Pokedex One-Shots (PG)

[scizorstrike]

Togetic, Kabutops, and Tyranitar. Don't ask me why. Other than the fact I used them on a recent run of SoulSilver. and that they're cool.

You evil person... i hate unresolved cliffhangers. but it was still very good. Other than that EVIL cliffhanger.

[SugarPesticide]

Swinub! <3 Very cute. I loved how he was constantly sniffing around and nudging his trainer, it gives a nice mental image of his personality. And that poor trainer wasted his Master Ball, haha.

Oh, Ali and Albert cuddling~! Extremely adorable. Though at the beginning, I thought Kyle wanted to deposit them for breeding o_0; That would certainly be awkward. And silly Kyle, tempting fate like that. You can't not get kidnapped if you say you won't get kidnapped. Really.

Love them as usual ^_^

[Baton Passer]

Well I'm about to switch from Photobucket to Deviant art, and post my more recent work on account of the fact that Photobucket bites.

But I am an ideator XD I can create a good logo, but im not much use past the designing and physical drawing. I can PM you ideas (I've got some in the kiln but haven't actually drawn any) until you find one you can settle on.

I can store it online, all I need is the greenlight. And if you don't want a logo thats fine too XD.

Just an idea is all.

[Ysavvryl]

^eh, I'll keep it without a logo. But thanks for the offer.

In Process:Misdreavus/Weedle (10/30)
On Deck: Quagsire, Charmander/Magmar, Togetic, Kabutops, Tyranitaur


Mamoswine and Sentret


Panic spread through the Pokemon lab. Two dozen small brown furred Pokemon rushed away to hiding spots, turning a crowded room into a near empty one. A brown and tan striped tail hung out of a vent, but quickly vanished, leaving a pair of eyes looking out the bars. Elsewhere, seven of the Sentrets had all hidden under a couch, hoping their numbers might counter out the fact that they could be seen under there.

In the middle of the room, a human woman in a lab coat sighed. “What is this interruption for?” she asked, walking towards the large doorway. “You’ve frightened all my Sentrets.”

“Sorry, professor,” a man’s voice replied. “But we had something to bring in to you.”

“Is this about the archeology department’s di…?” she stopped mid-word, eyes wide.

The Sentrets murmured to themselves. This particular human was like one of their group. However, she was a lot braver than they, probably because she was a human and not a small furry Sentret. So to affect her like that, what was coming in? Was it something really bad?

“Yeah, this is something they brought up on their arctic dig,” the man said. “Your lab was the one that had room in it.”

Clenching her fists, she glared at him. “Is that it? You should have asked me first. This lab is for work on my Sentret study.”

“Those are just small common Pokemon,” the man dismissed. “But this is a really special one, perhaps one of a kind. You could make a big splash with this one.”

“I can’t just abandon this project for another,” she replied, but any more conversation was blocked off by the thing the university workers brought in.

It awed the smaller Pokemon, making a few cower even further into their hiding spots. While it had large shaggy brown fur, sort of like them, it was even taller than the professor. It had weird blue markings by its face and huge curved tusks. However, it didn’t move on its own. This Pokemon was still, being dragged in on a large wooden platform with wheels. Three humans and a Machop had to cooperate to get it in.

The man who had disrupted them came into the lab after the great beast. “Isn’t this a magnificent creature? It’s a curious duel typed, Ice and Ground If we talk with the genetics researchers, we might be able to clone a live one.”

Near him, the female professor frowned. “Ice and Ground? Sounds like it’d be related to the Swinub and Piloswine line. Well then can’t you send it to someone who specializes with those Pokemon?”

Sputtering, the man turned to her. “We don’t have anybody like that at the university! No way we’re going to let it go to another school. And this is no Piloswine.”

“Do you not read the books your field puts out?” she snapped. “It’s got the right typing and it’s furry with tusks. That, and fossil records have already shown the existence of this one. I could get you a reference in about ten minutes in a book of ancient herbivores. It’s a Mamoswine, an evolution to Piloswine that was lost due to natural selection some ten thousand years ago. And I deal with Normal Pokemon. I’m not going to be much help with this one.”

“Well the university president told us to send it here,” the man argued back.

At that point, one of the Sentrets under the couch became bold, for its kind. He heard the word ‘herbivore’. Didn’t that mean it ate plants? So even if it was big, maybe it wasn’t so scary. He started out, but two of his fellows pawed at him. Did he really want to do that? Even if the big Pokemon was no threat, that man arguing with the professor might be. He cooed back to them, telling them not to worry. Then he left the couch.

He scampered on his four paws across the lab surface, then looked at the big, what did she say? Mamoswine. He looked at the Mamoswine, even though his body was only a few inches high and this thing was maybe ten feet high. To get a better look, he curled his tail around him, then used its muscles to push his body up. He still couldn’t look the thing in its face, but he could see its face better.

Its eyes opened.

He thought of bolting back to the couch. However, he was known to be less cautious than other Sentrets when he was curious. The others often said it was bad (he’d be a second too late for warning of a predator) but he stayed watching the Mamoswine for a moment. it moved its mouth some, so the Sentret dropped back down to the ground and went to the professor. “Se tra,” he said, tugging at her pants to get her attention.

As he expected, she gave up the argument to ook down at it. “What is it, dear?”

He pointed over at the Mamoswine, who was trying to move around further.

The humans gawked at it a moment while the Sentret took a defensive position behind the professor. The archeologist she had been arguing with spoke first, “It, it’s alive! This is amazing.”

“My lab is still small for it,” the professor replied, then pulled a Pokeball out of her lab coat. After checking it, she pressed the button and threw it at the Mamoswine. Because it was still stiff from being frozen and buried over ten thousand years, it was captured easily.

The archeologist sputtered. “What was that for? It’s our discovery.”

Going over to pick up the Pokeball, she said, “Well you put it in my lab. Take it up with the president and tell him to talk with me, or better yet, you could ask before doing anything like this again.” Taking the Pokeball, she added, “I’m going to get this one checked up on, so get out of my lab so you don’t keep scaring my Sentrets.”

-+-

After a week or so, the Sentrets got used to the Mamoswine. She was quite mellow, not minding the smaller Pokemon so long as she got plenty of food to eat. Some of the younger and more adventurous ones liked to climb her shaggy fur and stand on their tails on her back, so they got the tallest and best view over the lab. When they did that, she didn’t mind. She also was careful not to step on any of them. The lab had to be kept a bit cold for her, but the Sentrets didn’t mind that so much.

It was night and the lab was mostly dark. The Mamoswine slept standing up, but various Sentrets had snuggled up on her back or near her feet. In the whole lab, only two were awake, two Sentrets that were holding sentry duty. Normally, not much happened and they just had to watch the large windows and the door. Tonight would be different.

Hearing footsteps in the hall, the door Sentret dropped down and moved closer to listen. Whoever it was wasn’t speaking, but it sounded like two humans wearing boots. The professor had warned her students that if they were to go into the lab late for some reason, they should talk before opening the door, letting the Sentrets know that someone familiar was coming. These two weren’t doing so.

The sentry called an alarm, instantly waking up all her companions and getting them to flee to safer locations. In the panic, one Sentret accidentally knocked over a labeled bin. Twenty-six Pokeballs spilled all over the floor. The Mamoswine was a deeper sleeper than the rest, but even she stirred at all the fuss caused. To keep a watch in safety, the door sentry hid in the bottom shelf of a bookcase.

“What is all that racket?” an unfamiliar male voice said. The lock rattled.

“Probably the other study Pokemon,” a second stranger said.

