A Dragon's Might
Spiteful Murkrow
Busy Writing Stories I Want to Read
- Pronouns
- He/Him/His
- Partners
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Author's Note: Special thanks to @Venia Silente and @CinderArts for beta reading this one-shot.
You throw your tusks forward and they dig into your foe’s body, hacking twice against warm hide and drawing pained bellows that trail off as his strength leaves him. You hop to the side and crouch, watching from the corner of your eye as your Emboar opponent briefly totters, before toppling forward. He falls onto his belly against the battlefield floor, his fiery beard dimming down into faint flickers as he lays there defeated and unable to rise.
You flash a grin and open your tusked mouth to let out a bellow of your own in reply—one of triumph. His trainer recalls him, and you call after the vanishing ray of light sweeping him away with an unheard taunt:
“Hah! Come back and try again when you can take a chop, piggy!”
It’s not the most respectful thing to do, and some of your peers would frown on your gloating. But here in Opelucid Gym, competition is fierce, and after a hard-fought victory, you’ve earned the right to puff your chest out a bit.
Your assigned trainer goes for the Emboar’s and winnings are exchanged, as seems to be custom among humans who lead Pokémon whose partners are vanquished in battle. The Emboar was a tougher challenger than usual for your during your duties in this gym, but between your strength and the guidance of your assigned trainer, you pulled through easily enough.
The Gym Trainer recalls you, and you return back to your Pokéball, Opelucid Gym’s light-and-dark stone furnishings vanishing in favor of a mountainous forest with a river running through it. All fake, as Pokéball environments are, which the translucent images of the Gym’s interior in the world outside in the not-sky are quick to remind you. Even so, it still provides a degree of comfort, as you paw at not-stones alongside the not-river to run your tusks up against them.
You probably shouldn’t be complaining after your match, but you can’t help but feel a twinge of dissatisfaction over how much your challenger failed to live up to your expectations. It surely wouldn’t be an issue if you were consistently fighting under your real trainer’s guidance, and you wonder just how much longer she’s going to let you sit on the sidelines being bossed around by Gym temps.
You pout and kick a not-pebble into the not-river, when before you know it, the surrounding world around you vanishes and melts away. You find yourself in the Gym’s backroom, where the Gym Trainer is handing off your Pokéball to a girl with a large shock of purple hair:
Iris, your real trainer, who’s been making waves among humans lately for the guidance she gives her Pokémon and her companions’ strength. It’s why a good chunk of the time, it is her that handles the final match in this Gym instead of the old human fart who first sought her out as an apprentice. Off to her side are her Druddigon and Zweilous partners, who turn their heads curiously at you as they talk.
“How’d you do out there, Hatchet?”
But the voice you hear doesn’t come from them. You turn to your right and look up, as a Haxorus plods over and glances down at you, rubbing a claw against the top of your head. That’s your elder sister—Francesca, as humans call her—the captain of your real trainer’s team… even if it’s been ages since the two of you have fought alongside each other.
After all, Iris lately has only been taking you under her direction when Drayden needs her to handle weaker challengers that have made it to the end of the Gym. Your sister, however, gets to fight with the best of the best.
… Even if she’s all of five minutes older than you, and has only been a Haxorus for less than a year. You turn away and let out an unimpressed huff. Sure, you sound obviously jealous right now, but given the circumstances, how could you not be?
“Fine. As usual,” you harrumph. “Not like randoms in the gym puzzle usually bring the best teams in the world for their challenges.”
You feel claws cup pat at your shoulder, and look up to see your sister giving a knowing smile down.
“You’ll get to take part in more battles with Iris before you know it, Hatchet,” the Haxorus tells you. “Just hang in there until the next batch of rookies makes it through.”
You push your sister’s claw away with a sour frown. She probably said that to cheer you up, but right then, it just makes you feel like you’re being talked down to. Like a mother might to an Axew who’s splattered her first berry.
“But I’m literally beating them left and right!” you exclaim. “I’m just as tough as Head Case over there! So how come she’s the one being trained to be a lead for the tough teams and I’m not?”
“Hey!”
The Zweilous turns her heads at you and flashes their fangs with a pair of angry growls. Right, even if her eyesight’s bad enough for her to be effectively blind, the Zweilous’ keen sense of hearing sure has a way of filling in for it. Her name’s not really ‘Head Case’, you just call her that because it’s true and it’s kinda funny when it gets under her hide. Seriously, for a ‘mon who’s cheating you out of time you could be spending with your trainer, she could at least take a joke better.
You growl back in reply and flash your claws, when Iris spots you and hurriedly comes over. She stoops, asks something about you if you’re alright, and cups a hand under your chin for a scratch.
You tense up and can’t help but feel a flash of contentment. It always feels great when she does this, and for a moment your frustrations ebb away.
“Aah… that hits the spot… hey, wait, no!”
Only for them to come roaring back when you remind yourself you were upset for a reason. Even if other humans apparently call Iris a ‘girl who knows the hearts of dragons’, sometimes, she needs a bit of a nudge to get the hint. And so, you stomp over and take your place beside your elder sister. You motion at yourself, and then her with your claws and an adamant growl.
“I want to fight alongside her! Do you hear me? Her.”
Iris pauses a moment, when she turns to your sister and says something in her tongue that you miss. Your sister nods back, which prompts Iris to take your Pokéball and put it on her holster. Much to your surprise, she even goes a step further and takes Head Case’s off hers much to both of the Zweilous’ heads’ alarm.
“I-Iris?!”
“What are you doing?!”
Your trainer goes over to Head Case and pats at her. There’s some words exchanged, when the Zweilous hesitates and droops with a grudging sigh. Your command of human tongue has always been a bit shakier than your teammates, and you’re not sure if you heard everything Iris said correctly before you turn up to face your sister with a puzzled frown.
“Wait, huh? What’s going on?”
“You got what you wanted,” Francesca tells you. “You’ll be filling in for a while as the lead of Iris’ seven-badge team starting tomorrow.”
You blink in disbelief for a moment. Iris… is actually giving you what you want?
“Wait, I did…? I mean of course I did! You won’t regret this, Iris!”
Your trainer comes back over towards you and pats at your head. You can’t help but feel a swell of pride as she does, and turn your head past her to see Head Case shuffling her wings with a low grumble. You stick your tongue out at the Zweilous to rub things in a bit. Not that she’ll see it with her eyesight, but it’s the thought that counts.
You wag your tail and growl, happy and content, when you notice your sister looking away and giving an uneasy paw at her shoulder.
“Hey, what’s that look supposed to mean?” you ask.
“I… just felt that it was important to warn you in advance that as part of being the lead on a team, that it’ll be your job to take the brunt of attacks while Iris tries to figure out the opponent’s strategy,” Francesca says. “It’s often every bit as demanding of a role as being the ace of a team, and you should expect this to be noticeably more challenging than your normal battles.”
You scoff and have to fight yourself to not blow a raspberry in reply. You’re not that much younger than your sister, and if Iris is confident in your strength, then what is there to fear?
“You worry too much, sis,” you shoot back. “Look, I’ve already got experience being a team ace already and can keep on my toes with Dragon Dance. It should be a piece of cake!”
She doesn’t look convinced, but whatever. Nothing that winning a couple battles can’t fix for putting her worries to rest.
Bright and early in the morning the next day, you’re there on the Gym Leader’s battlefield, with a Zebstrika facing you down. He’s a bit more slippery than you expected thanks to using Flame Charge a couple times already, but his blows barely put a dent in your scales. He starts to gather sparks about his body, when Iris cries out for you to press your advantage with a Dual Chop.
You lunge forward, driving tusks trailing dragonfire into your foe’s flank with all your might one after the other. The Zebstrika reels from the first blow, while the second knocks him off his feet and sends him crumpling to the ground. You pant and watch tensely, as the sparks on his hide die down and he lets out a weak groan.
“That’s the power of Dragon Dance for ya! Learn to love it!”
You take a moment to bellow and crow in triumph as his human, some backpacker who looks like he just stumbled in fresh from Route 4, recalls him with a disappointed sigh. That’s one opponent down, and you’re pretty sure there’s just two more to go. The Zebstrika’s trainer reaches for his belt and sends out his next Pokémon in a flash of red light. As the light settles and fades away, you see red and white hide with black stripes—a Krookodile, flashing her jaws with a toothy grin.
“You look a bit worn down, Fraxure,” she taunts. “We all know you’re not going to come out of this match better off between the two of us, so how about you just quit and tag out for one of your teammates?”
You bare your fangs back with an unamused scoff. You’ve still got most of your strength, and with that Dragon Dance pumping you up earlier, you’re quick enough to dance circles around your foe. This ‘mon seriously thinks that she’s going to get the best of you?
“Tough talk for someone strutting around with a perpetual sunburn!” you snap back. “Hit me with your best shot!”
The Krookodile doesn’t say anything back, as a knowing smile comes over her face.
“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of holding back,” she replies. “Don’t say that I didn’t warn you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dual Chop again, and you lunge forward, your first blow finding its mark that draws a sharp yelp, while the Krookodile hurriedly scurries away from the second and leaves your tusk slicing through empty air. The Ground-type then stomps the ground and knocks you off your feet, which sends you pitching to the floor of the battlefield where you spit up dirt. While the Krookodile packs a punch, her attack didn’t hurt as badly as you were expecting. From the growing stiff feeling in your legs, she’s most likely hit you with Bulldoze.
“Hah… hah… so you slowed me down a bit,” you pant back. “You’re still not avoiding that beating that’s coming to you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dragon Claw this time and you get to your feet and take off running, dragonfire sprouting along your claws as you close in. Except this time, the Krookodile bides her time and stands her ground. You shrug things off when as you make it down the last few paces, something strange happens on the battlefield:
You hear ‘Dragon Claw’ called out again, but this time it’s the voice of the Krookodile’s trainer that says it.
“H-Huh?!”
And then the Krookodile’s claws come alight with dragonfire. Before you can do anything, she nails you with an uppercut to your chin. You feel your feet leave the floor of the battlefield, then your body twists in the air and you crash face-first to the ground. You skid briefly, your legs and tail swaying in empty air before they flop to the ground.
You lie there, trying to piece together what on earth happened as you try to push your body up with your claws. Except your strength just isn’t there, and you fall back down to the battlefield’s dirt with a weak groan.
“Ow.”
You didn’t know that Krookodile could use Dragon Claw, so the defeat came as a shock to you, even if in retrospect you probably should’ve seen it coming. You suppose you heard from others in the gym that most Pokémon had the potential to learn moves they normally couldn’t through one of those “tee-yem” thingies, but you didn’t realize that they would also let them learn a dragon’s moves, too.
No matter, it was surely just a fluke.
