Tales of a Pokemon Master

Tales of a Pokemon Master

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Chapter 1

Darkness Returns

Part 2 - Hitman and Master

It was a dark dusty cell, one bench to sleep on and a small window with some rusty old bars keeping him from freedom. Once an elite hitman of Team Rocket with at least thirty skilled trainers robbed of their pokemon on his belt, now but a mere prisoner with nothing but a deep festering hate for Astra to keep him company.

He lied on the bench, padded with some bedding to help make it more comfortable, eyes focused on the ceiling. How low have I fallen? He groaned in annoyance as he rubbed his beard. Instead of a large ‘R’ on his black and white uniform, all he had were the black and white stripes on his prisoner’s outfit. My perfect score of robbed trainers. Over a hundred pokemon strong enough to fight at any Pokemon League. My reputation and privileges, all lost because of that stupid girl.

He tilted his head to the side, now looking at the reinforced steel door. A sickly dim light filtered through the window, barely giving him any visibility. Giovanni trusted and respected me. He paid obscene amounts of cash to get me out of prison more than once, and he even made sure my accommodations here were luxurious and comfortable. He let out a mournful sigh. But that stupid long-tailed rat always got in the way, always saving her blasted trainer’s pokemon and her worthless life. After failing over and over, even the boss lost faith in me. He grit his teeth. “The name of Deathblow, once fearsome and respected has been dragged through the mud. What I wouldn't give to get out of this place, to once again serve a powerful organization as the professional I always was.”

Your wish can be granted... but not here.

He stood up from his bench and looked around, unsure of where the voice was coming from. He looked down upon noticing something shine on the floor in a green aura with the shape of a large star.

Serve us, and your power and position will be unquestionable.

Green lights and black smoke quickly overtook the room, leaving the cell empty.

The alarms began to echo in the entire prison. Teams of guards started to run around in panic checking cell after cell, where the most dangerous criminals in the world had vanished.

***

“Mr John, Sir,” said one of the two guards standing on both sides of a large reinforced door, “what brings you here at this hour?”

“Open the damn door,” he ordered.

“But sir… due to the protocol that is in effect, we must still confirm your identity,” the second guard intervened.

Without a moment’s notice, he showed his ID card and allowed the facial recognition scanner to begin analyzing his face to confirm his identity. “Authorization code is: ‘Celebi three’.”

The large locks made a hissing noise as the hydraulics worked to open them, each the size of a Raidon, with the door itself being tough enough to endure a Steelix charge.

John’s mouth went agape, as well as his guards’. Before him was a large room with hundreds of empty slots for pokeballs, advanced force fields preventing pokemon from leaving them.

“They’re… gone.” He fell to his knees and slammed his fist against the floor. “Damn it! All these pokemon, confiscated from the most dangerous criminals… gone!”

Deathblow slowly opened his eyes. The only source of light was a large glowing yellow gem on the ceiling, and most of the room was covered by black smoke. He looked around, noticing many pokeballs lying on the floor and a few loose grass-type pokemon that closely resembled large flowers. “Sunflora?” The most noticeable one, though, was some kind of giant green snake. “What’s going on here?”

His heart skipped a beat when the dark smoke enveloped the pokemon’s necks, who struggled and screamed in response. A black whispy aura started escaping from their flashing green eyes; collars with small dark crystals were now present on their necks.

“Human. Choose carefully. Either you join us as an officer of our legion… or as a manipulated slave,” a deep sinister voice echoed from the smoke.

“Legion? How big?” Deathblow asked. Aside from the fast breathing and sense of fear, a burst of excitement surfaced in his mind.

“Hundreds of enslaved pokemon and more than a hundred humans filled with ambition and desires for power,” replied a smooth resonating female voice. ”And it’s growing by the hour.”

Deathblow smirked. He pointed at the giant snake-like grass pokemon next to him and asked, “Will they heed my every command? Will my skills be recognized?”

“Prove yourself, and a position of power will be yours,” echoed the deep voice.