Then the lock clicked, letting the two open the door. They were strange humans, dressed in all black, save for a red R on the front of their shirts. Immediately, they both looked to the sleepy Mamoswine. “That’s it,” one of them said. He pulled out a Pokeball and activated it. It hit her head, then dropped to the ground.

“I figured they’d already have captured it,” the second one said, walking around the large Pokemon. He then spotted the mess of Pokeballs on the ground. “Aw man… how are we going to figure out which one has the Mamoswine in it?”

At her name being mentioned, the Mamoswine grunted. These two had scared off the little ones and she didn’t like it. Then she trumpeted, startling both strangers. Catching one inside her tusks, she tossed him through the doors and out of the lab with a noisy bang. Seeing this, the sentry Sentret by the door made a decision. The Mamoswine was part of their group now, like the human professor. And if she was fighting, so could the rest of the group. The Sentret made a call of that, then got out of the bookshelf and dashed at the remaining stranger. Running under his feet, she tripped him, then got to another hiding spot. Then several other Sentrets rushed over the fallen man. They were capable of really hurting him like the Mamoswine could, but they could scare him silly.

Before long, university security came to check things out and captured the two black-clothed strangers.

…

Mamoswine Platinum entry: A frozen one was dug up from soil dating back 10,000 years. It woke up to much amazement.

Sentret Leaf Green entry: A very cautious Pokemon, it raises itself up using its tail to get a better view of its surroundings.

[foxyman1167]

Wow, I've been way behind in commenting in this thread, haven't posted since March o.0

I know I've said it before, and I'll say it again, the stories are always great. They are almost never a let down, although I'll be honest, I didn't like the Ponyta / Roserade entry, its style and diction was a bit boring, and the combination didn't make much sense on paper. I just have trouble enjoying a story if the pokemon doesn't fit the environment.

I enjoyed the new entry, you're just creative enough to combine two pokemon together that would seem odd, but create a literary gem. Keep up the great work, I'll be sure to comment much more frequently.

As for a new request, how about a Combee / Teddiursa story?

[LadyMiir]

Not too keen on the Mamoswine one, the end seemed a little too abrupt...

This combo will seem -extremely- random... but may I request a Charmander/Latias one?

[Shiroun]

Yay, I finally got through all of the stories! I love them all! It's amazing how many there are. Could you put me on the PM list please?

[Baton Passer]

Arite Ysavvryl sry for the trouble XD

Nice story, I had a feeling you were gonna use that entry about the frozen one that came back to life, XD

Good story, No surprise there.

[Mawile412]

That was so nice I love Mamoswine and Sentret, so thanks for making this one!

[scizorstrike]

Cute. I always did like Sentret. It just looks.... fluffy. Dunno why.
(you misspelled Tyranitar! It's not Tyranitaur)

[tombux]

Venusaur and a Wartortle one plz

[Ysavvryl]

Hmm, looks like that last one was hit or miss. All well. I also like the image of the Sentret perched on top of the Mamoswine for the best view; it seems so like them/certain small animals.

Well I didn't get as many entries prepped for November as I had hoped for, but there's two completed and I intend to get another one done today. Also, kind of weird that there's two requests for Charmander there.... the one I'll be working on today is the Charmander and Magmar entry and I already have an idea for that. Sorry! And I got Combee too (it was with Munchlax). So that leaves me with... Teddiursa/Latias? Anyone dare me to do it anyhow?

Happy Halloween!

Next: Quagsire
On Deck: Charmander/Magmar, Togetic/Mightyena, Kabutops, Tyranitaur, Venusaur/Wartortle


Misdreavus and Weedle


This was his least favorite night of the year.

Some would be surprised at that, to learn that a Ghost Pokemon like a Misdreavus would hate Halloween. But he did. Nights were supposed to be quiet and dark. Halloween night was noisy, filled with lights, ‘spooky’ recordings, decorations, and sugar-crazed kids. Even the Safari Zone wasn’t spared, as management had offered a special deal tonight: come in costume and get ten balls free. There were also parties arranged at the main lodge, the zoo, and all the rest houses. The noise was just awful.

The Misdreavus hid in a tree and muttered to himself. Everyone was so happy; how was he supposed to scare anybody? Most nights, it was pretty easy. Get them into one of the narrow tree-lined paths, then dash up behind them and shriek like he was a monster. The Safari Zone customers would scream and turn around, but he would be gone by then. Those times were delicious.

Yes, fear… the fear of others emitted such a rich aura. The red pearls around his neck were filled with fear auras that he sipped at to keep his strength up. But tonight, it seemed he wasn’t getting any more fear. But he wanted to try. It didn’t feel right to just give up on the night, especially so soon after the sun set. Keeping away from the decorated areas, the Misdreavus searched for a victim.

He found one in the narrow tree-lined paths, a boy walking alone. The Misdreavus came onto the path behind him, careful about staying in the shadows. As usual, it wasn’t an easy feat; the boy was looking at the trees around him, searching for an interesting Pokemon to capture. The ghost crept up on the boy, then when he stopped, shrieked his most bone-chilling shriek.

To his triumph, there was a moment of fear and startlement. But, only a moment. It soon turned to embarrassment. He hoped forward into a ring of light and turned around. “Hey, how dare you try to scare me? Now face the smashing wrath of the mighty Hulk!” The boy brandished large green foam fists into a fighting posture.

The Misdreavus’ eyes went wide, then he fled, crying out in fear. He rushed around trees, making a few branches snap as he flew by. Trying for cover, he dropped down into the bushes, but nearly barreled into a smaller yellow Pokemon. He turned aside in time, but ended up crashing into a tree. “Oooogh…” he groaned, dropping to the ground.

Next to him, the Weedle paused, spooked. That might have revived the Misdreavus, but he was in a bit much pain from hitting the tree at full speed. Once the Bug calmed down, he scuttled over him. “Hey, I thought you ghosties were supposed to phase through things.”

“Ugh… yeah, but I need to be thinking about it to do it.” He lifted himself of the ground a bit and looked back nervously. “Did it follow me?”

“What follow you?”

“That human boy,” he closed his eyes. “So scary.”

The Weedle twitched his large red nose. “One of the costumed kids scared you?”

“Not just any costumed kid!” the Misdreavus said, looking at the other Pokemon. “He had these huge fists and his skin was green! That’s so unnatural on a human. And that snarling mask was just awful”

“You guys scare folks all the time, so can’t you take the joke?”

He frowned. “Well I don’t scare others by growing giant fists and turning green.”

“It’s just one night a year; you should be able to deal with that.”

He sighed. “Yeah, when it’s not this night. By the way, what are you doing up? Isn’t it late for you?”

“Ahhh,” the Weedle blushed. “Well I was feeling the need for a little nibbly snack, but the plant I had curled up under just did not smell appetizing. So I came and hunted out this delectable fern over here. Want some?”

“No thanks.”

At that point, a shrill voice broke through the trees, causing them both to freeze. Some girl was singing boisterously. “I will give it to you,” the Weedle muttered, “that these kids are real annoying tonight.”

“Why are you singing loud songs when we’re supposed to be hunting Pokemon?” a girl’s voice asked.

A younger sounding girl stopped singing and replied, “Cause I’m a pirate princess Weedle, of course! I’ve go to sing; it’s the pirate way.”

“You’ll scare all the Pokemon away with that voice,” the older girl replied. “Besides, why do you think you’ll find Weedles here?”

“Be-cause the website said that they got a special group of Weedles in this week, and I want to be the first to catch one!”

“It’s dark out.”