After a few hours’ rest, you are back out on the field as the lead an hour or so past noon, ready to massage your wounded pride with fresh victory. Especially since you’ve got a point to prove to your sister. Fortunately, that shouldn’t be all that hard for you from what you see of the next team, led by a human female with long red hair. Her first Pokémon takes his place on the battlefield and sizes you up with wide-set eyes, all as you furrow your brow with an unamused grunt.
“A Scraggy? Really? Your trainer’s gotten seven badges under her belt and you didn’t evolve at all before this point?”
Yes, a Scraggy, apparently. If the rounded head and exposed teeth didn’t already make it obvious, he pulls up the shed skin hugging his lower body up to his neck before letting it fall back down around his waist as his kind sometimes does. He narrows his eyes back at you afterwards, before turning away and folding his arms with a sharp huff.
“Hey, don’t knock me! I’m close to evolving! And even if I’m little, I pack a punch!” he protests. “Why, my trainer even says that she considers Scraggy to be dragons, too!
You’ve certainly heard those first protests a few times. Mostly from Pokémon who were all bark and no bite that you had no trouble defeating. Though Scraggy as dragons? That’s a new one. You let out a dismissive scoff in reply, before crouching and bracing for battle.
“Whatever, kid. I’m not the one who’s about to get wiped across the floor here.”
The Scraggy frowns, but doesn’t say anything in reply as the countdown to the match sounds. As soon as it ends, Iris calls out for a Dragon Dance and you thrash about in a frenzy, whirling around as dragonfire flecks your scales. You can feel yourself growing faster and stronger by the moment, and you turn back towards the Scraggy with a sneering grin and as you see him coming at you.
“Heh, make that blow count, Scraggy! Since it’s the only one you’re gonna-!”
You cut yourself off after hearing familiar words from the red-headed woman’s voice, ones of an attack that you’ve been practicing with Iris as of late.
“Wait, did your trainer just say ‘Dragon Tail’-?”
Much to your astonishment, the little lizard’s tail comes alight with dragonfire. Your eyes shrink and you hurriedly try to jump out of the way when you feel a sharp blow against your flank and go skidding along the side of the battlefield. You lose your footing and tumble, briefly seeing the lines marking where opponents go out of bounds when the surrounding world vanishes in a flash of light.
It took a while to register what on earth had happened, but the not-forest and not-river left little room for doubt. You’d been recalled to your Pokéball, since some way, somehow, that Scraggy had used a move that you’d still been practicing. He’d made it look downright effortless, and in spite of being significantly smaller than you, successfully managed to make you ring out.
Per human rules, that meant waiting for another opening to go back onto the field to fight. But the blow stung more than you expect, both to your body and even more to your pride. All the while, as your body lost the vigor of its Dragon Dance, you stomped and fumed in your Pokéball in a rage over the Scraggy’s slight.
“That lousy little newt! Iris! Hurry up and send me back out there!”
You even spat up a few attacks at the not-sky to try and force your way out. You could see the ball rock after a few of them, including from the Dragon Rage you just spat up, except when you do it this time, Iris’ hand clamps over it to hold it still. Much to your frustration, you won’t be forcing your way back onto the battlefield to get back into the fight today.
You throw a not-rock into the not-river with a disgusted fume and briefly notice the scenery change in the gaps between the translucent fingers of Iris’ hand. They take you off her holster and send you back out as the battlefield reappears in your field of vision, where the Scraggy is nowhere in sight. You throw a claw over your face and let out a seething growl. From what you could see of the world in your Pokéball’s sky, you gathered that your Druddigon teammate had been sent out in your place. Looks like she already mopped up the Scraggy before you could get even with him.
“Arrrrgh! I can’t believe I got cheated out of beating that lousy little pantslizard-!”
“‘Sup?”
You blink and look up to the other side of the battlefield, where standing at the other end is a Scrafty, pawing at his head crest as he shoots a smug grin back.
“Told ya I was close to evolving.”
The frustration leaves your body and it gives way to a quiet flash of fear. The most likely way that little lizard could’ve pulled this off is if he beat your Druddigon teammate in battle while you were sidelined. You breathe in and try to calm yourself after noticing scuffs from battle about the Dark-type’s body that seemingly confirm your suspicions. He might have bested your teammate, but it came at a price. And he just evolved, so he can’t be that much stronger…
That had to have been a fluke, too, right…?
Right?
The Scrafty pants for air, before winding up a punch with a knowing grin. He’s tired, but there’s a certain self-confidence about him that’s worrying you.
“By the way, do you want to know the other reason why my trainer says Scraggy and Scrafty are dragons?” he asks. “It’s because a lot of us have got a fighting spirit like a Salamence, including me! Every foe I drop just gets me more and more pumped and makes me hit harder and harder!”
Yes… you’ve heard about that as well from some of the others in the Gym. It’s not all that common, but every so often, there will be a Salamence that turns up in Unova with a fighting spirit just like that.
You’ve seen one of them fight before, and if this Scrafty is telling the truth, you’re in deep trouble right now.
You breathe in and out quickly as you put two and two together and realize the Dark-type really did beat your teammate. Meaning that you’ll be fighting him with this fighting spirit burning strong and yours worn down back to what it was when you first entered the battlefield. You fight back visible tremors and remind yourself that Scrafty are Dark-types. Who’s to say he’s telling the truth? For all you know, this is all some dirty trick on his part to fake you out to try to throw you off-balance.
“Y-You’re just saying stuff to get under my hide!” you cry back. “I’ll wipe the floor with you in no time!”
Iris cries out for you to throw a Dragon Claw forward, this time with all the force you can muster. A twinge of worry comes over you when you realize that even with your Dragon Dance’s invigorating effects worn off, she wants you to go on an all-out offensive. You opt not to question it, and with the might of a dragon, flecks of greenish fire erupt on your claw.
“Take this!”
Your claws dig into the Scrafty’s belly and make him stagger back a few places on the battlefield. He falls to his knees and slouches forward, wheezing and struggling to stay lucid after your blow.
You have a moment of satisfaction, confident that at last that you’ve gotten your revenge on the pantslizard, when a pair of words in human tongue cuts it short.
Once again, the red-haired woman calls out for ‘Dragon Tail’.
Your eyes shrink to pins and much to your embarrassment, you scream in fright as the Scrafty staggers to his feet and his tail comes alight with dragonfire. Blind panic overtakes you and even without Iris’ prompting, you turn and try to flee. Dragonfire fills the side of your vision and the next thing you feel is a crushing, burning pain, then your body skidding along the ground as you hit something hard behind you.
You look up as your vision runs muddy and see that you’re now at the side of the battlefield again, against its retaining wall. So the Scrafty wasn’t just getting into your head about being able to hit harder. You don’t bother trying to get up that time, as you wheeze for air and weakly raise a claw from the ground.
“A-Agh… m-medic!”
You also didn’t know that Scraggy of all Pokémon could use Dragon Tail. That defeat also particularly stung, especially since after you blacked out, you apparently missed out on the chance to do battle with some sort of turtle thing with a tree on its back and a self-roasting chicken that are both rare to this land. Battles that were it not for that Dragon Tail, you’d likely have had the strength to fight in.
You spent most of the day afterwards resting in the Gym’s infirmary again from your defeat and apparently Head Case had to step out to fill in for you with another challenger. Things are starting to get a bit embarrassing now, especially since you insisted to your sister that you were ready to serve as Iris’ lead for her seven-badge team. It’s not the end of the world to lose twice, but twice in a row? On the same day? Without even getting in a proper fight that last time?
As such, when you’re sent out onto the battlefield once again, for the last challenger of the day, you’re nervous and on edge. What sort of implausible Pokémon are you going to see wield a dragon’s strength this time? An Ampharos that somehow knows Dragon Pulse? You breathe in tensely as a human male takes the other end of the field and sends out his first Pokémon.
… It’s a Growlithe of all things, who wags his tail and lols his tongue briefly, before striking a determined pose.
“Heh, good battling to you, Fraxure,” he barks. “Let’s see how well you can keep up with me!”
You blink as the Puppy Pokémon takes the field, when you try and fail to hold back a laugh as fall onto your side and break out into loud guffaws.
“Sorry, sorry… I know that I’m not supposed to laugh at challengers on the job, but are you for real? A little puppy dog? What are you going to do? Roll over and ask me for a belly rub?”
The Growlithe flashes his teeth and growls back in annoyance, as Iris gives you an askew glance and the countdown to the match begins. As soon as it ends, the opposing trainer calls out his command. It takes you so aback that you miss Iris’ entirely, and stare blinking and dumbfounded.
“Wait, huh? Outrage-?”
You hear Iris frantically call you back to attention and look back at the Growlithe, when your mouth flops open in astonishment. The Growlithe is charging at you with his whole body wreathed in dragonfire, his eyes smoldering with rage and draconic might.
“Here’s your belly rub, jerk!”
You hurriedly try to stop his blow with a swipe of your own, but he throws himself forward into your gut, striking you with a blistering flurry of burning blows that knocks you off your feet and onto your back. You lay there on the ground as stars swirl in your eyes, spluttering and hacking in a disbelieving daze.
“N-Ngah… b-but you’re a Growlithe! A-And that was Outrage and-! H-How?!”
You don’t get an answer to that question before the Growlithe returns and runs you over with Outrage yet again. You tumble along the ground and your vision goes wobbly as you try to stumble back up.
You briefly hear what sounds like a raspberry as your strength gives out, and you flop to the ground as the world goes back.
You’re back in the infirmary in the rear of the Gym. Again. Once more, you woozily raise your head as you see bandages and lingering scuffs on parts of your body and the ceiling lights overhead with it looking dark outside from the window. Looks like that last fight beat you up a bit harder than the ones earlier today.
How on earth had this even happened? You expected to go into your battles to help Iris emerge victorious, not to spend most of it licking your wounds in bed!
“Hey.”
You roll onto your side and move your tusks to turn your head. Francesca’s apparently here, too. She looks down at your bed with a flash of worry in her black-and-red eyes.
“We pulled through in the end, but you looked like you were thrown around a bit out there, and those other battles earlier today weren’t exactly easy on you either,” she says. “Are you doing alright, Hatchet?”
You roll over onto your back and stare up at the ceiling, letting out a defeated groan.
“Fantastic,” you reply. “Couldn’t you tell?”
Francesa turns aside for a moment and shakes her head with a low sigh.
“I suppose I should have mentioned earlier that it’s not exactly rare for the stronger Pokémon that challenge this gym to wield Dragon-type moves against us,” your sister sighs. “After all, such Pokémon and their trainers tend to spend more time seeking out ways of exploiting the weaknesses of their opponents before mounting their challenges. And for us, that often means that they’ll come against us with the might of a dragon itself.”
You turn to the Haxorus with your teeth set in a nervous grimace. You know you told her and Iris that you were looking for a challenge, but you’re starting to think that you’ve gotten yourself in over your head.
