The Palto Adventures

Part 11: The Mysterious Trainer of the S.S. Hydro
( Guest starring FallingHawk as Hawk, Scizor7777 as Scizor)

A pair of footsteps echoes in the hallway. They are light, and every few steps, a shoes grazes the floor clumsily. The owner of the shoes is a bit preoccupied to care about his walking rhythm.

“ … battle is about to begin! “

A corner is turned, and a doorway appears down the hall, pouring light into the dim passage. The trainer sighs. It’s not too late for him to turn around and announce his forfeit, but what kind of a person would that make him? If he didn’t battle, he’d never know the true outcome of the fight. This was his chance to make a stand and prove how tough he was. If he didn’t win, he would sure make it tough for the opponent to…

“ … your seats, please. “

Whoops and screams flowed into the hall like a river of noise, and got louder with every slow step. That same voice kept broadcasting over the other noise. It too was more prominent the closer he got…

“ … our first trainer is entering! “

Kazuki looked up. They called him, and that was all he needed. His name, bouncing along the walls of the Bug Hut. The audience whispering it in the stands. Did they like him? Did they hate him? He didn’t care, he could sway any of them anyway. Now it was his time. No one was out there, only him and Scizor.

“ Kazuki… “

The undefeatable? Is that what Sandy had said? Kazuki knew Sandy was exaggerating, but the way Scizor battled, it wasn’t impossible…

“ Give him a hand! “

Kazuki stepped out, shielding his eyes from the stadium lights. On the other side, Scizor was grinning and waving at the audience. Kazuki did the same, hoping to make himself feel a little more confident.

“ Under special request… “ The announcer started…
“ Both trainers will choose any three pokemon to battle with, assuming that at least one is a bug type. “

Kazuki felt each ball on his belt. Chikorita, Sudowoodo, Beedrill, Golduck, Remoraid, and Ledyba. Beedrill was non-negotiable. Sudowoodo’s defense would be a great asset, and he was one of his toughest fighters. But whom would he choose for his final pick? He looked over at Scizor, and he placed a Great Ball into the third podium slot.

“ He’s going with Scizor… “
“ So I’ll choose Chikorita… “ He said.

The trainers stepped up to the podium, and they rose up to the sky. Scizor stared at Kazuki. Kazuki stared at Scizor. The audience was silent.

“ Begin! “

Kazuki slammed the button in front of second pokeball slot down hard. The ball let the beam escape via a tube in front of it, shooting the pokemon through the podium’s eye, and on to the field in a flash. Sudowoodo shook his hands in anticipation.

“ Hmm… “ Scizor thought.
“ I choose Meowth. “

The beam fired from Scizor’s podium, and Meowth appeared. Its silver charm was really bright and shiny. Kazuki wasn’t so sure he should have given one of Scizor’s pokemon a lucky charm.

“ Both trainers start off with some strong pokemon. Sudowoodo may have the advantage however, due to his high defense rating. “ The announcer said.

“ Slash. “ Scizor said.

Meowth ran up to Sudowoodo, who leapt to the side and out of the way. Meowth tried a Quick Attack and connected. Sudowoodo lost his footing and fell to the ground. Meowth advanced on him.

“ Sand Attack! “ Kazuki ordered.

Meowth jumped back before Sudowoodo could use the attack, but Kazuki hadn’t planned on hitting him, he just wanted to ward him off. It worked.

“ Use the Rock Throw. “

Sudowoodo fired its bushels at Meowth who skillfully ran through them all. His Agility was very well developed. He came in close.

“ Headbut! “ Scizor yelled.

Meowth jumped in to Sudowoodo’s face, and as he slammed his head forward, the silver charm broke! Pieces fell all around, and Meowth landed clumsily on the ground, zigzagging around the floor.

“ Déjà vu… “
“ Hurry Sudowoodo, Low Kick! “ Kazuki cried.

Meowth went flying across the room. It settled near the podium, and shakily got to its feet.

“ Oh, Meowth absorbed a lot of damage. “ The announcer said.
“ I hope it can still fight… ”

Meowth got up in a flash and disappeared. Kazuki was stunned.

“ It must be using the last of its energy for a sneak attack of some kind. “ Kazuki thought.

“ Midas Paw! “ Scizor ordered.