“Well, either I’ll wake one up, or one will be out looking for a little nibbly snack.”

“Sounds like your kind of person,” the Misdreavus commented, even though he didn’t know the Bug too well.

But he seemed to be right. The Weedle perked up. “Right! But I’m not sure I’ll be able to get over to them in time. Kind of hard to walk fast when you’ve got these,” he stuck out his stubby little feet. “Could you help?”

“Why should I do that?” he asked. “I hardly know you.”

“Well it’d be nice, and, well…” he stalled, then came up with something. “Oh, I know! I can help you try to scare them!”

He did have that sharp poisonous horn. “Maybe. What do you have in mind?”

A couple of minutes later, the Misdreavus as carefully carrying the Weedle through the trees. The younger girl had started singing loudly again, much to the older one’s annoyance. That made it easy to find and follow them. And the one girl was dressed as a pirate princess Weedle, maybe. She had a pink dress with black skulls printed along the bottom, which might have been saucy on a girl who actually had breasts. With that, she wore a black pirate hat marked with a skull and crossbones. And with that, she had a Weedle-like segmented tail, a large oval red nose, and a large spike o top of her hat. It was a weird ensemble.

The other girl, who was an older teenager, was better put together in terms of costume, although it was still weird. She wore a long pumpkin orange dress trimmed with black lace and a black ribbon belt with a large bow on her back. She also wore fancy black leather shoes, a orange bow tied around her head, and a black choker with a white lacy heart. On her arm, she carried a frilly orange and black parasol that was closed.

“You ready?” the Misdreavus whispered.

“Ready,” the Weedle said.

At that, he tossed the smaller Pokemon at the girl in the frilly dress, then shrieked as usual. The older girl screamed as the Weedle hit her shoulder and tried to swat him off. Fortunately, he jumped off her before he got smacked and she got poisoned. That was a right tasty fear which the Misdreavus would enjoy later.

The younger girl was spooked by all he screaming, but was soon delighted. “Ooo, sis, it’s a Weedle! And, and, a Misdreavus! Awesome!” She threw a green Safari Ball at the Weedle, quickly capturing it.

Gathering her nerves, the older girl turned and saw him. He thought for a moment about fleeing; it’s what he usually did, frustrating young Trainers by fleeing, then scaring them witless minutes later. But then the girl pulled something out of her bag that smelled tempting. It was a sticky rice ball and he tossed it over to him. “There you go.”

Oh, now what? He should flee, but that rice ball smelled so good. Almost as good as fear. It had been a while since he ate anything physical, he recalled. So he threw caution to the wind and dove down after the treat to eat it.

“Why don’tcha just catch her?” the Weedle girl said.

“How do you know that’s a girl?”

“Well it’s a Misdreavus. Aren’t they all girls?”

No, he thought with a grumble. But the rice ball was just right: a bit warm, a bit sweet, a touch spice, and all around good.

“There are males out there,” the older girl said. “Anyhow, I gave it a treat because I’ve heard that the few they have here are notorious for fleeing and escaping.” She pulled out a Safari Ball and tossed it at him.

The energy started to pull at him, but he easily broke out of it. He wasn’t done with the treat yet! He growled, watching them warily. Just because he’d stay for a snack didn’t mean he’d stay with them.

“See what I mean?” the older girl said.

“There’s that fowl beast!” a boy’s voice rang out in the forested area. “Hulk Smash!”

Freezing in fright, the Misdreavus immediately forgot the rice ball and jumped. He spotted the weird green kid and whimpered. “Oh please, not you again…”

“Hey, cut it out!” the older girl called, throwing another Safari Ball. But this time the Misdreavus didn’t fight it. If she could take him away from that crazy boy, he would be fine with losing his freedom.

Some time later, the Misdreavus was released into the main lodge. To his dislike, it was noisy and crowded here, with a fog machine running. The two girls were there, with the park Warden. “Ah yes, that would be one of our older residents you’ve caught,” the Warden said. “He scares so many people after dark, but he is really quite timid. Good catch, young lady.”

“Thank you,” she replied.

The Weedle he had helped was now on a table nearby, bopping around to the music playing. He now wore a little version of the girl’s pirate hat, although his had a hole in the top for his horn to go through. “Oh hey, you got captured too!” he said. “That’s cool. My girl, she made me a pirate Weedle too, and even nicknamed me Swabbie! Arrr!”

“Don’t pirates live out on the oceans?” the Misdreavus asked.

Swabbie paused. “Hmm, I guess. But so long as there’s plenty of good plants aboard our pirate ship, I wouldn’t care.”

“Well I only brought one accessory for a costume for what I caught,” the older girl said, pulling a red scarf out of her bag. “I just won’t make a bow out of it. Hold still.” She wrapped it around his head twice, the tied it at the side of his head. “I believe that I will call you Ricardo.”

The newly nicknamed Ricardo the Misdreavus shook his head, trying to see if the scarf would come loose. “I’d rather not be at this party.”

The younger girl giggled. “He looks like a ninja now! But our pirate and ninja have got to get along, cause we’re sisters and they gotta be friends. Right?”

“Ninja?” Ricardo asked. “Why would we fight if I’m a ninja and he’s a pirate?”

“I dunno,” Swabbie replied. “But hey, if they’re sisters, then that means we can be friends! Sweet!

“I suppose,” he said, then sighed. “This life is going to be nothing like the one I left behind.”

...

Emerald entry: A Weedle has an extremely acute sense of smell. It distinguishes its favorite kinds of leaves from those it dislikes by sniffing with its big red proboscis.

Misdreavus Platinum entry: A Pokemon that startles people in the middle of the night. It gathers fear as its energy.

[Ysavvryl]

So, I managed to get to the goal of 50,000 words in NaNo in four days (yay!) but then my brain kind of broke today (aw), and I ended up writing this little mess. I hope you like it. Now please excuse me while I go chase after my escaped crackfic muse...

Next: Quagsire
On Deck: Charmander/Magmar, Togetic/Mightyena, Kabutops, Venusaur/Wartortle


Tyranitar


This is Bill the Tyranitar. He’s a tall bulky Pokemon with bright green scales, skin as tough as granite, and a mouth full of sharp carnivore teeth. Although his ancestors were once the terrors of the prehistoric era, rampaging across the landscape and sending all the smaller Pokemon scurrying if not to their doom, Bill is actually just a big softie.

“Um, yeah, that’s about right,” Bill says, twiddling his thumbs. “I’m not dangerous.”

Now Bill is a mild mannered fellow, working by day as a balloon salesman in the local mall. He’s quite popular with the kids and sells lots of cute balloons, like shiny Pikachu balloons, plump Jigglypuff balloons, and pink heart-shaped balloons. On occasion, he sells metallic Tyranitar head balloons, which are a big hit with the boys.

“Balloons are great,” Bill says. “They don’t hurt anybody. Unless you swallow an unfilled balloon. Be careful about latex, kids!”

But then one day, Bill’s life completely changed. He had been at the mall’s Mexican restaurant, which was having a one day special. If a customer could finish eating a super-sized fiery inferno hot bean burrito in one sitting, then he or she could get an entire week’s worth of meals free from the restaurant.

“Oh boy!” Bill says. “I may be mild mannered, but I love spicy Mexican food. Put on some extra jalapenos!”

But unknown to Bill, the restaurant owner had made this offer in a devious manner. He wanted to draw in more business, but didn’t want to actually give anyone a week of food free. Especially not someone with the appetite of a Tyranitar. So to each contest burrito, he added three drops of the infamous Toxic Hell Sauce.

