Maressa tightened the ties of her bandanna as she stared at her reflection. Closing her eyes, she straightened up, took a few deep breaths, and looked at herself once more. She tried to keep calm but her reflection only showed how anxious she was. She paced back and forth, sat down, stood back up, said a prayer—yet nothing would fend off the anxiety that kept attacking her.
Aww... She is feeling nervous! Lack of sleep
probably isn't helping with that...
Stationing herself before the mirror once more, she stared herself down.
“Once we land, I need the two of you to shut down the cable cars. Understand?”
“Yes, Commander Shelly!”
Maressa looked out the window of Team Aqua’s navy blue helicopter as the rocks and crags of Mt. Chimney passed rapidly beneath, the ground sloping upward to meet their descent. Her heart pounded furiously with excitement—this was it!
“Golduck! Golduck, look—see that red helicopter? Think that’s Team Magma?”
Sure enough, a red helicopter had already landed on Mt. Chimney—Maressa thought she could see people gathered nearby it.
Huh, I wonder if she joins team Magma instead? That would be
quite the twist, if so!
Golduck stood next to her, peering out the window. He didn’t say anything, but Maressa knew he was excited—he thrived off of fighting, and the prospect of a big battle sent adrenaline coursing through both of their veins.
As their helicopter slowed, Maressa tuned around. Several other Team Aqua members stood inside, waiting with anticipation for the mission that lay before them. Seeing a lanky man with a tuft of brown hair, Maressa sidled over to him.
It's a good thing team Magma doesn't shoot down their helicopter killing everyone inside. It's evil team vs hated other evil team. It probably wouldn't be
too big of a stretch. Not sure I would feel safe riding a helicopter near them if I were in her shoes.
“Hey, Mark, how come Shelly wants us to turn off the cable cars?”
The older grunt looked down at her and flashed a quick smile. “Still new to this, huh? Turning off the cable cars will prevent civilians from getting caught up in our mess with Team Magma—it’ll also prevent anyone from interfering. Our mission won’t take long, and the cable cars will be back up within a few hours.”
Maressa nodded. “Makes sense to me!”
A useful tidbit for curious readers. Also, did you know that Mark is the canon name for the protagonist of the first Pokemon TCG?
She looked back out the window, practically bouncing with excitement. “Golduck, can you imagine how Mt. Chimney will look once it’s made dormant? Maybe it’ll turn into a crater lake! Those are so beautiful—I’ve never seen one, though, but I heard they’re really neat, unique ecosystems!”
Ok, she has a point there. That sounds pretty picturesque.
Mark looked out the window next to Maressa. “That’s the goal! By stopping Mt. Chimney, we won’t only prevent catastrophic lava flows, but it can become a fresh new environment for all sorts of Pokemon, and not just Water-types.”
Yeah, those lava flows are not good for people. Very destructive.
“Mark.”
“Yes, Commander Shelly?”
Shelly walked over to him, her blue-gloved hands resting on her hips. “You’re in Squad B to stop the cars. You know what you need to do? And is your Crawdaunt ready?”
Mark pulled a Pokeball out of his pocket. “He sure is!”
Shelly nodded curtly. She glanced at Maressa and her eyes gravitated towards Golduck—for a split second, Maressa saw disdain shine behind her red irises. Shelly said nothing and turned away—
But if there was something about Golduck, Maressa wanted to know.
“Is something wrong?”
Shelly turned around and looked at Golduck again. “Is he normally out of his Pokeball?”
“Sometimes—he likes to hang outside with me when he can. Is that a problem?”
“Not in itself, no. But look around—this helicopter only has space for our team. We can’t all bring out Pokemon out—what if I wanted my Ludicolo? He would practically fill the center cabin.” Her red eyes glanced at Maressa. “In short, it’s not a problem—but in the future, I’d like you to think about the limit of space and ask for permission.”
Daaang. Rude! I get what she is saying, but this isn't going to be earning her
any favors with Maressa... 😅
Maressa said nothing; she watched in stony silence as Shelly turned around and called for the team to prepare to disembark. Maressa’s blood boiled—Shelly wanted her to ask permission just to have her Pokemon out? What kind of a crazy rule was that? Did she even think about what Golduck wanted?