He crossed his hands and nodded. “I’m in.”

Alola, one of the most unique regions in the Pokemon World. For some dedicated trainers it’s a place filled with trials, adventures and excitement; a place to test skills, explore and learn how to use the famous Z-moves, which can push the power of pokemon to their very limit. For most, however, it's a place to relax.

The bright sun shined down upon the beach, where many were either swimming with their pokemon or having a relaxing sunbath.

Astra was lying comfortably on a sunbed, basking in the cool shadow of her umbrella. Her long orange hair was tucked under a white sun hat for good measure, some stray locks hanging limply over her blue swimsuit. The green purse she always wore attached to her belt was lying on a bronze-coloured blanket next to her, alongside six black pokeballs striped in red and gold, five of which were empty.

She raised her head to glance at the sea. Starmie, a large starfish with a huge ruby encrusted on its chest, was surfing the waves while balancing Raichu on its uppermost limb. The latter was a much smaller creature, akin to a huge rat. Orange fur covered most of her body, save for the white belly and the bronze patches in her paws and legs, and her long tail ended in a pointy lightning bolt. Despite their speed and the crashing waves, she maintained a perfect balance on the tip of her paw while her long tail swished happily in the wind.

Nica and Starmie seem to be having fun. She looked to her right at the large green beast with a giant flower on its back and a pleasant smile on its face. An egg-shaped pokemon was taking a nap under the giant flower, hiding in its shadow. On top of the flower lied a nine-tailed golden fox, its belly exposed to the sunlight and its forepaws playfully stretched outwards. Venusaur and Ninetails seem to be enjoying the sunbath too, although Blissey not as much... I hope it isn’t too hard to find some enjoyable activities for all of my team. It would be unfair if only my Kanto’s pokemon were having all the fun.

Astra was about to relax again, when she heard the growling of one of her larger pokemon. She took off her hat and looked to the side, noticing a kid wearing a black sleeveless shirt and some really gaudy looking necklace with a big ‘S’ symbol attached to it. It was at that point when she noticed that very same boy shamelessly trying to grab her belt.

”Umm… may I help you with something, sir?” she asked, dubiously noticing that the boy was struggling to take one of her Luxury Balls and failing, because she had already tied them up in chains.

“Yo homie. I heard there was a very hot chick with some crazy strong pokemon,” he said, performing some sort of dance that ended with his hands on his sides forming the shape of a skull. “I thought taking them would let me beat down any foo who picked a bone with Team Skull, and score me a grip of cash while I was at it.” He finally managed to snatch her belt and started a new dance, waving his hands up and down while swaying his body to nonexistent hip hop music.

“You do realize that my pokemon won’t listen to you, right? If anything, when they get out of the pokeballs they're going to kick you where the sun don't shine for stealing them in the first place,” Astra said, maintaining a calm composure.

“Venusaur!” growled Venusaur, attracting the attention from other vacationers on the beach and almost waking up the pokemon on his back, who yawned and returned to sleep. At the same time, Starmie and its passenger crashed upon the beach, sand cascading in all directions.

Raichu jumped from Starmie’s back performing a triple somersault, landing in front of the Team Skull member and looked up at him with narrowed eyes.

“Yo, I ain’t goin’ down without a fight. Better get it through that skull of yers.” He took his own pokeball with his hand, only for it to be wrapped by a long black tail.

“Raichu, Rai,” Nica said, shaking her head.

“Let go of my hand lil rat, this isn't how we fight. Skull cracking won’t do where I stand without Drowzee's helping hand.”

Astra looked down at her partner. “Nica, teach him a lesson on how we deal with amateur thieves like him.”

“Raichu!” She nodded, and sparks of electricity started escaping her cheeks.

***

The lone Team Skull member gulped and closed his eyes, expecting to be electrocuted any second. Much to his surprise, he suddenly felt something lift him up, his legs no longer touching the ground. He dared not open his eyes, now expecting to be thrown into the water, into a garbage can... or something worse.