Kazuki saw Meowth lurch out of the shadows on the stadium floor and smack his opened paw against Sudowoodo. He looked down, but didn’t look worried.

“ Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha… “

Scizor was amazed to see Kazuki laughing. His stomach was upset with the way he laughed. He’d just lost the first round after all.

“ You forgot something about that little technique of yours, Scizor… “ Kazuki said in between his fits of laughter.

“ And what might that be? “ Scizor said, genuinely angered.

“ My Sudowoodo is just about the only one that can withstand the Midas Paw. “
“ Because… “ He started.

Sudowoodo looked back up, and a smile grew across his face.

“ He’s already gold! “ He bellowed.

“ OH! “
“ Meowth, get out of there! “ Scizor pleaded.

“ Sudowoodo, Mimic! “

Sudowoodo knocked Meowth a few feet away, and as he got up to advance, he started to stiffen. His whole body began to turn a brilliant gold.

“ This is incredible! “ The announcer blurted.
“ Kazuki has turned Scizor’s special attack on his own pokemon! “

Meowth stood motionless in the center of the stadium. The ref ran up and checked him out.

“ Meowth is unable to battle. “
“ Sudowoodo is the winner. “ He said, raising the red flag towards Kazuki.

The audience exploded with applause. Sandy and Hawk both yelled congratulations to Kazuki. He waved to them and watched Scizor as he returned Meowth.

“ Good work… “ He said.
“ But this one should give you some trouble. “

He pressed the center button on his podium’s console. Through the lens, Dratini appeared. He chirped and purred happily.

“ Man, I can’t say I didn’t expect Dratini, but I wish he didn’t have him in the roster. “
“ Sudowoodo, get ready for anything. “ Kazuki said.

Sudowoodo looked at Dratini. Dratini looked at Sudowoodo. They both circled each other very slow, sizing each other up.

“ Rock Throw! “ Kazuki yelled suddenly.

“ Teleport. “ Scizor said, snidely.

“ Impossible! “

Dratini did disappear just before the rocks hit him. Sudowoodo slid to a stop, dumbfounded.

“ I’ve never seen a Dratini do that! “ The announcer said.

Sure enough, Dratini was gone. Sudowoodo looked all around for him. Behind him, a blue blur materialized.

“ Look out! “ Kazuki yelled.

Dratini lashed Sudowoodo hard on its back, sending it crashing to the hard floor. It struggled to rise, then stopped completely.

“ Sudowoodo is unable to battle. “
“ Dratini is the winner. “ The ref said, raising the green flag towards Scizor.

The audience applauded, but most of them were whispering about how quickly Sudowoodo had gotten knocked out so fast. The murmur ran through the bleachers.

“ Okay, do your best… “ Kazuki said to the pokeball in the third podium slot.
“ I choose, Beedrill! “ He said, mashing the button.

“ Dratini, Thunder Wave attack! “ Scizor said.

“ Beedrill, Agility! “

Beedrill flew away as a cage of electricity enveloped the space she was just in. Dratini’s eyes were cloudy, and it tried to re-direct the power. Beedrill dived down at Dratini.

“ That’s it! “ Kazuki said.
“ Beedrill, Leach Life! “

Beedrill latched on to Dratini, and the Electric cage wrapped itself around the two pokemon just after Beedrill received some health. They both fell to the ground, paralyzed.

“ Dang you Kazuki! “ Scizor yelled.

“ Looks like Kazuki’s strategy is getting Scizor a little hot under the collar. “

Beedrill slowly rose off the ground.

“ Twin Needle! “ Kazuki said.

Beedrill tried to attack, but Dratini made a loop around and behind. The pokemon fired an Ice Beam into Beedrill’s back.

“ Oh! “ Kazuki mouthed.

“ Beedrill takes an Ice beam from behind! “ The announcer said.

“ Stop the freeze! “ Kazuki ordered.
“ Wing Attack! “

Beedrill fluttered its wings so fast that the quick-forming ice crystals shattered from its transparent wings. It buzzed to the ceiling and dove back down.

“ Poison Sting! “

Beedrill jettisoned its stinger at Dratini, who took it in the chest. It yelped in pain and shook the barb out.

“ Dratini, are you alright?! “ Scizor asked.

Beedrill stopped in the air, waiting for Kazuki’s order. Dratini tilted its head up in the air.