“Uh-oh,” Bill says. “Am I in the right story?”

Yes, you are. So Bill goes into the restaurant around noon and enters the burrito eating contest. The restaurant owner brings out the special burritos, foot long meals that are stuffed with black beans, spiced meat, spicy rice, Spicy Jalapeno Jack cheese, spiced lettuce, hot tomatoes, jalapeno peppers, special extra-hot sauce, and the Toxic Hell Sauce. Each of the contestants picks out their burrito and begins the race. It all goes smoothly until they hit the extra special ingredient.

“WHOA!” Bill shouts, getting tears in his eyes. “Aye yi yi, that’s, ow!”

But our hero isn’t about to give up just yet. The lure of free Mexican meals is too much. So he keeps eating, through the second drop, and the third drop, and finishes the burrito. He has won! But little does Bill know that mixing black beans and rice with Toxic Hell Sauce creates an unexpected super mutation effect to occur. He feels the fire of the spices burning through his blood, and then he transforms…

…into the Gargantuan Tyranitar Mex!

“RAWR!” Bill roars, with spiced up red flames escaping his toothy jaws.

Enraged by the infernal sauce, Bill the Gargantuan Tyranitar Mex leaps up and smashes the table into the floor, then rips out the restaurant bench and hurls it into the crowded restaurant. The customers all scream and try to escape, but then the mutation continues, causing him to grow to gigantic size to fit his new name. He burst through the ceiling and rips the whole wall out of place.

“Run for your puny lives, muchachos!” Bill screams. “Now you miserable villains will pay for every single balloon that you’ve popped!”

His old balloon cart goes flying as he kicks it to the other end of the mall, sending the cute balloons soaring to the skylights. And he just keeps on growing, eventually breaking through the concrete walls of the mall and stomping into the packed parking lot. Now even more people are screaming and running, trying to escape the wrath of Bill, but he calls forth the rocks of the Earth and sends them hurtling across the city landscape.

“Vamanos, I’m sick of all of you,” Bill shouts as he kicks the wrecked cars out of the parking lot.

Mass chaos erupts in the city as the Gargantuan Tyranitar Mex storms into downtown. He stomps onto a gas station, which explodes into a giant fireball, but does not harm Bill one bit. He picks up a Denny’s restaurant and hurls it across ten blocks, sending yummy all-day-breakfast goodness cascading over the panicking pedestrians. He fires up an extremely spicy Hyper Beam, which incinerates the local puppy orphanage.

“Oh no, not the puppy orphanage!” a random city dweller mourns.

“Mwahahahahaha!” Bill cackles.

Elsewhere in downtown, the Mexican restaurant’s owner, who turns out to be a chemistry student who snapped during final year exams, breaks down into tears near the pretty blond reporter starlet. “Oh, I’ve done a terrible thing,” he cries. “I just wanted to succeed at something and make my name known, but I foolishly used too much of the Toxic Hell Sauce and now we have to deal with a monstrous Gargantuan Tyranitar Mex!”

“Oh, you didn’t mean things to go so badly,” the reporter starlet coos, in an obvious cue into the standard monster movie romance scene.

“No you don’t,” Bill yells, storming onto the scene. “This movie is about me and I won’t have any sappy but boring romantic subplots.” He then eats the couple and flattens three city blocks in one sweep of his giant tail.

The military then jumps into the scene, sending in attack helicopters and fighter jets. “We’re here to take the monster down!” the squad leader cheers, eager to see some real exciting action for once.

“Fat chance, el stupido,” Bill snarls, then jumps into the air and slams down next to the wide river.

All of the water leaps out of the riverbed and shorts out the jets and helicopters. Quickly, Bill causes a landslide of buildings and debris to crash into the riverbed, forcing the water to find some other way through the city. Before long, the entire city is in ruins, under the reign of a giant Mexican Tyranitar.

“And the monster wins this time!” Bill shouts in victory. To celebrate, he rushes to the nearby football stadium and punts it for a field goal between the next two cities.

-+-

“Hey Bill! Bill, wake up!”

Bill the Tyranitar woke up, regular sized and not so monstrous. “What, huh? Oh, it was just a dream.”

His fellow Tyranitar snorted at him. “You smashed my foot while you were sleepwalking.”

Blushing, he stepped back. “Oh, sorry, sorry! I can never tell when I do that.”

“I know.” The other Tyranitar stormed off.

“But I had the most awesome dream,” Bill said, cheering up. “I smashed a city and changed the landscape with mutant hot sauce powers!”

“Bill, we can do that without any mutant powers. But we don’t because the humans might retaliate with nuclear weapons.”

“Right, that would kind of stink. Or, what if those nukes gave us super mutant powers?”

The other Tyranitar groaned.

…

Tyranitar D/P/P entry: If it rampages, it knocks down mountains and buries rivers. Maps must be redrawn afterward.

[Baton Passer]

Maaaaan even your "little messes" are amazing!

Toxic Hell Sauce? That's got to be one of the best crackfics i've ever read.

Ah thanks for the laughs, and good luck on NaNoWriMo by the way.


And if you need requests id request Venusaur/Venonat if you feel up to it.

[Ysavvryl]

My favorite reaction to that one was on FF.Net where I didn't even tell them about the NaNo thing. It was "Oh wow, I don't even know how to describe this chapter..." hehe. It had a slight Psychonauts influence to it too.

I already got Venusaur up on the request list. And, why not? I'll see if I can't throw together the leftover ones that ended up with already covered Pokemon. That would give me Latias, Teddiursa, and Venonat in one story. I have no clue how that will even work, but something tells me it could be cute.

Well today is Veteran's Day, so appreciate a veteran today!

Next: Charmander/Magmar
On Deck: Togetic/Mightyena, Kabutops, Venusaur/Wartortle, Latias/Teddiursa/Venonat


Quagsire


On the mantle of the fireplace, there was a display case that held a number of military metals. They were shown off proudly, to anyone who even glanced in their direction. The recipients of those medals were an old man with rough brown skin and white hair and a Quagsire with faded skin and blue fur. But no matter how old they got, the man stayed tough and active while the Pokemon hummed and swam in the backyard pool daily.

A pair of six-year-old boys looked over the medals with awe. “So you and Quaggy were in the war, grandpa?” one asked excitedly.

“Of course we were,” the old man said, sitting down in his favorite rocking chair. “We were in the navy, on the battleship S.S. Daunting. We were among the best.”

The other twin looked over at Quaggy the Quagmire, who was swaying to some song in his head. “But Quaggy? He doesn’t do anything; how could he fight in a war?”

The old man sniffed. “He’s just fooling you. He may look like he’s got noting on his mind, and sometimes he hasn’t, but threaten him or someone he cares about and he becomes one mean fighter. Did I ever tell you about the time he sunk a battleship?”

“He sunk a battleship?”

“Darn right he did. It started during the Battle of Duke Island, and I had his Apricorn ball at my side… see, when I caught Quaggy as a kid, we didn’t have no cheap as nails Pokeballs available. Nope, they were still trying to figure ‘em out for mass production, so if we wanted a Pokemon all our own, we had to grow the Pokeballs! That’s right, you got an Apricorn seed and buried it and, if you were attentive and lucky, it grew a bush. And that bush would produce Apricorns.

“But, it wasn’t so easy as just picking them off the bsh. No, you had to properly dry it and then take it to a professional carver, who would transform it into a primitive type Pokeball. But since the process took so long, you better darn well hope that you caught the one you want, cause it’d be at least another day, if you had another dried Apricorn, in order to get another ball. And I knew I wanted a Quagsire, so I took extra caution and saved up ten of the Apricorn balls.”