His confusion grew as he felt a strong gust of wind on his face and an odd sense of speed, as if riding a mighty Tauros. Am I flying? What’s going on. He slowly opened one eye, then both. Now, he could see that he was moving along the road, when his ride abruptly changed direction and ran into a building.

“Greetings, how can I help… you?”

“Rai, Rai.”

The Team Skull member looked around in confusion. His surroundings reminded him of the famous malasada shop with yellow walls, various decorations and many tables and seats. That beautiful paradise with sweet succulent malasada, forever out of his reach due to his ever-empty pockets. He looked down, only now noticing that he was sitting on the yellow part of Raichu’s tail while being raised above the floor. Despite the critter being shorter and lighter, no signs of struggle showed on her face. “Yo, that was some sick speed, lil rat, I didn't know you could move so fast.”

“Rai,” Nica said before pointing at a sweet malasada behind the glass counter. She held her trainer’s purse in her paws. “Raichu.”

“It will be three poke dollars for a normal sized one and five for large ones,” the shopkeeper said hesitantly, not taking her eyes from the kid on Raichu’s tail. “I must say, most of the time trainers buy their pokemon malasada, not... the other wait around.”

“Wait, malasada… for me?” he asked, looking at the critter curiously with wide eyes.

“Rai, Rai,” Nica responded with a warm smile directed at the kid as she took out a notepad and pen from the purse, writing in it. Once done, she picked up eight pokedollars from the purse and presented both them and the notepad to the shopkeeper, who took them hesitantly.

“One normal sized and one large malasada coming right up.” She pointed at the nearby free table. “Please, take a seat.”

The Team Skull member, often called ‘ground C’ by his fellow teammates, stepped from Raichu’s tail onto the floor. He followed the pokemon towards the pointed table while performing his signature dancing-walk his team was famous for. With his eyes on Raichu, who sat on the opposite side of the table, he perched himself on a seat and asked, “Yo lil homie, you really… wanna treat me to malasada? No tricks?”

“Raichu,” Nica said with a casual nod and a compassionate smile.

He held his hand on his chest and felt his heart melting as tears started sliding down his cheeks. “Yo lil homie, that's the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me.”

***

Astra stretched her arms as she walked along the side of the road. She had left her belongings and pokeballs on the blanket with Venusaur, who was on guard duty, and Starmie was still playing in the water. I gotta say it’s nice to take a break from all these matches and challenges. Fighting elite criminals and performing in front of the TV day after day can be really exhausting, Astra thought as she held her hands behind her back and sighed. Well... at least there’s no criminal organization in this region I need to take seriously.

She slowly opened the door into the malasada shop, peeking inside. Her eyes focused on a depressed Team Skull member finishing the leftovers of his third large malasada with Raichu standing on his lap and gently stroking his shoulder.

“And then… all other trainers would clown on me and call me a loser, sayin’ only the biggest failure can lose against a Totem Pokemon three times in a row,” he said, his eyes still drowned in tears. “Like for real, lil homie, I started to believe I couldn't accomplish anything and just straight up ran away, and after weeks of failure after failure, I jus’ gave up.” He took a deep breath. “It was terrible, lil homie, I couldn't beat any trial or earn any of that shiny badge bling for months. I lost all of my status as a trainer, and they just flat out stopped me from getting free meals at the Pokemon Center. I had no skills so no one would give me a job,” the Team Skull member finished as he wiped away a few more tears.

“Raichuuuu,” Nica said, climbing up onto his shoulder and nuzzling his cheek.

“Thanks, lil homie… anyways, like I was sayin’, Team Skull invited me, gave me a place to stay and supported me as much as they could. I was jus’ too ashamed to show my face at home, so I joined them. Struggling day after day with my buddies cheering me up whenever I felt down.” He looked Raichu in the eyes. “But even they couldn’t afford three large malasadas, and you gifted them to me from the kindness of your heart despite us being enemies.” He grabbed Raichu in a hug and pressed her into his black undershirt. “I’d take a thunderbolt or even a hyper beam into the face to repay you for these glorious sweets!”