“ Flamethrower! “

“ Beedrill! “ Kazuki yelled.
“ Pin Missile attack! “

The newly regenerated stinger on Beedrill’s rear had emerged, and it was now aimed down at Dratini. Beedrill sped toward its target. Dratini drew in a breath and fired away, unleashing a pink Flamethrower at Beedrill. Beedrill tore through the fire and hit Dratini hard. The audience waited…

“ I’m not sure what’s happening folks. “ The announcer said honestly.

“ Come on Dratini. “ Scizor said.

“ Come on Beedrill. “ Kazuki said.

Beedrill, singed black, had its stinger sunk into Dratini’s tail. Both pokemon were like inanimate objects. They fell to the ground, badly injured.

“ Dratini and Beedrill are unable to battle. “ The ref said, raising both flags.

“ Oh! “

“ Ah! “

“ My-oh-my! “ The announcer yelled.
“ That’s going to make the battle much more interesting. “

“ That’s it. “ Kazuki thought.
“ It’s all up to you. “

Kazuki was about to press the first and final button on his podium’s console, the word “ MESSAGE “ flashed on the screen above. Kazuki drew his hand away and tapped the intercom. Scizor’s face appeared.

“ Kazuki, do your best. “ He said.
“ This is our last chance to show what we’re made of, so give it your all. “

Kazuki turned the screen off without a word.

“ I have been… “

Kazuki pressed the button in front of Chikorita’s pokeball slot.

“ Go Chikorita! “

Scizor pressed the button in front of Scizor’s pokeball slot.

“ Go Scizor! “

Scizor jumped up at Chikorita, and slashed with his claw. Chikorita took the attack full-force and was thrown to the ground. It got up slowly.

“ Chikorita takes some damage early. Let’s hope this isn’t the trend of the
battle. “ The announcer said glumly.

“ Chikorita, watch Scizor, and not his trainer. “
“ He doesn’t always give the orders with speech. “

Chikorita watched as Kazuki tried his hardest to signal her. He dipped his head and thrust it up and forward. Chikorita leapt from its resting place.

“ Look Out! “ Scizor said.

Chikorita landed a mighty Headbut into Scizor’s chest. It’s body folded like paper and it stumbled back.

“ You surprised me, Kazu, but that’s not the same. “

Scizor closed his eyes. Kazuki could almost imagine a line of energy between them. He wasn’t wrong either. He asked his pokegear about it.

< Very little is known about the fabled “ pokemon telepathy “. > It said.
< Scientists agree however that when a trainer and its pokemon are together for a long time, they become accustomed to each other in a way that couples sometimes do, almost like finishing each other’s sentences. >

“ Weird… “ Kazuki thought.

< Every life form has an aura, and it’s like an invisible fingerprint. Its unique to every person, but there are always exceptions. Twins for example have a similar if not identical wavelength pattern, and most siblings close in age do as well. This carries over into the pokemon world. Trainers and their pokemon friends can sometimes carry their wavelengths over to each other. >

“ What about me and Chikorita? “ Kazuki thought.
“ I have to know… “

Kazuki closed his eyes, and he began to imagine. He was startled to see Scizor floating across the stadium, but the stadium wasn’t there. It was just Scizor, standing where his podium should be, and he himself concentrating. A bright red aura wrapped around him, and it drifted across the field to his pokemon, Scizor. He too had a bright red aura, and they both connected in the field’s center. He was passing on his thoughts to him. Kazuki looked down at Chikorita…

“ Oh! “

Chikorita had an aura too. It was a grass green color, and it stretched to Kazuki’s podium, but wasn’t quiet long enough. Kazuki knew the problem now.

“ I’ve been doubting it. I have this power too! “

Kazuki opened his eyes, and it was like everything came back into focus, but this time with greater perception and understanding. He could still see the energies, and his own exploded from his body, coursing across the field and connecting with Chikorita’s. She became scared and excited all at once. They’d done it.

“ They are using some form of meditation. “ The announcer said softly.

Scizor opened his eyes.

“ He’s using the Static Ray. “ Kazuki thought.

Chikorita’s head went up. She turned around and saw Kazuki, who made no move.

“ You know what to do. “ He thought again.

“ Scizor thought he heard Kazuki say something, and looked up.

“ I found my power Scizor… “
“ Now I’ll show you what that power is. “ Kazuki said.