“But what about the battleship being sunk?” one of the twins asked.

“I’m getting to it,” the old man grumbled. “Gosh darn kids; I ought to talk to your mother about teaching you not to interrupt your elders. Now, where was I?”

“The battleship?” one of them asked hopefully.

“No, no, I’m getting there. The Apricorns! We boys had all sorts of superstitions about what would make sure the ball got the Pokemon you waned, especially if it was something you’d be hiking and camping for months trying to get access to. Like you put them under your pillow on the night of a full moon, or you sprinkled it with water from a sacred pond, or you prayed when you threw it…”

…

“And so we got into basic training and Quaggy was first put down as a dopey looking Pokemon. I was so mad, but he was, how you kids would say, chill about it. He let those insults slide right past him like water off a duck’s back. So I did my best to be like him, but I gotta admit, I was always something of a hair trigger kind of person.”

The twins, now eight years old, listened reluctantly as their grandfather continued telling the story. It always was like this; he never got to the point about the Quagmire sinking a battleship. Really, they’d rather be outside playing, but it was icy and snowy out there and their mother wouldn’t let them go out. So they were pretty much captive by the fireplace in listening to their grandfather’s stories. Quaggy stayed by his partner’s side, humming away as usual.

“And then came a part in training for those of us who were coming in with our own Pokemon. The other guys had to go catch their own, but we got thrown into the routine right away. Like every day, we had to cross five miles with the Pokemon in accordance to how it preferred to move. Which, for me, meant swimming five miles in a pool every day. That was rough, but I tell you, I’m still one of the strongest swimmers alive today, especially at my age. I could outpace any of you youngsters. And the other guys all made fun of my Quaggy, but he just smiled and kept on trucking.”

…

“Oh, and there was the day of my date with Jill that I’ll never forget,” the old man said, cheering up after the last patch of story.

The ten-year-old twins were a bit restless. They were supposed to be getting their first Pokemon on this trip, not listening to silly romance stories. “But what about the battleship?” one dared to ask.

“Stop interrupting,” their grandfather snapped. “I’m getting there.”

“Hmm, hmmm hmm hmmm,” the Quagmire hummed.

“Yes, that date I’ll never forget” he said, sitting back in his rocking chair and smiling. “I borrowed a rowboat and took her out onto a lake. We let our Pokemon swim in the lake, since we figured they’d leave us alone. So we got out there and talked, flirted, even kissed some. It was a lovely day, so warm and perfect. And then Quaggy, minding his own business and not paying attention to where he was going, swam right into the side of the rowboat and made us capsize.

“Well Jill screamed and I did my best to get over to her and grab her, to keep her above the surface. She sputtered and was mad for a bit, but let me tell you, the dress she was wearing that day, when it got wet, it…”

“Dad!” the twins’ mother said sharply, turning red.

The old man laughed. “Okay, okay. Let’s just say that I got the boat back upright and helped her get dry. Then I realized that I’d lost something in the water, something that was very important. I panicked, but then Quaggy came up to us again and handed me a little black box. Yes, he’d retrieved the ring I meant to propose to Jill with. With that back in hand, I asked her to forgive me, gave her the box, and asked her to marry me. She didn’t quite say yes, but…” he glanced at his daughter.

She narrowed her eyes at him.

“Well, let’s just say she said yes.”

…

The room was pretty quiet. The twins, now twelve, were playing Battleship in order to pas the time. Over in his rocking chair, their grandfather seemed to be asleep. Quaggy was there humming as usual, but this time the elderly Pokemon was joined by a younger pair of Quagmires that the twins had trained up. Despite the fact that the stories about Quaggy never went anywhere, they’d heard enough that they had both decided to use them as well.

Then their grandfather stirred, looked around. He started talking, “So there I was, captured by the enemy and being held on their battleship. It was in the heat of battle, so they weren’t able to take me below decks at first.

The two boys looked over, then at each other. The three Quagmires kept humming a round.

“Anyhow, I heard a thump behind me. After making sure my captors were busy with other things, I glanced down and saw Quaggy in the waters, looking up at me. I mouthed at him to go do something abut the ship’s engines or rudders. And he obeyed, going over and chucking mud into the ships propellers. With a bit of daring-do, I cut the ropes biding my hands, then undid the ones on my ankles. Just before they noticed me, I jumped the railing and went overboard.

“As I’ve said, I was a strong swimmer, but even the ocean was a challenge for a navy man like me. So Quaggy came over to me and helped me get away from the enemy ship. And we hadn’t gone a hundred yards when something exploded. I felt that shockwave throughout my body, but thankfully it didn’t hurt anything. We kept swimming, but when I glanced behind me, there were giant plumes of smoke and fire on the front of that battleship. Turns out that Quaggy messed up their steering so much that they ran into one of the sea mines they were placing. That first blast ripped into their storage area, starting fires that quickly set off their other mines, bombs, and torpedoes. By the time we got back to the S.S. Daunting for rescue, the enemy battleship had taken so much damage that it sunk. And that’s how Quaggy got his Silver Star medal, for causing the battleship to sink.”

“That was an awesome story, grandpa,” one of the twins said, smiling.

“Yeah, but do you have to take six years to tell them?” the other asked.

“I did not take six years to tell that story!” the old man insisted. “I tell my stories properly, not like you kids and your texting ciphers. Good lord, before long, none of you are going to be able to spell properly. Anyhow, did I ever tell you boys about how me and Quaggy earned the Gold Star medal?”

They weren’t too sure about that, but he went ahead and started his story up again.

...

Quagsire Fire Red entry: Due to its relaxed and carefree nature, it often bumps its head on boulders and boat hulls as it swims.

[foxyman1167]

On the mantle of the fireplace, there was a display case that held a number of military medals. They were shown off proudly, to anyone who even glanced in their direction. The recipients of those medals were an old man with rough brown skin and white hair and a Quagsire with faded skin and blue fur. But no matter how old they got, the man stayed tough and active while the Pokemon hummed and swam in the backyard pool daily.

The old man sniffed. “He’s just fooling you. He may look like he’s got nothing on his mind, and sometimes he hasn’t, but threaten him or someone he cares about and he becomes one mean fighter. Did I ever tell you about the time he sunk a battleship?”

“But, it wasn’t so easy as just picking them off the bush. No, you had to properly dry it and then take it to a professional carver, who would transform it into a primitive type Pokeball. But since the process took so long, you better darn well hope that you caught the one you want, cause it’d be at least another day, if you had another dried Apricorn, in order to get another ball. And I knew I wanted a Quagsire, so I took extra caution and saved up ten of the Apricorn balls.”

“No, no, I’m getting there. The Apricorns! We boys had all sorts of superstitions about what would make sure the ball got the Pokemon you wanted, especially if it was something you’d be hiking and camping for months trying to get access to. Like you put them under your pillow on the night of a full moon, or you sprinkled it with water from a sacred pond, or you prayed when you threw it…”

Then their grandfather stirred, looked around. He started talking, “So there I was, captured by the enemy and being held on their battleship. It was in the heat of battle, so they weren’t able to take me below decks at first."

Some corrections.

[SugarPesticide]

Laziness lolwut.

This one was really easy to get into, and I liked the grandfather's wistful-ish tone and the boys' impatience. They reminded me of my sisters actually ^^

Oh, and at first I thought that Quagmire was only a mispelling of Quagsire. But then I read this:

With that back in hand, I asked her to forgive me, gave her the box, and asked her to marry me. She didn’t quite say yes, but…” he glanced at his daughter.