“How long do I have to fill in for Head Case again?” you ask. “Since fighting rookies in the Gym puzzle suddenly doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Long enough that you might as well spend some time training up a bit more if you’re currently having trouble,” your sister sighs back. “Especially since I doubt that Growlithe will still be one whenever his trainer comes back for a rematch.”
You look away as a sinking feeling settles in your stomach as you’re faced with the prospect of day after day like this one awaiting you. You snap back to attention after claws paw at your shoulder and you look up to see your sister as she gives a tired shake of her head.
“Just try and rest up a bit, Hatchet,” she insists. “Iris is in charge of handling challengers the rest of this week, and we’ll likely be facing more again sooner rather than later. Drayden apparently met a younger trainer in town earlier today from Nuvema Town that his companions from the League have been talking about for some reason.”
Your sister shuffles off and leaves you to stare up at the ceiling blankly. You feel a bit embarrassed for not knowing it prior today, but you didn’t realize just how many Pokémon could fight like a dragon in spite of not being one. If you had, maybe you wouldn’t have been so quick to press for taking the lead on Iris’ team for whenever she has to face down her toughest foes at this gym.
… No. You won’t back down here. A dragon never gives in. A dragon never yields. Not so long as they cling to life. Maybe your sister’s right and all you need is to toughen up a bit more so these surprises don’t catch you off-guard as badly. Why, you could even get started right now-!
You try to get up and hear something crick in your back. You yelp, before falling back into your bedding with a tired pant, pawing at your wounds before you curl up with a low groan.
… You’ll get started with that training. First thing tomorrow. Assuming there’s time before that challenger Francesca mentioned comes by.
Original Drabble:
You throw your tusks forward and they find purchase, hacking twice against warm hide and drawing a pained bellow. You run forward and look back, seeing your Emboar opponent as he briefly totters, before toppling onto his belly onto the battlefield floor, his beard extinguishing along with his strength as he lays there.
You flash a grin and open your tusked mouth to let out a bellow of triumph. His trainer recalls him, and you call after the vanishing light with an unheard taunt:
“Hah! Come back and try again when you can take a swipe!”
Your assigned trainer goes for the Emboar’s trainer, and as seems to be customary among humans leading Pokémon after defeat, winnings are exchanged. The Emboar was a tougher challenger than most that you’ve faced out here in Opelucid Gym, but between your strength and the direction of your assigned trainer, it was a cinch.
The Gym Trainer recalls you, and you return back to your Pokéball, Opelucid Gym’s light-and-dark stone furnishings vanishing for a mountainous forest with a river running through it. All fake, as Pokéball environments are, as the translucent images of the world outside in the sky remind. But it still provides a degree of comfort, as you paw at not-stones along the not-river to run your tusks up against them.
You probably shouldn’t be complaining, but you can’t help but feel a twinge of dissatisfaction over how much your challenger failed to live up to your expectations. It would surely not be an issue were you fighting under your real trainer consistently, and you wonder just how much longer she’s going to leave you to be bossed around by Gym temps.
You pout and kick a not-pebble into the not-river, when before it you know it, the surrounding world vanishes away around you, and you find yourself in the Gym’s backroom. The Gym Trainer is handing off your Pokéball to a girl with a large shock of purple hair. Iris, your trainer, who’s apparently been making waves for her direction and her Pokémon’s strength, which is why a good chunk of the time, she handles the final match in this Gym instead of the old human fart who sought her out as an apprentice. Off to her side is her Druddigon and Zweilous partners, who turn their heads curiously at you as they talk.
“How’d you do out there, Hatchet?”
You turn and look up, as a Haxorus plods over and looks down at you, rubbing a claw against your head. That’s your elder sister, Francesca, the ace of your real trainer’s team… even if it’s been ages since the two of you have fought alongside each other.
After all, Iris only takes you under her direction when Drayden needs her to handle a weaker challenger that’s made it to the end of the Gym. Your sister, however, gets to fight with the best of the best.
… Even if she’s all of 5 minutes older than you, and has only been a Haxorus for less than a year. You turn away and let out an unimpressed huff. Sure you obviously sound jealous right now, but given the circumstances how could you not be?
“Fine, as usual,” you harrumph. “Not like randoms in the gym puzzle usually bringing the best teams in the world to fight.”
You feel claws cup pat at your shoulder, and look up to see your sister giving a knowing smile down.
“You’ll get to do more battles with Iris before you know it, Hatchet,” the Haxorus tells you. “Just hang in there until the next batch of rookies makes it through.”
You push her claw away with a sour frown. She probably meant that to cheer you up, but right then, it makes you feel like you’re being talked down to. Like a parent might to an Axew that’s splattered her first berry.
“But I’m literally beating them left and right!” you exclaim. “I’m just as tough as Head Case over there, so how come she’s the one getting trained to be a lead for the tough teams and I’m not?”
“Hey!”
The Zweilous turns her heads at you and flashes her fangs at you. Right, even if her eyesight’s bad enough to be effectively blind, her keen sense of hearing sure has a way of filling in for it. Her name’s not really ‘Head Case’, you just say it because it’s true and kinda funny when it gets under her hide. Seriously, for a ‘mon who’s cheating you out of time with your trainer, she could take a joke a bit better.
You growl back in reply and flash your claws, when Iris turns and comes over. She stoops, asks something about you being alright, and cups a hand under your chin for a scratch.
You tense up and can’t help but feel a flash of content. It always feels great when she does this, and for a moment your frustrations ebb away.
“Aah… that hits the spot… hey, wait, no!”
Only for them to come back when you remind yourself you were upset for a reason. Even if other humans supposedly call Iris a ‘girl who knows the hearts of dragons’, sometimes, she needs a bit of a nudge to get the hint. And so, you stomp over beside your elder sister, and then motion at yourself, and then her with your claws and an adamant growl.
“I want to fight alongside her! Do you hear me? Her.”
Iris pauses a moment, when she turns up to your sister and says something in her tongue that you miss. Your sister nods back, when she takes your Pokéball and puts it on her holster, and takes Head Case’s off hers much to both the Zweilous head’s alarm.
“I-Iris?!”
“What are you doing?!”
Your trainer goes over to Head Case and pats at her. There’s some words exchanged, when the Zweilous hesitates and droops with a grudging sigh. Your command of human tongue has always been a bit weaker than your teammates, and you’re not sure if you heard everything Iris said and turn up with a puzzled frown to your sister.
“Wait, huh? What’s going on?”
“You got what you wanted,” Francesca replies. “You’ll be filling in as the lead of Iris’ 7-badge team for a while.”
You blink in disbelief for a moment. Iris… is actually giving you what you want?
“Wait, I did…? I mean of course I did! You won’t regret this!”
Your trainer comes back over towards you and pats at your head. You can’t but help but feel a swell of pride, and turn your head past her to stick your tongue out at the Zweilous as a taunt. Not that Head Case will see it with her eyesight, but it’s the thought that counts.
You wag your tail, happy and content, when you notice your sister looking away and giving an uneasy paw at your shoulder.
“Hey, what’s that look supposed to mean?” you press.
“I… just felt that it was important to warn you in advance that as part of being on a 7-badge team, that it’ll be your job to take the brunt of attacks while Iris tries to figure out the opponent’s strategy,” Francesca tells you. “It’s often every bit as demanding of a role as being the main battler on a team.”
You scoff and all but blow a raspberry in reply. You’re not that much younger than your sister, and if Iris is confident in your strength, then what is there to fear?
“You worry too much, sis,” you shoot back. “Look, I’ve already got experience being a main battler already and can keep on my toes with Dragon Dance, so it should be a piece of cake!”
She doesn’t look convinced, but whatever. Nothing that a couple battles can’t fix to put her mind to rest.
A couple hours later, you’re there at the Gym Leader’s battlefield, with a Zebstrika facing you down. He’s a bit more slippery than you expected thanks to using Flame Charge a couple times, but they barely put a dent in your scales, and as he gathers sparks about his body, Iris cries out for you to press your advantage with a Dragon Glaw.
You lunge forward, raking claws trailing dragonfire over your foe’s flank with all your might. The Zebstrika reels from the first, while the second knocks him off his feet and sends him crumpling to the ground. You pant and watch tensely, when the sparks around his body die down and he lets out a weak groan.
“Hah! That’s the power of Dragon Dance for ya! Learn to love it!”
You take a moment to bellow in triumph as his human, some backpacker who looks like he just stumbled fresh off from Route 4, recalls him with a disappointed sigh. That’s one opponent down, and you’re pretty sure there’s just two more to go. The Zebstrika’s trainer reaches for his belt and sends out his next Pokémon in a flash of red light. You see red and white hide with black stripes as the dust clears, and look up to see a Krookodile, flashing her jaws with a toothy grin.
“Heh, you look a bit worn down, Fraxure,” she taunts. “We all know you’re not going to come out the better of the two of us in this match, so how about you just quit and tag out for your teammates?”
You bare your fangs back with an unamused scoff. You’ve still got most of your strength, and with that Dragon Dance getting you pumped. This ‘mon seriously thinks that she’s going to get the best of you?
“Tough talk for someone strutting around with a perpetual sunburn!” you snap back. “Hit me with your best shot, bub!”
The Krookodile doesn’t say anything back, as a knowing smile comes over her face.
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll manage,” she answers. “And don’t say I didn’t warn you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dragon Claw again, and you lunge forward, your first blow finding its mark that draws a sharp yelp, while the Krookodile hurriedly scurries away from the second and lets you hit empty air. Then she stomps the ground and knocks you off your feet. You hit the ground and spit up dirt. While the Krookodile packs a punch, doesn’t hurt as much as you were expecting and from the stiff feeling in your legs, you gather that she’s hit you with Bulldoze.
“Hrmph, so you slowed me down a bit,” you scoff. “You’re still not ducking getting that beating that’s coming to you!”
Iris calls out for another Dragon Claw and you get to your feet and take off running, dragonfire sprouting along your claws as you close in. Except this time, the Krookodile bides her time. You shrug the matter off when as you make it down the last few paces, something strange happens on the battlefield:
You hear ‘Dragon Claw’ again, this time from the Krookodile’s trainer.
“H-Huh?!”
This time, the Krookodile’s claws come alight with dragonfire, and before you can do anything, she nails you with an uppercut to your chin. You feel your feet leave the ground of the battlefield, twist in the earth and crash face-first to the ground. You skid briefly, your legs and tail swaying in empty air before the flop to the ground.
You lie there, trying to piece together what on earth happened and try to push your body up with your claws, only to fall back down with a weak groan.
“Ow.”
You didn’t know Krookodile could use Dragon Claw, so the defeat comes as a shock to you, even if in retrospect you probably seen it coming. You suppose you have heard from your peers in the gym that a number of Pokémon could learn moves they normally couldn’t through one of those “tee-yem” thingies, but you didn’t realize that dragon’s moves would be included that.