Chikorita didn’t move either this time. Suddenly, the Static Ray blasted from Scizor’s bulky claws. Chikorita ran and slid below the attack, jumped up between the two beams, and came down in a spiraling Super Tackle. Scizor’s terrified face was wiped away when she came crashing down onto his head. The world went into slow motion.

“ There’s…“

Chikorita rebounded off the falling Scizor, and ricocheted off the ground, coming in again. As Scizor fell, its Static rays were blasted in different directions. Chikorita rammed one from the side and deflected the energy back to Scizor. Just as it bounced on the dirt, it was bombarded with the Static Ray. His body was a crimson lightning rod.

“ No… “

Chikorita stopped again, hearing Kazuki in her head. She let loose her Super tackle shield with a forceful Barrier. The wall of green energy slammed Scizor like he was a punching bag.

“ Way… “ Scizor finished.

Scizor was hurled into the podium and settled there, his head bobbing up and down in utter disbelief. Scizor jumped down from his place and checked on his pokemon.

“ Scizor is unable to battle. “
“ Chikorita is the winner. “ The ref said, raising the red flag towards Kazuki.

“ He did it! “ The announcer screamed.
“ Kazuki is this years new Scorpio Cup Champion! “

A bikini-clad girl came out of a side-door with a golden trophy in hand. It was filled with 20-dollar bills: 1000 dollars worth of 20-dollar bills. Kazuki graciously accepted the prize and reveled in the cheers of the crowd. A news crew came out as well. On or two went to Scizor, while three or four surrounded him. Kazuki was very surprised.

“ How do you feel knowing that you beat the Scorpio Cup your first year competing and managed to defeat Scizor, last year’s champion? “ A lady asked, microphone in hand.

“ I’m very surprised, but happy of course. “
“ It really took a lot of understanding to win this match. “

“ Explain. “ A man said.

“ Scizor told me before we released our last pokemon that I had to try my best to win, but the truth was, I was giving it my all beforehand. “

“ Oh, interesting. “ The man responded.

“ Then how did you pull it off? “ Another woman asked.

“ Not to sound too cliché, but I had to look inside myself… “ Kazuki said seriously.

The news crews all laughed a little, then they turned to their cameramen to give their sum-ups. Kazuki smiled and walked to his locker room, trophy in hand.

Later on…

“ I’ll see you, Kazuki. “
“ You too Hawk. “ Sandy said, shaking his hand.

Kazuki gave a ferry ticket to Hawk. He’d bought them after the tournament.

“ Man, these things were spendy too. “ Kazuki said.
“ It practically cost a third of my prize money to buy them. “

“ I pitched in… “ Hawk said.

“ Oh, is that what you call it? “ Kazuki laughed.

They waved goodbye and went on to the deck. Sandy waved even harder, and they watched her as the ship pulled away. Scizor was near a palm tree when they passed, and Kazuki just watched him watch him. They didn’t have to try and wave, or even nod. They just looked at each other and they both knew automatically.

“ Do you think that “ chikopathy “ will last Kazu? “ Hawk asked.

“ Don’t know… “ He said.

A few hours later…

“ Kazuki, want to go get some sun on the upper deck? “ Hawk said, sunscreen in hand.

“ No, I think I’ll just look around the boat some more. “ He said politely.

“ Suit yourself. “
“ Don’t get lost. “

Kazuki walked around. It was so nice that he took off his shirt. The sun was warmer then he’d ever felt it in the forest. Back in Sage Town…

“ I wonder how my mom and dad are doing? “ he thought.
“ Maybe I’ll send a postcard. “

Kazuki walked along the side of the ship. He saw a group of tourists leaning precariously over the side. They were clicking away with their cameras in hand.

“ What are you looking at? “ Kazuki asked.

Three playful pokemon were splashing and leaping out of the water near the boat. They had two huge fins on its sides and two smaller ones just below each. It also had a big tail and its color matched the foamy sea. Its big, pink eyes were like jewels in the surf.

“ The captain said they are a newly discovered pokemon. “ An old man said.
“ Dolphswim? “ He said questioningly.

“ No, it was Dolphwam. “ An old lady corrected.

< Dolphwim. > The pokedex said.
< These aquatic pokemon are incapable of battling on land, but are agile in water. They perform water shows with group members in their pod. >

“ Cool. “ Kazuki said.