She narrowed her eyes at him.

“Well, let’s just say she said yes.”

Then I got it. Giggity giggity goo! Yes I know it was probably just a typo anyway but Rule of Funny still applies

Good lord, before long, none of you are going to be able to spell properly.

This gave me a couple of good lulz. Because, you know, the internet.

Nice job as usual ^_^

[Shade Sigma]

Nice story dude!!! I dont look for errors Im not too picky about that its the creativity I like in writers. Great platform here!!!

[Ysavvryl]

Thanks for the comments. I might not be able to get to editing errors right off; hopefully I can remember to catch those in December.

This story is an idea that I've had for this thread for a long while. I just never had a good pair to work with. These two, with not very detailed entries, worked nicely.

Next: Togetic/Mightyena
On Deck: Kabutops, Venusaur/Wartortle, Latias/Teddiursa/Venonat


Charmander and Magmar


Chelsea the Charmander was all excited. She had been picked to become a part of the Fire Gym’s roster! That meant that she would be trained by one of the masters of her type, and she’d fight in all sorts of challenging battles, and she could become famous, and… oh, it was even better than being picked to become a starter Pokemon!

When one was taken by a Professor to be a starter, one never knew what kind of Trainer one would get. Maybe it would be a future Champion, but maybe it was someone lazy. Or cruel. Or simply inept. But a Gym Leader was already a proven winner and excellent Trainer. A Gym Pokemon was most likely to become great.

This was her first day in the Gym, not counting the partial day yesterday when she had arrived. Chelsea woke up early, happy and ready to go. Of course, she wasn’t going to be in Gym battles right away. No, she required extra training before she would truly see use here. She crawled out of her bed and wandered about the sleeping area while waiting on the day to begin.

It was a pretty nice place, she thought. Each Pokemon had their own spot to sleep and were well taken care of. There were a lot of others in the Gym and they were all owned by the Leader. Around her, mostly asleep or waking up, there were Ponytas, Vulpix, Ninetales, Rapidashes, a Flareon, Growlithes, Arcanines… but no others like her.

Then, the door opened, letting in an old but fit man. Blaine knocked on the door. “Rise and shine, everyone. We’ve got some early morning matches today.” He came in, checking on all the Pokemon.

Chelsea hopped out of the way, then started walking after the Leader. He went around making sure that particular ones he’d be using early were up. Now that the door was opened, some others began leaving the room. What was she supposed to do?

Blaine knocked on one boxed off bed. “Morton, come out here. I’ve got some special work for you.”

The door swung open, letting out a Magmar. The red and yellow Pokemon gave her a glance, then looked to Blaine. “What is it, boss?”

“This Charmander here is our newest member, Chelsea,” Blaine said. “Chelsea, this is Morton the Magmar. Morton, I’d like you to watch out for Chelsea in her first days as her mentor. Will that work for you?”

Morton looked at her again, then nodded to the Leader. “Sure, I’ll do that.”

Chelsea smiled, letting her tail flame flicker happily. “Thanks!”

“Good. I’ve got other things to do this morning, so I’ll work with you both in the afternoon. Help her practice until then.” Blaine then walked off with his lab coat flapping near his legs.

“What do we do first?” the Charmander asked, rocking on her feet.

“Hmmm…” the Magmar stretched, then said, “Breakfast first. Come on.”

She wasn’t about to argue that, so she followed him out to where Blaine and one of the Gym Trainers were setting up feeding stations for the Pokemon. Some Pokemon were headed outside because they ate grass; others were getting meat and a few were taking bits of coal. Chelsea liked slugs and grubs, but took a bit of the meat and a bit of the coal. Morton waited until they got him some fish.

“So what moves do you know?” Morton asked

“Um, I know Growl, Scratch, and Smokescreen. My dad taught me that last one early.” She brightened her tail flame proudly.

“Did he? You’re pretty young, then.”

“Yeah, but I’ll try to get really good.”

“You will make yourself get great,” Morton chided. “Now if you’re going to keep up around here, you have to work hard. Really hard. Most of us work out and practice every single day, so you have to do that too. And you will need to learn to make yourself do Blaine’s orders immediately. Don’t think about if it may or may not work; he’s doing the thinking for you. And don’t be afraid, even if your opponent has the advantage. Lots of Trainers bring in Pokemon that have advantages over us, like Rock types, Water types, and Ground types, so get used to it.”

“Okay,” Chelsea said, quieter. The thought made her nervous. But then, that tactic was to be expected.

After breakfast, Morton brought her to a practice area where other Pokemon had already gathered. He then had her follow her through an obstacle course not once, not twice, but three times. The first time wasn’t too bad, but on the third time, she was starting to get tired and had a harder time keeping up with the Magmar. It was so bad that even her tail flame dimmed. On the other hand, Morton seemed just fine. In face, his brightly colored skin seemed to get even brighter, glowing and shimmering in a way that made him hard to look at, like the sun.

And that was just the first exercise. He had her practicing her moves repeatedly, dodging Ember balls he tossed at her, and running straight laps. During times when they were resting, he had her watch the other Gym Pokemon participate in mock battles. She wasn’t ready to participate in those without Blaine’s assistance, but she had to know how the others behaved.

Then Blaine finally came for them. He had them fight each other for a bit, having Morton hold back so he didn’t overpower her right off. In the fight, Chelsea did her best to remember to do as ordered as soon as she heard it, but she wasn’t used to the whole ‘no thinking’ idea. Once Blaine seemed to know how she was, he had her practice her moves repeatedly on a rock pillar. They had to stop twice as new challengers came in for Blaine; he let the two he was training watch.

When the Leader dismissed them to focus on the higher-ranked evening battles, Morton ran Chelsea back through the obstacle course again. At the end of the day, she was worn out and achy. But this was what she had to do.

She nearly overslept the next day, but Morton made sure she was up before Blaine came in.

-+-

The first three months were long and hard for Chelsea. She wanted to do well, so she put forth her best effort. And Morton was a big help. While he pushed her hard, he also encouraged her and helped her with things she was having trouble with. The Magmar was still an active battler for mid-ranked teams, so Chelsea often got to watch him in battle.

In battle, Morton was a fierce Pokemon. He reacted quickly to orders and opposing attacks. His internal fires would be going strong, so the air around him warped with the heat he put off. And with that wavy pattern of colors he had, it was hard on the eyes to watch him directly. He was good and won often, although Chelsea could see that some Trainers were very tough to deal with.

But he was much more mellow outside of battle and training. When they were taking a break, he liked to go outside and sit near the shore. He said that sitting in the cool damp breeze helped make him tougher. Chelsea wasn’t sure about that, but it was fun to walk around the sand and hunt for things.

Last night, Blaine had done some moving around of his Pokemon roster, which put Chelsea into his beginning rank team. That made this another first day, her first day on active duty. She was excited again, but nervous too. The beginning ranks were done in the morning. This time, Morton stayed on the sidelines and watched her.

She had to be within her Pokeball at the start of the match, as that was the rule. It was a lot of waiting, uncertain of when she would get called out and what she would face. But her turn did come. Ignoring the Gym materializing around her, she focused on her opponent: a Geodude.

“Metal Claw,” Blaine ordered.

Following her training, Chelsea ran over and imagined her claws to be like metal. She slashed the Geodude across its face with that. She got hit with a rocky fist for that, but did her best to stay her ground. When Blaine ordered a repeat attack, she struck with Metal Claw again. This knocked out the Geodude, so she retreated back to her original position in front of the Leader.