No matter, it was surely just a fluke. After a few hours’ rest, you are back out on the field as the lead, ready to massage your wounded pride with fresh victory. Especially since you’ve got a point to prove. Fortunately, that shouldn’t be all that hard based off the next team, belonging to a human female with long red hair. Her first Pokémon takes his place on the battlefield and sizes you up with wide-set eyes, all as you furrow your brow with an unamused grunt.
“A Scraggy. Really? Your trainer’s gotten seven badges under her belt and you didn’t evolve at all before this point?”
Yes, a Scraggy apparently. If the rounded head and exposed teeth didn’t get the point across, he pulls up the shed skin hugging his body up to his neck before letting it fall back down around his waist before turning away and folding his arms with a sharp pipe.
“Hey, don’t knock me, I’m close to evolving and I pack a punch!” he retorts. “And my trainer says that some humans say that Scraggy are dragons, too!
You’ve certainly heard that first one a few times. Though Scraggy as dragons, that’s a new one. You let out a dismissive scoff in reply, before crouching and bracing for battle.
“Whatever, kid. I’m not the one who’s going to get wiped over the floor here.”
The Scraggy frowns, but doesn’t say anything in reply as the countdown to the match sounds. As soon as it ends, Iris calls out for a Dragon Dance and you enter a frenzied dance, whirling around as dragonfire flecks your scales. You can feel yourself growing faster and stronger by the moment, and you turn back towards the Scraggy with a sneering grin and see him coming at you.
“Heh, hit me with your best shot, Scraggy. Since it’s the only one you’re gonna-”
You cut yourself off after hearing familiar words from the red-headed woman, ones of an attack that you’ve been practicing with Iris as of late.
“Wait, did your trainer just say ‘Dragon Tail’-?”
Much to your astonishment, the little lizard’s tail comes alight with dragonfire. Your eyes shrink and you hurriedly try to duck out of the way when you feel a sharp blow and go skidding along the side of the battlefield. You lose your footing and tumble, briefly seeing the lines marking where opponents go out of bounds when the surrounding world vanishes in light.
It took a while to register what on earth had happened, but the not-forest and not-river left little room for doubt. You had been recalled back to your Pokéball, since some way, somehow, that Scraggy had managed to make you ring out.
Per human rules, that means waiting for another opening to go back on the field to fight. But the blow stung more than you expect, and even moreso to your pride. The whole time, as your body lost the vigor of its Dragon Dance, you stomped and fumed in your Pokéball with rage over the Scraggy’s slight.
“That lousy cowardly little newt! Iris! Hurry up and send me back out there!”
You even spat up a few attacks at the not-sky to try and force your way out. You saw the ball rock, except when you do it this time, Iris’ hand to clamps over it to hold it still. Much to your frustration, you won’t be forcing your way out today to get back into the fight.
You throw a not-rock into the not-river with a disgusted fume and briefly notice the scenery change in the gaps between the translucent fingers of Iris’ hand. They take you off her holster and send you back out as the arena reappears in your field of vision, where the Scraggy is nowhere in sight. You throw a claw over your face and let out a seething growl. Looks like the Scraggy’s already lost to another fight.
“Arrrrgh! I can’t believe I got cheated out of beating that lousy little pantslizard-!”
“‘Sup?”
You blink and look up to the other side of the battlefield, where there is a Scrafty, pawing at his headcrest with a smug grin back.
“Told ya I was close to evolving.”
The frustration leaves your body and is replaced with a quiet flash of fear. The most likely way that little lizard could’ve pulled this off is if he beat your Druddigon teammate in your battle. You breathe in and try to calm yourself after noticing scuffs about the Dark-type’s body. He might have won the battle, but it came at a price. And he’s just evolved, so he can’t be that much stronger…
Right?
The Scrafty pants, before winding up a punch with a knowing grin. He’s tired, but there’s a certain self-confidence to him that’s got you worried.
“By the way, do you want to know the other reason why my trainer says Scraggy and Scrafty are dragons?” he asks. “It’s because a lot of them have got a fighting spirit like a Salamence, including me! Every foe I drop just gets me more and more pumped and makes me hit harder and harder!”
Yes… you’ve heard about that from some of the others from the Gym. It’s not all that common, but every so often, there will be a Salamence turn up in Unova with a fighting spirit just like that.
You breathe in and out quickly as you put two and two together and realize the Dark-type really did beat your teammate. Meaning that you’ll be facing him with this fighting spirit burning strong. You fight back visible tremors and tell yourself that Scrafty are Dark-types, so for all you know this is all some dirty trick to fake you out and throw you off your game.
“Y-You’re just saying stuff to get under my hide!” you cry back. “I’ll wipe the floor with you in no time!”
Iris cries out for you to throw a Dragon Claw forward, this time with all the force you can muster. A twinge of worry comes over you when you realize that even with its invigorating effects worn off, she wants you to go all-out on offense. You opt not to question it, and with the might of a dragon, flecks of greenish fire erupt on your claw.
“Take this!”
Your claws rake the Scrafty’s belly and he lurches back from his place a few places. He falls to his knees and slouches forward, wheezing and struggling to stay lucid after your blow.
You have a moment of satisfaction, confident that at last, you’ve gotten your revenge on the pantslizard until a pair of words in human tongue cut it short.
Once again, the red-haired woman calls out for ‘Dragon Tail’.
Your eyes shrink to pins and you squeal in fright as the Scrafty staggers to his feet and his tail begins to come alight. Blind panic overtakes you as even without Iris’ prompting your turn and start to bolt as dragonfire fills the side of your vision. The next thing you feel is a crushing, burning pain and your body skidding along the ground as you hit something hard behind you.
You look up as your vision runs muddy and see that you’re now at the side of the battlefield. So the Scrafty wasn’t just getting into your head about being able to get harder. You don’t bother trying to get up that time, as you wheeze for air and weakly raise a claw from the ground.
“A-Agh… m-medic!”
You also didn’t know that Scraggy of all Pokémon could use Dragon Tail. That defeat also particularly stung, especially since afterwards you apparently missed out on the chance to do battle some sort of turtle thing with a tree on its back and a self-roasting chicken that are rare to this land. Battles that were it not for that Dragon Tail, you’d likely have been there to fight.
You spend most of the day afterwards resting from your defeat again and apparently Head Case had to step out to fill in for you with another challenger. You’re starting to feel a bit embarrassed now, especially since you insisted to your sister that you were ready to serve as Iris’ lead. It’s not the end of the world to lose twice, but twice back-to-back? Without even getting in a proper fight?
As such, when you’re sent out onto the battlefield again this time, for the last challenger of the day, you’re nervous and on edge. What sort of implausible Pokémon are you going to see wield a dragon’s strength this time? An Ampharos at this rate? You breathe in tensely as a human male takes the other end of the field and sends out his first Pokémon. … It’s a Growlithe of all things, who wags his tail and lols his tongue briefly, before striking a determined pose.
“Heh, good battling to you, Fraxure,” he barks. “Let’s see how well you can keep up with me!”
You blink as the Puppy Pokémon takes the field, when you try and fail to hold back a laugh as fall onto your side and break out into loud guffaws.
“Sorry, sorry… I know that I’m not supposed to laugh on the job, but are you for real? A little puppy dog? What are you going to do? Roll over and ask me for a belly rub?”
The Growlithe flashes his teeth and growls back in annoyance, as Iris gives you an askew glance and the countdown to the match begins. As soon it concludes, the opposing trainer calls out his command. It takes you so aback that you miss Iris’ entirely, and stare blinking and dumbfounded.
“Wait, huh? Outrage-?”
You hear Iris frantically call you back to attention and glance up, where your mouth flops open in astonishment. The Growlithe is charging at you with his whole body wreathed in dragon fire, eyes smoldering with rage and draconic might.
“Here’s your belly rub, jerk!”
You hurriedly try to stop him with a swipe of your own, but he throws himself forward into your gut, hitting you with a blistering flurry of burning blows that knocks you off your feet and onto your back. You lay there on the ground as stars swirl in your eyes, and you splutter in a disbelieving daze.
“N-Ngah… but you’re a Growlithe. A-And that was Outrage and- H-How?!”
You don’t get an answer to that question, only for the Growlithe to run you over with Outrage yet again. You tumble along the ground and your vision goes wobbly as you try to stumble back up.
You briefly hear what sounds like a raspberry when your strength gives out, and you flop to the ground as the world goes back.
You’re back in the infirmary in the back of the Gym now. Again, woozily raising your head as you see bandages and lingering scuffs on parts of your body and the ceiling lights overhead. How on earth had this even happened today? You expected to go into your battles to help Iris emerge victorious, not to be licking your wounds in bed.
“Hey.”
You roll onto your side and move your tusks to turn your head. Francesca’s there with you, too. Looking down at your bed with a flash of worry in her black-and-red eyes.
“We pulled through in the end, but you look like you got thrown around a bit out there,” she says. “Those other battles you were in earlier today weren’t exactly easy on you either, so are you holding alright?”
You roll over onto your back and stare up at the ceiling, letting out a defeated groan.
“Fantastic,” you reply. “Couldn’t you tell?”
“I suppose I should have mentioned earlier that it’s not exactly rare for stronger Pokémon to use Dragon-type moves against us,” your sister sighs. “After all, such Pokémon and their trainers will try and seek out ways of exploiting the weaknesses of their opponents. And for us, that is often the might of a dragon itself.”
You turn to the Haxorus with your teeth set in a nervous grimace. You were looking for a challenge, but you’re starting to think that you’ve gotten yourself in over your head.
“How long do I have to fill in for Head Case again?” you ask. “Since fighting rookies in the Gym puzzle suddenly doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Long enough that you might as well get used to training up a bit more if you’re having trouble,” your sister sighs back. “Especially since I doubt that Growlithe will still be one whenever his trainer comes back for a rematch.”
You feel a sinking feeling in your stomach, and look away. You feel your sister paw at you and look up at her as she gives a tired shake of her head.
“Just try and rest up a bit, Hatchet,” she insists. “Iris is in charge of handling challengers the rest of this week, and we’ll likely be facing more again tomorrow. Drayden apparently met a younger trainer who caught his companions’ eye in town earlier today.”
Your sister shuffles off as stare up at the ceiling blankly. You feel a bit embarrassed for not knowing it prior today, but you didn’t realize just how many Pokémon could fight like a dragon in spite of not being one. If you had, perhaps you wouldn’t have been so quick to press for a place as Iris’ lead for when she has to face down her toughest foes.
… No. You won’t back down here. A dragon never gives in. A dragon never yields. Not so long as they cling to life. Maybe your sister’s right and all you need is to toughen up a bit more so these surprises don’t catch you so off-guard. Why you could even get started right now-!
You try to get up and hear something crick in your back. You yelp, before falling back into your bedding with a tired pant and curl up with a pant, pawing at your wounds.
… You’ll get started with that training. First thing tomorrow.