Raichu didn’t reject the hug, though her face scrunched up in disgust against the devastating smell, as the kid apparently hadn’t bathed for weeks.

“The name’s Mike by the way, yo, but my new name’s Ground ‘C’. Real nice talking with you.”

“Raichu, Rai.”

Astra took a few steps backward and supported herself against the wall of the shop, deciding to give her pokemon some space. She looked at the sea. “I swear, that’s the third Team Skull member Nica has fed this week. Maybe I should talk with the local Kahunas to organize some sort of decent-paying work for those thugs.”

“Your partner has become too soft for her own good,” a red-haired trainer in a cape chimed in from a spot on a nearby tree.

Astra examined her surroundings before looking up. “Nica may be too compassionate, maybe even hesitant to fight, but when it comes to helping and protecting others, she always gives her best.”

“And yet, your top pokemon avoid pokemon battles all the same,” Lance said. “I may consider aiming at your seat, Master Astra. Even you can’t defend your title with five pokemon, and we both know you would never keep your partner in reserve.”

“You know better than anyone that challenging me for my title is anything but easy. I bet you don't even know what steps you’d need to take to even get started.”

“Yes, I do,” Lance started in a cheeky tone. “First step, gather enough badges to participate in the Pokemon League. Next, win first place in a tournament to be allowed to fight and beat four members of the Elite Four in one region to become a champion.” He took a quick breath. “Once sixty of the current and former champions from all regions gather together, one supreme tournament is held and televised all over the entire world. Four of the best champions get the privilege of challenging you for the title.” He jumped from the tree, bending his knee upon landing. He pointed at himself and smiled, showing off his pearly white teeth. “I’ll become a champion myself and fight in such a tournament, should it take place, just you wait.”

“Not if you only use dragon types. Besides, while I don’t care much for fame, I still need my position to realize my dreams.” She got off the wall she was leaning on and walked right up to his face. “And there's no way I’ll lose my title to anyone, especially you.”

“Nice swimsuit. You should wear it more often.”

Astra blushed. “Better a swimsuit than a large, impractical and ridiculous cape.” She narrowed her eyes. “But enough joking around. You aren’t the type to fly all the way to Alola for a vacation. Is there an emergency?”

“Perceptive as always.” He approached and placed a hand on her shoulder, while Raichu and that Team Skull member peeked outside and looked at them through the window. “Pokemon from all regions are randomly vanishing. Wild and tamed alike. We know not the reason behind their disappearance, nor can we track them.”

***

Unbeknownst to the talking elites, a green star-shaped rune appeared under a wild large mouse with a tiny mustache. The critter looked down and sniffed curiously. Its ears straightened threateningly as it tried to run, only to bounce off an invisible barrier. Dark smoke escaped from the rune and surrounded the squeaking rat. The rune flashed a strong green and vanished alongside its prey.

***

“Has any action been taken yet?” Astra asked as she looked Lance in the eyes, her voice suddenly becoming serious.

“The Elite Four and the champion from Sinnoh region are preparing an expedition to find Palkia or Dialga and seek their guidance,” Lance explained. “With control over time and space, they are our best bet.”

Astra rubbed her chin. “Quite a well thought out move. Thanks for the update.” She let out a long sigh. “I guess I’ll end my vacation short and assist them immediately.” She took a few steps towards the beach, only for Lance’s hand to stop her.

“There’s more you need to know, Astra… All the prisoners from that high security prison in Kanto… are gone. Including you know who.”

“No…” Astra’s eyes widened, her breathing became rapid and drops of sweat started forming on her forehead. “N-n-no…”

Lance glanced at Master Astra for a moment before sighing. “Say no more. I shall fetch Dragonite to give you a ride so you can investigate it for yourself.”