The challenging Trainer, a young boy, then brought out another Pokeball. “Go Squirtle, Water Gun!”

“Smokescreen,” Blaine countered.

Her tail flame wavered in anxiety as she was facing a watery attack, but she followed her orders and produce a cloud of black smoke to hover around the Squirtle’s face. But she didn’t get it up in time to stop his Water Gun attack. Chelsea fainted.

Some time later, maybe just minutes, the Charmander was called back out over being revived and healed. Her tail flame was condensed as she brought her tail in front of her. “Aw, I lost my first match. I’m sorry.”

But Blaine patted her head. “You’re doing fine, don’t worry. This isn’t an easy job for any of us.”

“Yeah, you didn’t freak out in the face of a Water attack and you didn’t get too proud in defeating the Geodude,” Morton added. “That’s the kind of stoic attitude that we all strive for.”

Chelsea’s flame wavered brighter. “Thanks. I’ll keep working hard.”

...

Emerald entry: The flame that burns at the tip of its tail is an indication of its emotions. The flame wavers when Charmander is happy, and blazes when it is enraged.

Magmar Soul Silver entry: The fiery surface of its body gives off a wavering, rippling glare that is similar to the sun.

[Ysavvryl]

Happy Thanksgiving! This entry doesn't have much to do with the holiday, though. It has more in common with unicorns. Also, for amusement, see the Diamond and Pearl entries for Togetic.

In Process: Kabutops
On Deck: Venusaur/Wartortle, Latias/Teddiursa/Venonat


Togetic and Mightyena


His brown hair had straw bits and dust in it, from redoing the bedding of the stable’s Pokemon. His tanned skin had scratches as some of the war Pokemon were difficult to handle. And he smelled like the castle stables, all musty, sweaty, and mucky. His clothes were somewhat decent, being that royal servants were treated decently, but still dirty from work. Perhaps the dedication that showed was making him reluctant. “Why are you taking me, Sir Edwin?”

On the other hand, the young knight was in clean trendy clothes, with a feathered cap that was quite popular in the castle town. He had a few scars from training and duels, including one dent on his nose that he liked to say came because he defended a beautiful girl. And his smell was considerably less than the stable hand’s. “Because Josh, the Pokemon the King wants is said to be attracted to those pure in heart. When the chancellor said that, you were one of the first I thought of.”

Josh rubbed his nose. “I heard all the other knights were escorting girls for this.”

Edwin grumbled. “I know that. But I got into trouble a while back and… well let’s jut say that usually if I take a maiden out into the woods, they usually don’t come back that way.”

“That’s probably why most of the lords are against your promotions so often,” he replied, setting a shovel in its corner. “You keep trying to woo their wives and daughters.”

“They probably did the same thing when they were younger. See, that’s why I thought of you. We’re about the same age, but you don’t show any interest in girls, rank, advancement, money… or heck, anything. You seem happy to just be in here looking after the Pokemon.”

“I am happy.”

“And I know it’s not because you’re into love in other ways. You’re as much pure, if not more so, than some of the maidens the other guys are talking to. And if you and I succeed, I’m sure the King will agree to let you become its caretaker if you ask.”

Josh considered that. The war Pokemon were his least favorite; he preferred to look after the work and companion Pokemon. “So what is the King after?”

“A Togetic,” Edwin said. “But before you go asking why he doesn’t just get a Togepi, which would be a heck of a lot easier, apparently the chancellor discovered that a Togetic that was captured in the wild would be more powerful than one raised in captivity from a Togepi.”

“A Togetic, huh?” It was said to be a pretty Pokemon, one that brought great luck to its allies. That was probably why the King wanted it. But, maybe it would grant more luck to the one who cared for it.

The knight tried not to grin. He figured that would get Josh interested. “And we’ve had reports confirming at least one in the Dark Woods. It’s a dangerous place, but that’s why you’ll have me along. I hope to head out tomorrow, but first I need your agreement.”

Josh nodded. “Okay. Did you want one of the Pokemon here to bring along?”

“Yeah, get Spartan ready for the search.”

Spartan… Josh swallowed nervously. “Ah, all right Edwin. I’ll see you tomorrow, then.”

-+-

One of the pens that the stable workers dreaded going into was where the Mightyenas were kept. The knights had no trouble handling the great canines, as they were recognized as strong and skilled by the Pokemon. But for the castle servants, only Josh and the stable master could regularly get them to cooperate. The stable hand still didn’t like being around them for long.

But they were quite strong and highly valued in their kingdom. The royal family even took on their images for their own coat of arms. Thus, the castle had a pack of twelve Mightyenas living in it. For the safety of the servants, the canines were kept locked away unless someone who could command them was keeping an eye on them.

Last night, Josh had explained that he was taking the day off and the stable master had agreed to it. He stayed around to help groom the Mightyenas that were going to be taken out today, including the one Edwin had requested. Spartan wasn’t the pack’s leader (as that one was the King’s favorite), but he was one of the strongest. He also had a well-earned reputation for biting without warning.

Josh was careful as he ran the wire brush through the Mightyena’s thick fur. But it seemed that this was one of Spartan’s more stoic days. He held still and did nothing more than eye another stable hand wandering too close to the pen’s fence. Once he was done with that, Josh got up and snapped his fingers twice. “With me, Spartan.”

The Mightyena obediently trailed a little behind Josh as they went back to his room (for the things he had packed last night), then out of the stables. They met with Edwin at the inner gates; the knight was wearing enforced leather armor today. On seeing him, Spartan left Josh’s side and went to sit by the knight. The Mightyenas tended to take orders from whoever they perceived to be the strongest leader.

“Here, catch,” Edwin said, tossing Josh a leather coat armor.

“What am I wearing armor for?” he asked.

“To keep you from getting killed, of course,” the knight replied. “The Pokemon in the Dark Woods will attack, and even with me and Spartan there, you’re at risk unarmored. Although the Togetic itself shouldn’t be trouble.”

“Fine.” Josh put on the armor; it was the first time he’d worn anything like it, although he often wore leather gloves to deal with rougher Pokemon.

As they walked through the castle town, pedestrians gave them a wide berth because of the fearsome Pokemon with them. They didn’t know that Spartan would not attack unless ordered to. Then again, some foolish knights would try taking less mannered Mightyenas though town. That often ended badly.

From the outer castle gate, there was a road that went three ways, all through farmland. But if one walked around the castle and went north, it was not that far until the Dark Woods began. Even at the edges, it was a thick forest, with only fragments of light cracking through the green canopy. Many people said that these woods were haunted or magical. They were definitely mysterious, as any attempts to tame it, even just putting a road through it, would always fail completely.

“Did the chancellor say anything about how to lure the Togetic out?” Josh asked. “I brought some Pokemon treats I thought might work.”

Spartan lifted his ears at the word ‘treats’, but showed no other interest.

“Well that’s part of our problem,” Edwin said. “The Togetic should see or sense you somehow, then come out to see you. I don’t know if it will come out when I’m around, yet I don’t want to get too far from you in this place. And there’s a bit of luck involved about if it gets close enough to us. The treats might work as a lure. Otherwise, we may have to make sure it notices us.”

“Hmmm…” Josh looked around at the old trees and the thick bushes. “My mother used to say that singing lured Pokemon like Togepi and Togetic out.”

The knight grinned. “I know plenty of good songs. I use them on girls all the time.”

The stable hand gave him a skeptical look. “Edwin, you know a lot of bawdy songs. I doubt it would come out to dirty lyrics.”

“That could be true.” He stretched his arms up. “How about you sing?”