A Dragon’s Might
You throw your tusks forward and they dig into your foe’s body, hacking twice against warm hide and drawing pained bellows that trail off as his strength leaves him. You hop to the side and crouch, watching from the corner of your eye as your Emboar opponent briefly totters, before toppling forward. He falls onto his belly against the battlefield floor, his fiery beard dimming down into faint flickers as he lays there defeated and unable to rise.
You flash a grin and open your tusked mouth to let out a bellow of your own in reply—one of triumph. His trainer recalls him, and you call after the vanishing ray of light sweeping him away with an unheard taunt:
“Hah! Come back and try again when you can take a chop, piggy!”
It’s not the most respectful thing to do, and some of your peers would frown on your gloating. But here in Opelucid Gym, competition is fierce, and after a hard-fought victory, you’ve earned the right to puff your chest out a bit.
Your assigned trainer goes for the Emboar’s and winnings are exchanged, as seems to be custom among humans who lead Pokémon whose partners are vanquished in battle. The Emboar was a tougher challenger than usual for your during your duties in this gym, but between your strength and the guidance of your assigned trainer, you pulled through easily enough.
The Gym Trainer recalls you, and you return back to your Pokéball, Opelucid Gym’s light-and-dark stone furnishings vanishing in favor of a mountainous forest with a river running through it. All fake, as Pokéball environments are, which the translucent images of the Gym’s interior in the world outside in the not-sky are quick to remind you. Even so, it still provides a degree of comfort, as you paw at not-stones alongside the not-river to run your tusks up against them.
You probably shouldn’t be complaining after your match, but you can’t help but feel a twinge of dissatisfaction over how much your challenger failed to live up to your expectations. It surely wouldn’t be an issue if you were consistently fighting under your real trainer’s guidance, and you wonder just how much longer she’s going to let you sit on the sidelines being bossed around by Gym temps.
You pout and kick a not-pebble into the not-river, when before you know it, the surrounding world around you vanishes and melts away. You find yourself in the Gym’s backroom, where the Gym Trainer is handing off your Pokéball to a girl with a large shock of purple hair:
Iris, your real trainer, who’s been making waves among humans lately for the guidance she gives her Pokémon and her companions’ strength. It’s why a good chunk of the time, it is her that handles the final match in this Gym instead of the old human fart who first sought her out as an apprentice. Off to her side are her Druddigon and Zweilous partners, who turn their heads curiously at you as they talk.
“How’d you do out there, Hatchet?”
But the voice you hear doesn’t come from them. You turn to your right and look up, as a Haxorus plods over and glances down at you, rubbing a claw against the top of your head. That’s your elder sister—Francesca, as humans call her—the captain of your real trainer’s team… even if it’s been ages since the two of you have fought alongside each other.
After all, Iris lately has only been taking you under her direction when Drayden needs her to handle weaker challengers that have made it to the end of the Gym. Your sister, however, gets to fight with the best of the best.
… Even if she’s all of five minutes older than you, and has only been a Haxorus for less than a year. You turn away and let out an unimpressed huff. Sure, you sound obviously jealous right now, but given the circumstances, how could you not be?
“Fine. As usual,” you harrumph. “Not like randoms in the gym puzzle usually bring the best teams in the world for their challenges.”
You feel claws cup pat at your shoulder, and look up to see your sister giving a knowing smile down.
“You’ll get to take part in more battles with Iris before you know it, Hatchet,” the Haxorus tells you. “Just hang in there until the next batch of rookies makes it through.”
You push your sister’s claw away with a sour frown. She probably said that to cheer you up, but right then, it just makes you feel like you’re being talked down to. Like a mother might to an Axew who’s splattered her first berry.
“But I’m literally beating them left and right!” you exclaim. “I’m just as tough as Head Case over there! So how come she’s the one being trained to be a lead for the tough teams and I’m not?”
“Hey!”
The Zweilous turns her heads at you and flashes their fangs with a pair of angry growls. Right, even if her eyesight’s bad enough for her to be effectively blind, the Zweilous’ keen sense of hearing sure has a way of filling in for it. Her name’s not really ‘Head Case’, you just call her that because it’s true and it’s kinda funny when it gets under her hide. Seriously, for a ‘mon who’s cheating you out of time you could be spending with your trainer, she could at least take a joke better.
You growl back in reply and flash your claws, when Iris spots you and hurriedly comes over. She stoops, asks something about you if you’re alright, and cups a hand under your chin for a scratch.
You tense up and can’t help but feel a flash of contentment. It always feels great when she does this, and for a moment your frustrations ebb away.
“Aah… that hits the spot… hey, wait, no!”
Only for them to come roaring back when you remind yourself you were upset for a reason. Even if other humans apparently call Iris a ‘girl who knows the hearts of dragons’, sometimes, she needs a bit of a nudge to get the hint. And so, you stomp over and take your place beside your elder sister. You motion at yourself, and then her with your claws and an adamant growl.
“I want to fight alongside her! Do you hear me? Her.”
Iris pauses a moment, when she turns to your sister and says something in her tongue that you miss. Your sister nods back, which prompts Iris to take your Pokéball and put it on her holster. Much to your surprise, she even goes a step further and takes Head Case’s off hers much to both of the Zweilous’ heads’ alarm.
“I-Iris?!”
“What are you doing?!”
Your trainer goes over to Head Case and pats at her. There’s some words exchanged, when the Zweilous hesitates and droops with a grudging sigh. Your command of human tongue has always been a bit shakier than your teammates, and you’re not sure if you heard everything Iris said correctly before you turn up to face your sister with a puzzled frown.
“Wait, huh? What’s going on?”
“You got what you wanted,” Francesca tells you. “You’ll be filling in for a while as the lead of Iris’ seven-badge team starting tomorrow.”
You blink in disbelief for a moment. Iris… is actually giving you what you want?
“Wait, I did…? I mean of course I did! You won’t regret this, Iris!”
Your trainer comes back over towards you and pats at your head. You can’t help but feel a swell of pride as she does, and turn your head past her to see Head Case shuffling her wings with a low grumble. You stick your tongue out at the Zweilous to rub things in a bit. Not that she’ll see it with her eyesight, but it’s the thought that counts.
You wag your tail and growl, happy and content, when you notice your sister looking away and giving an uneasy paw at her shoulder.
“Hey, what’s that look supposed to mean?” you ask.
“I… just felt that it was important to warn you in advance that as part of being the lead on a team, that it’ll be your job to take the brunt of attacks while Iris tries to figure out the opponent’s strategy,” Francesca says. “It’s often every bit as demanding of a role as being the ace of a team, and you should expect this to be noticeably more challenging than your normal battles.”
You scoff and have to fight yourself to not blow a raspberry in reply. You’re not that much younger than your sister, and if Iris is confident in your strength, then what is there to fear?
“You worry too much, sis,” you shoot back. “Look, I’ve already got experience being a team ace already and can keep on my toes with Dragon Dance. It should be a piece of cake!”
She doesn’t look convinced, but whatever. Nothing that winning a couple battles can’t fix for putting her worries to rest.
Bright and early in the morning the next day, you’re there on the Gym Leader’s battlefield, with a Zebstrika facing you down. He’s a bit more slippery than you expected thanks to using Flame Charge a couple times already, but his blows barely put a dent in your scales. He starts to gather sparks about his body, when Iris cries out for you to press your advantage with a Dual Chop.
You lunge forward, driving tusks trailing dragonfire into your foe’s flank with all your might one after the other. The Zebstrika reels from the first blow, while the second knocks him off his feet and sends him crumpling to the ground. You pant and watch tensely, as the sparks on his hide die down and he lets out a weak groan.
“That’s the power of Dragon Dance for ya! Learn to love it!”
You take a moment to bellow and crow in triumph as his human, some backpacker who looks like he just stumbled in fresh from Route 4, recalls him with a disappointed sigh. That’s one opponent down, and you’re pretty sure there’s just two more to go. The Zebstrika’s trainer reaches for his belt and sends out his next Pokémon in a flash of red light. As the light settles and fades away, you see red and white hide with black stripes—a Krookodile, flashing her jaws with a toothy grin.
“You look a bit worn down, Fraxure,” she taunts. “We all know you’re not going to come out of this match better off between the two of us, so how about you just quit and tag out for one of your teammates?”
You bare your fangs back with an unamused scoff. You’ve still got most of your strength, and with that Dragon Dance pumping you up earlier, you’re quick enough to dance circles around your foe. This ‘mon seriously thinks that she’s going to get the best of you?
“Tough talk for someone strutting around with a perpetual sunburn!” you snap back. “Hit me with your best shot!”
The Krookodile doesn’t say anything back, as a knowing smile comes over her face.
“Oh, I wouldn’t dream of holding back,” she replies. “Don’t say that I didn’t warn you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dual Chop again, and you lunge forward, your first blow finding its mark that draws a sharp yelp, while the Krookodile hurriedly scurries away from the second and leaves your tusk slicing through empty air. The Ground-type then stomps the ground and knocks you off your feet, which sends you pitching to the floor of the battlefield where you spit up dirt. While the Krookodile packs a punch, her attack didn’t hurt as badly as you were expecting. From the growing stiff feeling in your legs, she’s most likely hit you with Bulldoze.
“Hah… hah… so you slowed me down a bit,” you pant back. “You’re still not avoiding that beating that’s coming to you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dragon Claw this time and you get to your feet and take off running, dragonfire sprouting along your claws as you close in. Except this time, the Krookodile bides her time and stands her ground. You shrug things off when as you make it down the last few paces, something strange happens on the battlefield:
You hear ‘Dragon Claw’ called out again, but this time it’s the voice of the Krookodile’s trainer that says it.
“H-Huh?!”
And then the Krookodile’s claws come alight with dragonfire. Before you can do anything, she nails you with an uppercut to your chin. You feel your feet leave the floor of the battlefield, then your body twists in the air and you crash face-first to the ground. You skid briefly, your legs and tail swaying in empty air before they flop to the ground.
You lie there, trying to piece together what on earth happened as you try to push your body up with your claws. Except your strength just isn’t there, and you fall back down to the battlefield’s dirt with a weak groan.
“Ow.”
You didn’t know that Krookodile could use Dragon Claw, so the defeat came as a shock to you, even if in retrospect you probably should’ve seen it coming. You suppose you heard from others in the gym that most Pokémon had the potential to learn moves they normally couldn’t through one of those “tee-yem” thingies, but you didn’t realize that they would also let them learn a dragon’s moves, too.
No matter, it was surely just a fluke.
After a few hours’ rest, you are back out on the field as the lead an hour or so past noon, ready to massage your wounded pride with fresh victory. Especially since you’ve got a point to prove to your sister. Fortunately, that shouldn’t be all that hard for you from what you see of the next team, led by a human female with long red hair. Her first Pokémon takes his place on the battlefield and sizes you up with wide-set eyes, all as you furrow your brow with an unamused grunt.