“Thank you,” she said, her hands still trembling from anxiety. “I won’t rest until those scum bags are back where they belong. I swear on my life!” she shouted, stomping her leg on the road.

Lance’s eyes narrowed once more. “I wish you were joking, but I know better.”

Nica chose that moment to walk out from the malasada shop and, giving the thug one quick last glance, she waved farewell. “Raichu.”

***

“Good luck, lil homie… an’ don't forget to crack some bad-guy skulls for me!” he said, waving back. I really need to find a way to repay lil homie. Maybe I can buy her dinner, or a biscuit… wait, I ain’t got no cash. Maybe I can rob some other fool for cash or rob the shop… wait, her trainer gets food for free in Poke Centers. He massaged his stomach, for the first time in weeks feeling so full. He snapped his fingers. That’s it. I’ll get some buddies and steal all the Electrium Z in Alola, so lil homie would be the strongest electric pokemon… Ugh no, wait, she’s the top pokemon of the top Pokemon Master, so she is already the strongest electric pokemon. He walked outside, took a quick look at the beach and shrugged. Whatever. I don’t feel like causing any more trouble today. Relaxing day on the beach, here I come!

He walked alongside the road, waving his hands up and down with each step. A trainer riding on a Tauros passed by. Maybe some swimming will do me good. He sniffed his armpit. Yeap, it would really do me some good. He stopped, frowning. “Wait… I don’t know how to swim.” His head dropped in disappointment. “Oh, man...”

Suddenly, a green star-shaped rune appeared under his feet. He looked down curiously. “A lucky star? Should I make a wish?”

A green flash later, the road was empty.

Manehattan, the largest city in Equestria; known for its culture and glamour, always busy citizens, modern construction methods, and the large statue of a pony holding a torch displaying its might across the river.

A pair of earth ponies in casual tourist clothes walked along the edge of the water, taking pictures of the statue. Their carefree attitude was interrupted by a massive number of bubbles forming on the water, making its way ever closer to the shore.

Curious, the pair approached the edge of the water. They took a step back as a few small white fish with blue backs jumped onto the ground. Tiny collars were present in the base of their tails.

“Awww, poor little things,” the mare said as she approached, intending to help the fish back into the water. More and more fish kept jumping onto the shore every second.

Both stallion and mare walked backwards as their eyes widened. At least half a hundred of fish, one after another, had merged together forming a large monster. Their screams of terror were cut short by a stream of hot water shooting them into a restaurant right through the wall.

Several shocked ponies peeked through the windows and the hole in the wall. Their gaze rested upon a huge monstrosity, and their hearts skipped a beat. Soon enough, they were pushing and shoving each other out of the way, screaming in panic as everypony struggled to get outside.

Snake-like water monsters with long antennas, large creatures resembling whales and other various monsters jumping out of the water joined the fray. Less lucky ponies were grabbed by the giant water snakes’ long tails or got their hooves frozen in place by silvery beams. All of them were thrown into the mouths of what appeared to be giant whales, or as they later discovered, Wailords.

Some of the braver ponies engaged in combat, hooves clashing with their attackers, all the while enduring the streams of water and deceptively painful bubbles.

***

Deathblow opened his eyes. He was standing on the roof of a large building with a psychic pokemon by his side. The pokemon boasted a large mustache and held two spoons, one in each hand, though a more perceptive observer would also notice the black crystal attached to a collar on its neck.

The former prisoner now wore armor clad with spikes on his shoulders, and no less than ten pokeballs attached to his belt. The smoke in the city, the crumbling buildings, and the screams of panic indicated that the ongoing invasion was being a success.

“Get us a bit closer, Alakazam!” he commanded. “We don’t want to fail our new bosses on our first task, do we?” They both vanished in a flash of light as his pokemon followed the order without hesitation.

***

Several ponies wearing police uniforms and covered in bruises stood in between the wounded citizens and the invaders. Their attempts at negotiation had conclusively failed, as the attackers refused to quit and kept fighting until they were rendered unconscious.