“I don’t think I’m any good at it,” Josh said.

“You still sing to the Pokemon to calm them down and they don’t freak out.”

“True.” He thought for a bit, then started singing.

But it was several hours before they got any results. A few other Pokemon tried to attack them, but Edwin and Spartan could fight or even just threaten them off. Because of that, Josh started walking ahead of them. His friend had told him to stop if he saw or heard anything suspect. And that’s what he did when he heard a humming sound.

He put his hand up to let them know to hold back for a moment. Then he looked over to where he heard the humming. Quickly, it moved to over him, then to the other side. A flash of white appeared among the trees, and then the Togetic was hovering in front of him. It was a lovely little creature, with white feathers all over, red and blue speckles on its chest, a long neck, and two dainty wings. However, it didn’t seem to be using those wings to be hovering.

“Krrrrukkkuuu,” the Togetic trilled, happy to see him.

“Hello, Togetic,” Josh said. “The King…”

“Spartan, snatch it!” Edwin called out.

“Wait, no!” the stable hand called.

But the Mightyena followed his orders, rushing their way with sharp bark. Josh panicked at the sight, knowing what this Pokemon was capable of. The Togetic was also startled. Thinking that Josh was in danger, it stirred up a gust of wind trying to knock the Mightyena off course. While it rattled many bushes and leaves, Spartan kept going and leaped at the Togetic, grabbing it with his teeth.

“Edwin, stop him!” Josh yelled.

“We were told to capture it.”

“You’re going to hurt it badly.”

“Okay, drop it, Spartan. Back to me.”

The canine dropped the smaller Pokemon, huffing because he thought they’d been hunting food. But he went back to Edwin and sat by him. Now that Spartan was away, Josh knelt down and looked over the Togetic. It had several wounds from being bitten and its left wing was broken at the bone

Fortunately, Josh had thought to bring some healing plants and bandages, although he hadn’t expected to use them on the Togetic. He brought out a cloth, but didn’t use it quite yet. “”I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for that to happen. I’ll help you, if you let me.” A wild injured Pokemon, even one like this, could be dangerous.

It trembled, but allowed him to wrap the cloth so as to stop the bleeding. “How else did you think we were going to get it?” Edwin asked.

“We could have tried talking to it,” Josh replied, careful to keep anger out of his voice as he didn’t want to scare the Pokemon. “Or putting it to sleep; I did have some of the treats laced with sleepy berries. Now we’re going to have a hard time earning its trust.”

“You seem to be doing just fine. I just thought that’d be the fastest way…” Edwin’s voice trailed off and he looked down at the ground.

So he was just being his usual one-track self. “If you want to help, get a campfire started and find some water to boil so I can clean it up good. And you might want to set up camp while you’re at it, as it’s late.”

“I suppose. Stay where you’re at until I have a good camping site.” Edwin snapped his fingers twice at Spartan and the two of them started looking around.

-+-

Although several groups had gone out into the Dark Woods, Josh and Edwin were the only ones to come back with a Togetic. The King was delighted even though she was injured and had a group of rooms in the castle remade into a place for her and her caretaker. And he readily agreed to make Josh that caretaker. Josh then spent most of his days taking care of the Togetic, although he still had to go down to the stables as they needed him to help the stable master with the Mightyenas still. Edwin got a cash reward and had his past record of getting in trouble cleared.

But it was still several days before Josh would fully accept Edwin’s apology about ordering Spartan to attack the Togetic. Serena, as the Togetic had been named, was wary of the Mightyenas and Edwin while she was injured. But she healed up fast and could soon hover in short bursts. She would come near Edwin for a greeting, but then return to Josh.

“We do capture some Pokemon with violence,” Edwin said one day. “Although, I didn’t think until recently that maybe that’s not so good. That’s just what they told me to do.”

“You never had to care for those injured newly caught Pokemon like I have,” Josh said, redoing the bandages on Serena’s wing after checking up on her healing bone. “And sometimes I think that if you apply real thought and energy into things besides seducing girls, you could do great things.”

The young knight laughed. “Maybe. But I don’t get the same kind of reward for other things, you know?”

Josh shook his head, but smiled. “And sometimes I think it might be too much effort for you to be a decent person,” he joked.

“Well not everybody finds it so easy being an angel like you,” Edwin teased back.

The doors opened suddenly, startling the Togetic. The King, his personal guard, and two Mightyenas came in. Of the latter, one was Spartan and the other was the King’s favorite, the pack leader Nox. Josh bowed hurriedly, then finished taping up Serena’s wing. Edwin saluted.

“How is she doing?” the King asked.

Bowing again, Josh turned to him. “Your Majesty, she’s recovered her feathers so the bite scars are hidden. Her wing bone is still healing, but she seems not to need it to hover. She should be just fine in another week.”

“Good,” he said softly. Then he held his hand out to her. “Serena, come to me.”

The Togetic squeaked uncertainly, eyeing the two Mightyenas. Then she hovered up to Josh’s shoulder and sat there. From the way she was crouched down, she had no intention of going over to the King.

“Come to me,” the King said sternly.

Trying to help, Josh walked towards the King. “Your Majesty, she is newly caught and I’m sorry, but I’ve been healing her and haven’t had much time to train…”

Serena squealed and took off from Josh’s shoulder to hide in a potted plant. Even if she liked Josh, she wasn’t about to go near the King.

“She’s supposed to bring good fortune to our lands,” the King said with a threatening tone. “So you had best get her to obey before she can fly away, boy.” He stepped towards Josh, causing him to shrink back.

And then a strange thing happened. The two Mightyenas lowered their ears and started growling. But not at Josh. No, Nox and Spartan were both backing away from and growling at the King. It seemed that even if they recognized the King as strong, they weren’t about to let him get away with threatening one of their caretakers.

“Stop at once,” the King demanded. But they didn’t listen. “Silence!”

“Nox, Spartan, back off,” Edwin stated firmly.

They listened to the knight, stopping their growls. Both glared at the King, then went over towards Edwin and Josh, making it clear that they weren’t going to let this disrespect slide.

As for the King, he looked furious. But he knew better than to mess with the Mightyenas. “Get her trained and get her to stay,” he said, then left with his bodyguard.

“As much as I appreciate their help,” Josh said, looking to the two canines, “Serena still doesn’t like them.”

“I’ll handle them,” Edwin said. But he was more serious than usual. “We, we could be in trouble for this. The King doesn’t take disrespect from Pokemon well. I’ll ask around and see what strings I can pull if it gets dangerous.”

“You have strings you can pull?” Josh asked, trying to make a joke to dispel his nervousness. Making the King angry was not a smart move.

The knight smirked. “Hey, maybe I get guys jealous, but there’s some powerful ladies that might lend us a hand if I ask. Don’t worry, I’m looking out for you, I promise.” He snapped his fingers twice to get the Mightyenas’ attention. “Nox, with me. Spartan, post yourself outside the door. Protect Josh and Serena, got it?”

Spartan wagged his tail and gave a soft woof, then trotted out of the room to stand guard. Nox obediently walked alongside Edwin as he went to go check on things. Once they were gone, Serena came back to Josh’s shoulder. She cooed worriedly.

Gently, he patted her neck. “Don’t worry. He may do a lot of dumb things, but he doesn’t break his promises.”

...

Emerald entry: It is said to be a Pokemon that brings good fortune. When it spots someone who is pure in heart, a Togetic appears and shares its happiness with that person.

Mightyena FR/LG entry: It will always obey the commands of a skilled Trainer. Its behavior arises from its living in packs in ancient times.