and turns that left her unable to keep up. The nail in the coffin, which David hadn’t recognised at the time, was a Supersonic hidden in the Pokemon’s high pitch echolocation cries.

It was Cloudburst’s first loss in Fuchsia however. She was in good form after all their travelling, and David had come to realise that flying was a little overpowered. Not the Type, but the ability to stay in the air itself. It hadn’t been as obvious in Celadon when Pidgey wasn’t able to fly and fight for an extended period of time, but here with unlimited flight and the powerful Gust at their disposable... David and Pidgey were at the top of the food chain.

He met Koffing’s trainer at the edge of the pitch. There was plenty of space there for Pidgey and them. Most spectators had backed away as the cloud grew, and even now that the battle was over few had returned to the sidelines. Likely a smart decision as the cloud hadn’t dissipated yet.

“Good match,” David called, extending a hand.

“Thought we had you,” Koffing’s trainer, Paulze said with a sigh. She shook the offered hand and clicked her tongue. “We must’ve been close. Mind telling me how many Gusts your Pidgey had left?”

David smiled. “Maybe one or two at most." Likely only one, but he wouldn't put it past Pidgey to exhaust herself. "It was a good strategy. Your Koffing is incredible. What was that cloud made of? And how did it create so much?”

Pidgey and he were at the top of the foodchain, but they continued to be challenged anyway. Part of that was the novelty of a Flying type trainer and the small bets - he tried to stick to 100P, but he liked to think his attitude played a part. After every battle he tried to discuss strategy, both his and the opponents and learn more about their Pokemon. Compliments helped, and they rolled off his tongue easily. Every battle was amazing to him and most Pokemon a wonder he’d never seen before.

Take Koffing for an example. The Pokemon was a light purple colour and had a sphere shaped body. Its skin or shell was covered in small volcano shaped craters, from which all that gas came out. The craters gave it a moon-like appearance, and the way it floated in the air reinforced that.

David had seen nothing like it before. It was new and wondrous to him in a way that it wasn’t to the locals any more.

Paulze cursed and shook her head but out of frustration rather than anger. “Next time’ll be different you hear? That cloud is a mix of Smokescreen and Smog, and we’re still working on it. Your Pidgey won’t be able to escape it next time.”

“We’ll see." David grinned back. He'd be up for another battle with Koffing, though he'd need to come up with a new strategy. Something that didn't rely on luck. "Eh.. About the cloud, how long will it last?”

Paulze looked away from the pitch. “..Maybe ten minutes? It shouldn’t last too long without Phlog to keep it up.”

A few of the nearby spectators cursed, waving their hands in front of their noses. Bandannas and scarves weren’t common in Fuchsia.

“I should go,” Paulze said nervously. She gave one last wave and retreated before one of the waiting trainers could make an issue of it.

David and Cloudburst did the same, heading for a quiet spot where she could get a drink and rest. They still had time for another match, and after Pidgey had a Normal type sachet for a snack, he recalled her and looked for just that.

Fifteen minutes later, he released her onto a pitch opposite a thick purple sludge.

The sludge grew eyes and hands.

David narrowed his eyes. “I think I’m going to enjoy this."

Cloudburst let out a caw and took to the air.

-.-

David was walking down towards the market when it happened again.

The locals filed to the sides of the street. They lined up against the white walls, colourful hair making rainbows and palettes of all kinds. The chatter didn’t die like last time, but it became subdued.

David didn’t want to get caught out in the middle of the road again. Not if the Voyants had returned to Fuchsia. He sped up, power walking to a nearby alleyway. It got him a few odd looks from the locals, especially given he was several steps slower than them to react. The crowd parted to let him into the alleyway anyway. From his new position, he had an open view of the figure coming down the road.

It was a short man, he seemed diminished standing all alone and in such an elaborate outfit. The man wore a thick grey robe, ornamental but nothing like what they wore at the Dojo with many folds. This was a simpler design, memorable for the length and crispness of the cloth. A purple rope, as thick as David’s fist, was tied twice around his waist, the only colour in the outfit. As he drew closer David was able to make out the man’s hair. It was a dark, dark green. He didn’t seem to be a Voyant.

The man walked down the empty street, smiling and nodding at the crowds as he passed. Few responded. It wasn’t the dead quiet that had met the Voyant several days ago, but it was close. The gracious expression didn’t seem right on the man’s face. He was all angles - sharp eyes, a short but pointed nose and a thin face. He continued his gentle walk, nodding all the way until he passed David.

In his wake, two attendants followed. One was older, closer to the man in age but without the resemblance of a brother, while the other was three or four years older than David. She looked more like the man, sharing the sharpness of his eyes and nose but with rounder, almost chubby cheeks. His daughter maybe?

The attendants swung braziers back and forth, and unlike the man they were greeted with smiles and noise from the crowd. Smoke flowed from the braziers, filling the air with a sweet and almost nutty scent.

David didn’t have long to ponder the religious-like ceremony before they too were past and the crowd filled back in behind them.

-.-

“Hey Marie.”

“150P.”

David blinked at her. “Really?”

“No discounts,” She recited, not looking up from her latest project. The short sentence sounded practised.

“I wasn’t asking for one,” David said, grinning. He drew closer with every brush of the broom. “Have you made the changes to the pamphlet yet?”

Marie had presented him with the first version of her new sales tactic yesterday. The sheet was a prototype, hand drawn and rough. It had many flaws, which David had pointed out to Marie’s displeasure. The writing was too small, details about fibres used historically unnecessary and the pictures skipped a few steps. The weaver and stall owner had taken all his comments on board, but she hadn’t been pleased about it.

“No,” Marie said shortly. She did look up at him now. “But you want something, I can tell.”

David stopped sweeping. With how long he’d spent here yesterday it was clean enough as is. “Fine. I wanted to ask you about something I saw on the way here. I think someone was wearing one of those belts that centise are based off.”

He went on to explain how the crowds were reacting and about the attendants, hoping that Marie, as a local, would have some kind of explanation for him. As he spoke, her face scrunched up until it looked like she’d bitten something sour.

“Hmmph.” Marie huffed when he finished. “Technically yes. It’s likely the right kind of rope. I don’t know if it’s heirloom or made more recently to the proper standard, but both are possible.”

“And?” David inquired.

“And what?” Marie asked grumpily. “It’s none of your business. Just a show to soothe tempers.”

He frowned. That was very unhelpful. Was it a secret or one of those things people didn’t like to talk about? What tempers? “The other day people did something similar. When a man with purple hair walked down the street. A Psychic.”

Now Marie grimaced for real. She set her current project down and narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you going to buy something or just ask questions?”

David reached into his pocket and pulled out the Poke. “Both? Who was the man today? It wasn't a Voyant anyway.”

After spending two days with the woman he knew this was more bark than bite, but he didn't want to overstay his welcome. His visits to the stall were a nice distraction from work. As for buying the belt, after two wins today it was an easy decision. He knew how to tie a centise now. He hadn’t bought into the whole history, and Pokemon detect belt spiel, but the belt was cheaper than the Silph one. The rope was high quality and he was starting to get sick of the sling.

Marie sighed. She shoved a belt at David and took his Poke. “Fine. It’s public knowledge anyway.”

“That was Koga, Gym leader of Fuchsia.”