“A Scraggy? Really? Your trainer’s gotten seven badges under her belt and you didn’t evolve at all before this point?”
Yes, a Scraggy, apparently. If the rounded head and exposed teeth didn’t already make it obvious, he pulls up the shed skin hugging his lower body up to his neck before letting it fall back down around his waist as his kind sometimes does. He narrows his eyes back at you afterwards, before turning away and folding his arms with a sharp huff.
“Hey, don’t knock me! I’m close to evolving! And even if I’m little, I pack a punch!” he protests. “Why, my trainer even says that she considers Scraggy to be dragons, too!
You’ve certainly heard those first protests a few times. Mostly from Pokémon who were all bark and no bite that you had no trouble defeating. Though Scraggy as dragons? That’s a new one. You let out a dismissive scoff in reply, before crouching and bracing for battle.
“Whatever, kid. I’m not the one who’s about to get wiped across the floor here.”
The Scraggy frowns, but doesn’t say anything in reply as the countdown to the match sounds. As soon as it ends, Iris calls out for a Dragon Dance and you thrash about in a frenzy, whirling around as dragonfire flecks your scales. You can feel yourself growing faster and stronger by the moment, and you turn back towards the Scraggy with a sneering grin and as you see him coming at you.
“Heh, make that blow count, Scraggy! Since it’s the only one you’re gonna-!”
You cut yourself off after hearing familiar words from the red-headed woman’s voice, ones of an attack that you’ve been practicing with Iris as of late.
“Wait, did your trainer just say ‘Dragon Tail’-?”
Much to your astonishment, the little lizard’s tail comes alight with dragonfire. Your eyes shrink and you hurriedly try to jump out of the way when you feel a sharp blow against your flank and go skidding along the side of the battlefield. You lose your footing and tumble, briefly seeing the lines marking where opponents go out of bounds when the surrounding world vanishes in a flash of light.
It took a while to register what on earth had happened, but the not-forest and not-river left little room for doubt. You’d been recalled to your Pokéball, since some way, somehow, that Scraggy had used a move that you’d still been practicing. He’d made it look downright effortless, and in spite of being significantly smaller than you, successfully managed to make you ring out.
Per human rules, that meant waiting for another opening to go back onto the field to fight. But the blow stung more than you expect, both to your body and even more to your pride. All the while, as your body lost the vigor of its Dragon Dance, you stomped and fumed in your Pokéball in a rage over the Scraggy’s slight.
“That lousy little newt! Iris! Hurry up and send me back out there!”
You even spat up a few attacks at the not-sky to try and force your way out. You could see the ball rock after a few of them, including from the Dragon Rage you just spat up, except when you do it this time, Iris’ hand clamps over it to hold it still. Much to your frustration, you won’t be forcing your way back onto the battlefield to get back into the fight today.
You throw a not-rock into the not-river with a disgusted fume and briefly notice the scenery change in the gaps between the translucent fingers of Iris’ hand. They take you off her holster and send you back out as the battlefield reappears in your field of vision, where the Scraggy is nowhere in sight. You throw a claw over your face and let out a seething growl. From what you could see of the world in your Pokéball’s sky, you gathered that your Druddigon teammate had been sent out in your place. Looks like she already mopped up the Scraggy before you could get even with him.
“Arrrrgh! I can’t believe I got cheated out of beating that lousy little pantslizard-!”
“‘Sup?”
You blink and look up to the other side of the battlefield, where standing at the other end is a Scrafty, pawing at his head crest as he shoots a smug grin back.
“Told ya I was close to evolving.”
The frustration leaves your body and it gives way to a quiet flash of fear. The most likely way that little lizard could’ve pulled this off is if he beat your Druddigon teammate in battle while you were sidelined. You breathe in and try to calm yourself after noticing scuffs from battle about the Dark-type’s body that seemingly confirm your suspicions. He might have bested your teammate, but it came at a price. And he just evolved, so he can’t be that much stronger…
That had to have been a fluke, too, right…?
Right?
The Scrafty pants for air, before winding up a punch with a knowing grin. He’s tired, but there’s a certain self-confidence about him that’s worrying you.
“By the way, do you want to know the other reason why my trainer says Scraggy and Scrafty are dragons?” he asks. “It’s because a lot of us have got a fighting spirit like a Salamence, including me! Every foe I drop just gets me more and more pumped and makes me hit harder and harder!”
Yes… you’ve heard about that as well from some of the others in the Gym. It’s not all that common, but every so often, there will be a Salamence that turns up in Unova with a fighting spirit just like that.
You’ve seen one of them fight before, and if this Scrafty is telling the truth, you’re in deep trouble right now.
You breathe in and out quickly as you put two and two together and realize the Dark-type really did beat your teammate. Meaning that you’ll be fighting him with this fighting spirit burning strong and yours worn down back to what it was when you first entered the battlefield. You fight back visible tremors and remind yourself that Scrafty are Dark-types. Who’s to say he’s telling the truth? For all you know, this is all some dirty trick on his part to fake you out to try to throw you off-balance.
“Y-You’re just saying stuff to get under my hide!” you cry back. “I’ll wipe the floor with you in no time!”
Iris cries out for you to throw a Dragon Claw forward, this time with all the force you can muster. A twinge of worry comes over you when you realize that even with your Dragon Dance’s invigorating effects worn off, she wants you to go on an all-out offensive. You opt not to question it, and with the might of a dragon, flecks of greenish fire erupt on your claw.
“Take this!”
Your claws dig into the Scrafty’s belly and make him stagger back a few places on the battlefield. He falls to his knees and slouches forward, wheezing and struggling to stay lucid after your blow.
You have a moment of satisfaction, confident that at last that you’ve gotten your revenge on the pantslizard, when a pair of words in human tongue cuts it short.
Once again, the red-haired woman calls out for ‘Dragon Tail’.
Your eyes shrink to pins and much to your embarrassment, you scream in fright as the Scrafty staggers to his feet and his tail comes alight with dragonfire. Blind panic overtakes you and even without Iris’ prompting, you turn and try to flee. Dragonfire fills the side of your vision and the next thing you feel is a crushing, burning pain, then your body skidding along the ground as you hit something hard behind you.
You look up as your vision runs muddy and see that you’re now at the side of the battlefield again, against its retaining wall. So the Scrafty wasn’t just getting into your head about being able to hit harder. You don’t bother trying to get up that time, as you wheeze for air and weakly raise a claw from the ground.
“A-Agh… m-medic!”
You also didn’t know that Scraggy of all Pokémon could use Dragon Tail. That defeat also particularly stung, especially since after you blacked out, you apparently missed out on the chance to do battle with some sort of turtle thing with a tree on its back and a self-roasting chicken that are both rare to this land. Battles that were it not for that Dragon Tail, you’d likely have had the strength to fight in.
You spent most of the day afterwards resting in the Gym’s infirmary again from your defeat and apparently Head Case had to step out to fill in for you with another challenger. Things are starting to get a bit embarrassing now, especially since you insisted to your sister that you were ready to serve as Iris’ lead for her seven-badge team. It’s not the end of the world to lose twice, but twice in a row? On the same day? Without even getting in a proper fight that last time?
As such, when you’re sent out onto the battlefield once again, for the last challenger of the day, you’re nervous and on edge. What sort of implausible Pokémon are you going to see wield a dragon’s strength this time? An Ampharos that somehow knows Dragon Pulse? You breathe in tensely as a human male takes the other end of the field and sends out his first Pokémon.
… It’s a Growlithe of all things, who wags his tail and lols his tongue briefly, before striking a determined pose.
“Heh, good battling to you, Fraxure,” he barks. “Let’s see how well you can keep up with me!”
You blink as the Puppy Pokémon takes the field, when you try and fail to hold back a laugh as fall onto your side and break out into loud guffaws.
“Sorry, sorry… I know that I’m not supposed to laugh at challengers on the job, but are you for real? A little puppy dog? What are you going to do? Roll over and ask me for a belly rub?”
The Growlithe flashes his teeth and growls back in annoyance, as Iris gives you an askew glance and the countdown to the match begins. As soon as it ends, the opposing trainer calls out his command. It takes you so aback that you miss Iris’ entirely, and stare blinking and dumbfounded.
“Wait, huh? Outrage-?”
You hear Iris frantically call you back to attention and look back at the Growlithe, when your mouth flops open in astonishment. The Growlithe is charging at you with his whole body wreathed in dragonfire, his eyes smoldering with rage and draconic might.
“Here’s your belly rub, jerk!”
You hurriedly try to stop his blow with a swipe of your own, but he throws himself forward into your gut, striking you with a blistering flurry of burning blows that knocks you off your feet and onto your back. You lay there on the ground as stars swirl in your eyes, spluttering and hacking in a disbelieving daze.
“N-Ngah… b-but you’re a Growlithe! A-And that was Outrage and-! H-How?!”
You don’t get an answer to that question before the Growlithe returns and runs you over with Outrage yet again. You tumble along the ground and your vision goes wobbly as you try to stumble back up.
You briefly hear what sounds like a raspberry as your strength gives out, and you flop to the ground as the world goes back.
You’re back in the infirmary in the rear of the Gym. Again. Once more, you woozily raise your head as you see bandages and lingering scuffs on parts of your body and the ceiling lights overhead with it looking dark outside from the window. Looks like that last fight beat you up a bit harder than the ones earlier today.
How on earth had this even happened? You expected to go into your battles to help Iris emerge victorious, not to spend most of it licking your wounds in bed!
“Hey.”
You roll onto your side and move your tusks to turn your head. Francesca’s apparently here, too. She looks down at your bed with a flash of worry in her black-and-red eyes.
“We pulled through in the end, but you looked like you were thrown around a bit out there, and those other battles earlier today weren’t exactly easy on you either,” she says. “Are you doing alright, Hatchet?”
You roll over onto your back and stare up at the ceiling, letting out a defeated groan.
“Fantastic,” you reply. “Couldn’t you tell?”
Francesa turns aside for a moment and shakes her head with a low sigh.
“I suppose I should have mentioned earlier that it’s not exactly rare for the stronger Pokémon that challenge this gym to wield Dragon-type moves against us,” your sister sighs. “After all, such Pokémon and their trainers tend to spend more time seeking out ways of exploiting the weaknesses of their opponents before mounting their challenges. And for us, that often means that they’ll come against us with the might of a dragon itself.”
You turn to the Haxorus with your teeth set in a nervous grimace. You know you told her and Iris that you were looking for a challenge, but you’re starting to think that you’ve gotten yourself in over your head.
“How long do I have to fill in for Head Case again?” you ask. “Since fighting rookies in the Gym puzzle suddenly doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Long enough that you might as well spend some time training up a bit more if you’re currently having trouble,” your sister sighs back. “Especially since I doubt that Growlithe will still be one whenever his trainer comes back for a rematch.”