With a precise magical shot, a pony police officer slammed a white seal against a wall, causing the structure to crack. After the seal had slumped back to the ground, it slowly rose back up to its fins and wobbled around a bit before focusing its stare back on the policeponies. Its eyes emitted an unsettling black-green aura.

Noticing the suspicious-looking crystal on its collar, the police officer shot another magical projectile towards it, destroying the corrupting crystal. Still, the aura in the invader’s eyes didn't recede.

“What in Equestria are those things?” one of the police officers asked.

“No clue,” said another policepony as she narrowly dodged a stream of hot water.

”For creatures that look so harmless, they sure know how to fight like beasts,” another one said as she tried to pin some weird-looking blue frog-thing with her hooves. Despite its tiny size and fragile appearance, it was quite resilient.

“This is a disaster. What do we do now, chief?” asked a fourth police officer. His shredded hat was lying next to his hooves.

“May I suggest surrendering? It’ll save me a bit of trouble, and you a lot of pain,” Deathblow’s voice reached the ponies, who were now giving a steely-eyed glare at the newcomer.

“You can talk?” asked a high-ranked police officer as she aimed her horn at the intruder. “Are you the one behind this attack? Explain yourself, scum!” She began charging her magic, but stopped when she heard the sudden groaning of a young earth pony colt floating into her view and stopping right in between her and the criminal.

“I would advise not to aim at me,” Deathblow said, pointing at the struggling colt in Alakazam’s levitation. “You may accidently hit this kid, and you don’t want that.” He pointed to his right. “Not to mention my newest hostage.”

The police officers looked at the pointed direction, failing to notice anypony.

“What are you talking ab-” her words were cut off when a pristine white creature with a single blade-shaped ear on the side of its face charged from a dark alley and slashed the pony’s side, a dark aura pulsating on its long, clawed paw. Unlike all the other invaders, no brainwashing collar was present on its neck.

“Oh, my bad, I was meaning to say that you are my newest hostage,” Deathblow said with a wide grin.

The wounded officer pressed a forehoof on her wound and grit her teeth, unable to escape or show resistance due to the pain.

Two nearby policeponies sprung into action after seeing their chief injured, both of them shooting beams of their magic at the attacker. Much to their despair, the attacks splashed harmlessly against its coat. “W-what’s happening? Our magic-”

“Is not working,” Deathblow finished and nonchalantly shrugged. “My deepest apologies, but dark-type pokemon have this splendid immunity to your spells. I would even dare to say dark moves cut through unicorns like Ice Beam destroys half-dragon half-flying pokemon.” He looked to the side and spun one of his pokeballs on his finger. After grabbing it, he pointed at the wounded officer whose bleeding wound caused the other ponies’ faces to turn green. “This pony isn’t dead… yet, so I shall give you a simple choice: surrender to me and she lives, or die with her in gut-wrenching agony.”

“We surrender,” said the policeponies who still had the strength to stand, lowering themselves to the ground.

“Just… don’t hurt her,” the stallion officer pleaded.

Deathblow pointed at the unconscious citizens. “Carry them to the Wailords if you value your life.” He watched in amusement as each of the policeponies carried more than one stallion or mare, their bruised legs trembling from the weight. “Messing with the police is always a pleasure, no matter what world I'm in. I love my job,” he mused to himself.

Other invaders joined in, carrying their wounded comrades as well as the captured ponies, ready to retreat back to the water. The Wailords were proving spacious enough to easily transport both the unconscious captives and the wounded invaders.

“Let us return to the Badlands and announce our victory,” he said with a satisfied smile and pridefully raised chin. After taking a closer look at the bleeding officer, who stared back at him with pleading eyes, he added, “Alakazam, there’s a hospital nearby, steal some bandages and whatever medicine you can find. My bosses wouldn’t be satisfied losing recruits due to battle wounds.”

As his servant followed the order and teleported, Deathblow rubbed his chin. I wonder what my new leaders will do with those prisoners.