“ Battle? “ Someone said behind Kazuki.

He turned around, but the man was in a dimly lit hallway. He stuck a hand out into the light and suspiciously coaxed Kazuki down the hall. Kazuki cautiously followed.

“ Where’d you go? “ Kazuki asked.
“ I thought you wanted to battle? “

“ This way. “ The voice said, distanced now.

Kazuki walked down the corridor and saw the man out of the corner of his eye. He had entered a private battle room. Kazuki shrugged it off and went inside. It was very dark, but he could see the figure take his place on one side of the field. Kazuki walked to his position.

“ Why should I battle you? “ Kazuki asked.
“ Tell me who you are. “

“ A fan, how about that. “

“ I don’t buy it, you’re a little too old. “
“ Why should I battle you? “

“ What do you have to lose, Kazuki? “ The voice said.
“ Except your confidence maybe… “

Kazuki gritted his teeth a bit at that. He grazed a pokeball on his belt.

“ Maybe I should ask, why should I battle you!? “ The man said jokingly.
“ The more you say, the more cowardly you seem. “

The man actually started to turn to leave. Kazuki took up Chikorita’s pokeball.

“ Chikorita, go! “ He said.

The man released an ultraball with amazing speed. The lights played tricks on Kazuki, because he thought at first it was a pink Chikorita, but it was actually a standard-colored one. He thought it had something to do with the vents littering the walls of the room. They pumped heat to the rooms of the boat, and the glow of the furnace poured into the room. Not very much, but enough. Kazuki was still surprised at the coincidence.

“ Razor Leaf… “ Kazuki said.

“ Super Tackle. “ The man said, still walking out of the room.

“ What?! “ Kazuki said, stunned.

Chikorita stopped too, and the other Chikorita rammed it against its side and knocked it out in one devastating blow. As the Chikorita had passed into a beam of light, he saw that the opponents Chikorita looked a lot like his Chikorita. In fact, it looked almost identical. Kazuki picked her up in his arms.

“ Maybe I was wrong about you. “ The man said, returning his Chikorita to its ultraball.

Kazuki just stood there for a sec. He quickly returned Chikorita to her pokeball however and gave chase. The man’s heavy footsteps could be heard down the long hall. As he got through the doorway, the man had turned a corner and started up a stairwell. Kazuki saw a flash of a purple cape trail up the passage.

“ Stop! “ He called.
“ What pokemon was that?! “
“ Who are you?! “

The man casually tossed a large ball over his shoulder it hummed and buzzed as it bounced off one stair and rolled down the others. As Kazuki ran up the staircase, he turned to see that it wasn’t a ball, it was a Voltorb!

“ CRAKA-BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM! “

Kazuki was thrown up and out onto the deck. He saw the man hurry to the end of the ship as boards rained down around him. He heard people panicking.

“ Don’t move. “
“ I don’t what you and your Neo Team Rocket goons have against me, but leave everyone else out of this! “ Kazuki called to him.

The man turned, and smiled…

“ I don’t work for Neo Team Rocket… “ He said.

He jumped off the railing. Kazuki’s jaw dropped, and he ran to the side. The man had landed on a Lapras, and the pokemon began to pull away from the sinking ship. The man crooked his head up to Kazuki.

“ Was I wrong about you Kazuki? “ He laughed.
“ Prove me wrong! “

Kazuki didn’t know what he was talking about, but he needed him to stop. He reached for his Beedrill’s pokeball, but Lapras used Mist before he could react. Kazuki was getting angry.

“ You can’t hide behind that… “

The Mist quickly blew away, and the man and his Lapras were gone too. Kazuki couldn’t believe his eyes. Hawk ran up to him.

“ Kazuki, I’m glad I found you. “ He said.
“ They’re loading up the lifeboats, so let’s hurry. “

Kazuki was apprehensive to go. Hawk tugged him along the splintered ship’s deck and to a waiting raft. They lowered into the ocean and Hawk breathed a sigh of relief.

“ They said something blew up the engine room. “ He said, gasping for air.
“ Why were you on the other side of the boat anyway? “

“ Hawk, you don’t think I sabotaged the ferry, do you? “

“ Of course not… “

“ Well, I know who did do it. “ Kazuki said very sternly.
“ A ghost… “