You look away as a sinking feeling settles in your stomach as you’re faced with the prospect of day after day like this one awaiting you. You snap back to attention after claws paw at your shoulder and you look up to see your sister as she gives a tired shake of her head.
“Just try and rest up a bit, Hatchet,” she insists. “Iris is in charge of handling challengers the rest of this week, and we’ll likely be facing more again sooner rather than later. Drayden apparently met a younger trainer in town earlier today from Nuvema Town that his companions from the League have been talking about for some reason.”
Your sister shuffles off and leaves you to stare up at the ceiling blankly. You feel a bit embarrassed for not knowing it prior today, but you didn’t realize just how many Pokémon could fight like a dragon in spite of not being one. If you had, maybe you wouldn’t have been so quick to press for taking the lead on Iris’ team for whenever she has to face down her toughest foes at this gym.
… No. You won’t back down here. A dragon never gives in. A dragon never yields. Not so long as they cling to life. Maybe your sister’s right and all you need is to toughen up a bit more so these surprises don’t catch you off-guard as badly. Why, you could even get started right now-!
You try to get up and hear something crick in your back. You yelp, before falling back into your bedding with a tired pant, pawing at your wounds before you curl up with a low groan.
… You’ll get started with that training. First thing tomorrow. Assuming there’s time before that challenger Francesca mentioned comes by.
Original Drabble:
| Firebreathers | Heliolisk | Serpentine |
| Scale and Fang | Gyarados | Outrage |
| Dragon's Den | Proud Lineage | Scraggy |
You throw your tusks forward and they find purchase, hacking twice against warm hide and drawing a pained bellow. You run forward and look back, seeing your Emboar opponent as he briefly totters, before toppling onto his belly onto the battlefield floor, his beard extinguishing along with his strength as he lays there.
You flash a grin and open your tusked mouth to let out a bellow of triumph. His trainer recalls him, and you call after the vanishing light with an unheard taunt:
“Hah! Come back and try again when you can take a swipe!”
Your assigned trainer goes for the Emboar’s trainer, and as seems to be customary among humans leading Pokémon after defeat, winnings are exchanged. The Emboar was a tougher challenger than most that you’ve faced out here in Opelucid Gym, but between your strength and the direction of your assigned trainer, it was a cinch.
The Gym Trainer recalls you, and you return back to your Pokéball, Opelucid Gym’s light-and-dark stone furnishings vanishing for a mountainous forest with a river running through it. All fake, as Pokéball environments are, as the translucent images of the world outside in the sky remind. But it still provides a degree of comfort, as you paw at not-stones along the not-river to run your tusks up against them.
You probably shouldn’t be complaining, but you can’t help but feel a twinge of dissatisfaction over how much your challenger failed to live up to your expectations. It would surely not be an issue were you fighting under your real trainer consistently, and you wonder just how much longer she’s going to leave you to be bossed around by Gym temps.
You pout and kick a not-pebble into the not-river, when before it you know it, the surrounding world vanishes away around you, and you find yourself in the Gym’s backroom. The Gym Trainer is handing off your Pokéball to a girl with a large shock of purple hair. Iris, your trainer, who’s apparently been making waves for her direction and her Pokémon’s strength, which is why a good chunk of the time, she handles the final match in this Gym instead of the old human fart who sought her out as an apprentice. Off to her side is her Druddigon and Zweilous partners, who turn their heads curiously at you as they talk.
“How’d you do out there, Hatchet?”
You turn and look up, as a Haxorus plods over and looks down at you, rubbing a claw against your head. That’s your elder sister, Francesca, the ace of your real trainer’s team… even if it’s been ages since the two of you have fought alongside each other.
After all, Iris only takes you under her direction when Drayden needs her to handle a weaker challenger that’s made it to the end of the Gym. Your sister, however, gets to fight with the best of the best.
… Even if she’s all of 5 minutes older than you, and has only been a Haxorus for less than a year. You turn away and let out an unimpressed huff. Sure you obviously sound jealous right now, but given the circumstances how could you not be?
“Fine, as usual,” you harrumph. “Not like randoms in the gym puzzle usually bringing the best teams in the world to fight.”
You feel claws cup pat at your shoulder, and look up to see your sister giving a knowing smile down.
“You’ll get to do more battles with Iris before you know it, Hatchet,” the Haxorus tells you. “Just hang in there until the next batch of rookies makes it through.”
You push her claw away with a sour frown. She probably meant that to cheer you up, but right then, it makes you feel like you’re being talked down to. Like a parent might to an Axew that’s splattered her first berry.
“But I’m literally beating them left and right!” you exclaim. “I’m just as tough as Head Case over there, so how come she’s the one getting trained to be a lead for the tough teams and I’m not?”
“Hey!”
The Zweilous turns her heads at you and flashes her fangs at you. Right, even if her eyesight’s bad enough to be effectively blind, her keen sense of hearing sure has a way of filling in for it. Her name’s not really ‘Head Case’, you just say it because it’s true and kinda funny when it gets under her hide. Seriously, for a ‘mon who’s cheating you out of time with your trainer, she could take a joke a bit better.
You growl back in reply and flash your claws, when Iris turns and comes over. She stoops, asks something about you being alright, and cups a hand under your chin for a scratch.
You tense up and can’t help but feel a flash of content. It always feels great when she does this, and for a moment your frustrations ebb away.
“Aah… that hits the spot… hey, wait, no!”
Only for them to come back when you remind yourself you were upset for a reason. Even if other humans supposedly call Iris a ‘girl who knows the hearts of dragons’, sometimes, she needs a bit of a nudge to get the hint. And so, you stomp over beside your elder sister, and then motion at yourself, and then her with your claws and an adamant growl.
“I want to fight alongside her! Do you hear me? Her.”
Iris pauses a moment, when she turns up to your sister and says something in her tongue that you miss. Your sister nods back, when she takes your Pokéball and puts it on her holster, and takes Head Case’s off hers much to both the Zweilous head’s alarm.
“I-Iris?!”
“What are you doing?!”
Your trainer goes over to Head Case and pats at her. There’s some words exchanged, when the Zweilous hesitates and droops with a grudging sigh. Your command of human tongue has always been a bit weaker than your teammates, and you’re not sure if you heard everything Iris said and turn up with a puzzled frown to your sister.
“Wait, huh? What’s going on?”
“You got what you wanted,” Francesca replies. “You’ll be filling in as the lead of Iris’ 7-badge team for a while.”
You blink in disbelief for a moment. Iris… is actually giving you what you want?
“Wait, I did…? I mean of course I did! You won’t regret this!”
Your trainer comes back over towards you and pats at your head. You can’t but help but feel a swell of pride, and turn your head past her to stick your tongue out at the Zweilous as a taunt. Not that Head Case will see it with her eyesight, but it’s the thought that counts.
You wag your tail, happy and content, when you notice your sister looking away and giving an uneasy paw at your shoulder.
“Hey, what’s that look supposed to mean?” you press.
“I… just felt that it was important to warn you in advance that as part of being on a 7-badge team, that it’ll be your job to take the brunt of attacks while Iris tries to figure out the opponent’s strategy,” Francesca tells you. “It’s often every bit as demanding of a role as being the main battler on a team.”
You scoff and all but blow a raspberry in reply. You’re not that much younger than your sister, and if Iris is confident in your strength, then what is there to fear?
“You worry too much, sis,” you shoot back. “Look, I’ve already got experience being a main battler already and can keep on my toes with Dragon Dance, so it should be a piece of cake!”
She doesn’t look convinced, but whatever. Nothing that a couple battles can’t fix to put her mind to rest.
A couple hours later, you’re there at the Gym Leader’s battlefield, with a Zebstrika facing you down. He’s a bit more slippery than you expected thanks to using Flame Charge a couple times, but they barely put a dent in your scales, and as he gathers sparks about his body, Iris cries out for you to press your advantage with a Dragon Glaw.
You lunge forward, raking claws trailing dragonfire over your foe’s flank with all your might. The Zebstrika reels from the first, while the second knocks him off his feet and sends him crumpling to the ground. You pant and watch tensely, when the sparks around his body die down and he lets out a weak groan.
“Hah! That’s the power of Dragon Dance for ya! Learn to love it!”
You take a moment to bellow in triumph as his human, some backpacker who looks like he just stumbled fresh off from Route 4, recalls him with a disappointed sigh. That’s one opponent down, and you’re pretty sure there’s just two more to go. The Zebstrika’s trainer reaches for his belt and sends out his next Pokémon in a flash of red light. You see red and white hide with black stripes as the dust clears, and look up to see a Krookodile, flashing her jaws with a toothy grin.
“Heh, you look a bit worn down, Fraxure,” she taunts. “We all know you’re not going to come out the better of the two of us in this match, so how about you just quit and tag out for your teammates?”
You bare your fangs back with an unamused scoff. You’ve still got most of your strength, and with that Dragon Dance getting you pumped. This ‘mon seriously thinks that she’s going to get the best of you?
“Tough talk for someone strutting around with a perpetual sunburn!” you snap back. “Hit me with your best shot, bub!”
The Krookodile doesn’t say anything back, as a knowing smile comes over her face.
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll manage,” she answers. “And don’t say I didn’t warn you!”
Iris calls out for you to use Dragon Claw again, and you lunge forward, your first blow finding its mark that draws a sharp yelp, while the Krookodile hurriedly scurries away from the second and lets you hit empty air. Then she stomps the ground and knocks you off your feet. You hit the ground and spit up dirt. While the Krookodile packs a punch, doesn’t hurt as much as you were expecting and from the stiff feeling in your legs, you gather that she’s hit you with Bulldoze.
“Hrmph, so you slowed me down a bit,” you scoff. “You’re still not ducking getting that beating that’s coming to you!”
Iris calls out for another Dragon Claw and you get to your feet and take off running, dragonfire sprouting along your claws as you close in. Except this time, the Krookodile bides her time. You shrug the matter off when as you make it down the last few paces, something strange happens on the battlefield:
You hear ‘Dragon Claw’ again, this time from the Krookodile’s trainer.
“H-Huh?!”
This time, the Krookodile’s claws come alight with dragonfire, and before you can do anything, she nails you with an uppercut to your chin. You feel your feet leave the ground of the battlefield, twist in the earth and crash face-first to the ground. You skid briefly, your legs and tail swaying in empty air before the flop to the ground.
You lie there, trying to piece together what on earth happened and try to push your body up with your claws, only to fall back down with a weak groan.
“Ow.”
You didn’t know Krookodile could use Dragon Claw, so the defeat comes as a shock to you, even if in retrospect you probably seen it coming. You suppose you have heard from your peers in the gym that a number of Pokémon could learn moves they normally couldn’t through one of those “tee-yem” thingies, but you didn’t realize that dragon’s moves would be included that.
No matter, it was surely just a fluke. After a few hours’ rest, you are back out on the field as the lead, ready to massage your wounded pride with fresh victory. Especially since you’ve got a point to prove. Fortunately, that shouldn’t be all that hard based off the next team, belonging to a human female with long red hair. Her first Pokémon takes his place on the battlefield and sizes you up with wide-set eyes, all as you furrow your brow with an unamused grunt.
“A Scraggy. Really? Your trainer’s gotten seven badges under her belt and you didn’t evolve at all before this point?”
Yes, a Scraggy apparently. If the rounded head and exposed teeth didn’t get the point across, he pulls up the shed skin hugging his body up to his neck before letting it fall back down around his waist before turning away and folding his arms with a sharp pipe.
“Hey, don’t knock me, I’m close to evolving and I pack a punch!” he retorts. “And my trainer says that some humans say that Scraggy are dragons, too!
You’ve certainly heard that first one a few times. Though Scraggy as dragons, that’s a new one. You let out a dismissive scoff in reply, before crouching and bracing for battle.
“Whatever, kid. I’m not the one who’s going to get wiped over the floor here.”
The Scraggy frowns, but doesn’t say anything in reply as the countdown to the match sounds. As soon as it ends, Iris calls out for a Dragon Dance and you enter a frenzied dance, whirling around as dragonfire flecks your scales. You can feel yourself growing faster and stronger by the moment, and you turn back towards the Scraggy with a sneering grin and see him coming at you.
“Heh, hit me with your best shot, Scraggy. Since it’s the only one you’re gonna-”
You cut yourself off after hearing familiar words from the red-headed woman, ones of an attack that you’ve been practicing with Iris as of late.
“Wait, did your trainer just say ‘Dragon Tail’-?”
Much to your astonishment, the little lizard’s tail comes alight with dragonfire. Your eyes shrink and you hurriedly try to duck out of the way when you feel a sharp blow and go skidding along the side of the battlefield. You lose your footing and tumble, briefly seeing the lines marking where opponents go out of bounds when the surrounding world vanishes in light.
It took a while to register what on earth had happened, but the not-forest and not-river left little room for doubt. You had been recalled back to your Pokéball, since some way, somehow, that Scraggy had managed to make you ring out.
Per human rules, that means waiting for another opening to go back on the field to fight. But the blow stung more than you expect, and even moreso to your pride. The whole time, as your body lost the vigor of its Dragon Dance, you stomped and fumed in your Pokéball with rage over the Scraggy’s slight.
“That lousy cowardly little newt! Iris! Hurry up and send me back out there!”
You even spat up a few attacks at the not-sky to try and force your way out. You saw the ball rock, except when you do it this time, Iris’ hand to clamps over it to hold it still. Much to your frustration, you won’t be forcing your way out today to get back into the fight.
You throw a not-rock into the not-river with a disgusted fume and briefly notice the scenery change in the gaps between the translucent fingers of Iris’ hand. They take you off her holster and send you back out as the arena reappears in your field of vision, where the Scraggy is nowhere in sight. You throw a claw over your face and let out a seething growl. Looks like the Scraggy’s already lost to another fight.
“Arrrrgh! I can’t believe I got cheated out of beating that lousy little pantslizard-!”
“‘Sup?”
You blink and look up to the other side of the battlefield, where there is a Scrafty, pawing at his headcrest with a smug grin back.
“Told ya I was close to evolving.”
The frustration leaves your body and is replaced with a quiet flash of fear. The most likely way that little lizard could’ve pulled this off is if he beat your Druddigon teammate in your battle. You breathe in and try to calm yourself after noticing scuffs about the Dark-type’s body. He might have won the battle, but it came at a price. And he’s just evolved, so he can’t be that much stronger…
Right?
The Scrafty pants, before winding up a punch with a knowing grin. He’s tired, but there’s a certain self-confidence to him that’s got you worried.
“By the way, do you want to know the other reason why my trainer says Scraggy and Scrafty are dragons?” he asks. “It’s because a lot of them have got a fighting spirit like a Salamence, including me! Every foe I drop just gets me more and more pumped and makes me hit harder and harder!”
Yes… you’ve heard about that from some of the others from the Gym. It’s not all that common, but every so often, there will be a Salamence turn up in Unova with a fighting spirit just like that.
You breathe in and out quickly as you put two and two together and realize the Dark-type really did beat your teammate. Meaning that you’ll be facing him with this fighting spirit burning strong. You fight back visible tremors and tell yourself that Scrafty are Dark-types, so for all you know this is all some dirty trick to fake you out and throw you off your game.
“Y-You’re just saying stuff to get under my hide!” you cry back. “I’ll wipe the floor with you in no time!”
Iris cries out for you to throw a Dragon Claw forward, this time with all the force you can muster. A twinge of worry comes over you when you realize that even with its invigorating effects worn off, she wants you to go all-out on offense. You opt not to question it, and with the might of a dragon, flecks of greenish fire erupt on your claw.
“Take this!”
Your claws rake the Scrafty’s belly and he lurches back from his place a few places. He falls to his knees and slouches forward, wheezing and struggling to stay lucid after your blow.
You have a moment of satisfaction, confident that at last, you’ve gotten your revenge on the pantslizard until a pair of words in human tongue cut it short.
Once again, the red-haired woman calls out for ‘Dragon Tail’.
Your eyes shrink to pins and you squeal in fright as the Scrafty staggers to his feet and his tail begins to come alight. Blind panic overtakes you as even without Iris’ prompting your turn and start to bolt as dragonfire fills the side of your vision. The next thing you feel is a crushing, burning pain and your body skidding along the ground as you hit something hard behind you.
You look up as your vision runs muddy and see that you’re now at the side of the battlefield. So the Scrafty wasn’t just getting into your head about being able to get harder. You don’t bother trying to get up that time, as you wheeze for air and weakly raise a claw from the ground.
“A-Agh… m-medic!”
You also didn’t know that Scraggy of all Pokémon could use Dragon Tail. That defeat also particularly stung, especially since afterwards you apparently missed out on the chance to do battle some sort of turtle thing with a tree on its back and a self-roasting chicken that are rare to this land. Battles that were it not for that Dragon Tail, you’d likely have been there to fight.
You spend most of the day afterwards resting from your defeat again and apparently Head Case had to step out to fill in for you with another challenger. You’re starting to feel a bit embarrassed now, especially since you insisted to your sister that you were ready to serve as Iris’ lead. It’s not the end of the world to lose twice, but twice back-to-back? Without even getting in a proper fight?
As such, when you’re sent out onto the battlefield again this time, for the last challenger of the day, you’re nervous and on edge. What sort of implausible Pokémon are you going to see wield a dragon’s strength this time? An Ampharos at this rate? You breathe in tensely as a human male takes the other end of the field and sends out his first Pokémon. … It’s a Growlithe of all things, who wags his tail and lols his tongue briefly, before striking a determined pose.
“Heh, good battling to you, Fraxure,” he barks. “Let’s see how well you can keep up with me!”
You blink as the Puppy Pokémon takes the field, when you try and fail to hold back a laugh as fall onto your side and break out into loud guffaws.
“Sorry, sorry… I know that I’m not supposed to laugh on the job, but are you for real? A little puppy dog? What are you going to do? Roll over and ask me for a belly rub?”
The Growlithe flashes his teeth and growls back in annoyance, as Iris gives you an askew glance and the countdown to the match begins. As soon it concludes, the opposing trainer calls out his command. It takes you so aback that you miss Iris’ entirely, and stare blinking and dumbfounded.
“Wait, huh? Outrage-?”
You hear Iris frantically call you back to attention and glance up, where your mouth flops open in astonishment. The Growlithe is charging at you with his whole body wreathed in dragon fire, eyes smoldering with rage and draconic might.
“Here’s your belly rub, jerk!”
You hurriedly try to stop him with a swipe of your own, but he throws himself forward into your gut, hitting you with a blistering flurry of burning blows that knocks you off your feet and onto your back. You lay there on the ground as stars swirl in your eyes, and you splutter in a disbelieving daze.
“N-Ngah… but you’re a Growlithe. A-And that was Outrage and- H-How?!”
You don’t get an answer to that question, only for the Growlithe to run you over with Outrage yet again. You tumble along the ground and your vision goes wobbly as you try to stumble back up.
You briefly hear what sounds like a raspberry when your strength gives out, and you flop to the ground as the world goes back.
You’re back in the infirmary in the back of the Gym now. Again, woozily raising your head as you see bandages and lingering scuffs on parts of your body and the ceiling lights overhead. How on earth had this even happened today? You expected to go into your battles to help Iris emerge victorious, not to be licking your wounds in bed.
“Hey.”
You roll onto your side and move your tusks to turn your head. Francesca’s there with you, too. Looking down at your bed with a flash of worry in her black-and-red eyes.
“We pulled through in the end, but you look like you got thrown around a bit out there,” she says. “Those other battles you were in earlier today weren’t exactly easy on you either, so are you holding alright?”
You roll over onto your back and stare up at the ceiling, letting out a defeated groan.
“Fantastic,” you reply. “Couldn’t you tell?”
“I suppose I should have mentioned earlier that it’s not exactly rare for stronger Pokémon to use Dragon-type moves against us,” your sister sighs. “After all, such Pokémon and their trainers will try and seek out ways of exploiting the weaknesses of their opponents. And for us, that is often the might of a dragon itself.”
You turn to the Haxorus with your teeth set in a nervous grimace. You were looking for a challenge, but you’re starting to think that you’ve gotten yourself in over your head.
“How long do I have to fill in for Head Case again?” you ask. “Since fighting rookies in the Gym puzzle suddenly doesn’t sound so bad.”
“Long enough that you might as well get used to training up a bit more if you’re having trouble,” your sister sighs back. “Especially since I doubt that Growlithe will still be one whenever his trainer comes back for a rematch.”
You feel a sinking feeling in your stomach, and look away. You feel your sister paw at you and look up at her as she gives a tired shake of her head.
“Just try and rest up a bit, Hatchet,” she insists. “Iris is in charge of handling challengers the rest of this week, and we’ll likely be facing more again tomorrow. Drayden apparently met a younger trainer who caught his companions’ eye in town earlier today.”
Your sister shuffles off as stare up at the ceiling blankly. You feel a bit embarrassed for not knowing it prior today, but you didn’t realize just how many Pokémon could fight like a dragon in spite of not being one. If you had, perhaps you wouldn’t have been so quick to press for a place as Iris’ lead for when she has to face down her toughest foes.
… No. You won’t back down here. A dragon never gives in. A dragon never yields. Not so long as they cling to life. Maybe your sister’s right and all you need is to toughen up a bit more so these surprises don’t catch you so off-guard. Why you could even get started right now-!
You try to get up and hear something crick in your back. You yelp, before falling back into your bedding with a tired pant and curl up with a pant, pawing at your wounds.
… You’ll get started with that training. First thing tomorrow.
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