Oh dear, even angrier than I thought! Shelly done screwed
up!
Mark noticed her sour mood.
“Maressa, you need to calm down. Shelly’s just saying what she thinks is the most reasonable—”
THUD!
The helicopter touched down—Maressa lost her balance and fell back on the wall behind her and bumped her head. She clutched it, grimacing as she heard Shelly’s voice ring out.
“Team Aqua, let’s move out!”
“Yes!”
Go time.
The sea of blue bandannas followed Shelly out of the helicopter—Maressa’s anger washed away and excitement filled her as she joined the group, descending the metal gangplank and gathering together out in the open air.
She blinked her eyes at the harshness of the sun—there were no trees or cloud cover to protect them from the blinding rays. The solar rays baked the rocks they stood on, filling the air with warm heat. At the very least, a cool mountain breeze sang through the air, offering a small degree of respite. Above their heads, a grey cloud rose from the volcanic crater as a testament to its life and activity.
Maressa’s heart jumped in her throat what she saw them—a swam of horned, red hoodies gathered before Team Aqua. Between the two teams, a bespectacled man clutched a porous rock to his chest as he anxiously glanced back-and-forth between them.
Team Magma members were gathered in a semicircle around the man; a lone team member stood on a rocky shelf above the others, surveying Team Aqua with impatience. A pair of white stripes gripped his pant legs in distinguishing his rank above the rest.
This should be interesting.
I'm very curious how you handle mon battles and I'd be pretty surprised if there wasn't going to be any here.
“B Squad, secure the cable cars!” Shelly announced.
“Right!”
Maressa watched Mark and another member take off at a jog towards a small building connected to large cables. She wished Mark could have stayed—he had been very patient and helpful with showing her the ropes, so far.
Ah... Yeah, she likes Mark. Maybe not romantically, but he was nice to her.
“What are you doing here, Team Aqua?” the Magma Commander called.
“Oh, Field Commander Tabitha, we’re just out here looking for some meteorites, and that nice man there is going to give his to us.”
Shelly’s voice was much less assertive when speaking to her enemies—it was still haughty, but Maressa noticed the playful, teasing quality it held. She frowned. This was how Shelly spoke to the people who wanted to destroy Team Aqua?
“The altitude is affecting your brain,” he sneered.
“Well, would you like to settle this the old-fashioned way, then?” Shelly asked as she took out a Pokeball. Several grunts on both teams took out Pokeballs, too, and Golduck started to crawl forward—
Lets see what the little gremlin duck can do!
“Commander, the meteorite!”
All heads jerked to a Team Magma grunt pointing at the scientist, who was making a getaway through the rocky crags and hills that jutted out on Mt. Chimney—and for someone his age, he was fast.
This bit made me laugh!!
“Squad One, go after him!” the Magma Commander announced.
“You four—” Shelly pointed to the people on her right—“after him! We’ll take care of things here. Go, Crawdaunt, Walrein!”
At her command, the rocky area filled with bright blue pinnipeds and dark red crustaceans.
I still wonder how Sharpedo's are supposed to battle on land...
Granted, it sounds like they are not using those here. But in the games they sure do! (At least I think they did...?)
“Go, Mightyena, Golbat!”
Maressa’s heart sank when she saw the matchup—Crawdaunt and Walrein were technically stronger Pokemon, and Walrein had a type advantage over Golbat—but the terrain was completely disadvantageous for Team Aqua.
I'm glad you take into account things like terrain.
Golbat and Mightyena were fast—Crawdaunt were laughably slow, and Walrein were practically immobile. She prayed that their defenses were high enough to last them.
“Crawdaunt, bubble beam! Walrein, water gun!”
“Golbat, air cutter and Mightyena, hyper beam!”
Wow that's looking pretty intense, especially with something like
hyper beam!
Commanders and grunts shouted commands for their Pokemon and it all quickly dissolved into chaos. Maressa was grateful to see that Golduck was agile enough to dodge the attacks—he hid under a jutting rocky overhang, the red jewel on his forehead glinting as he spied his attackers.
A few Golbat shrieked in frustration as their attacks bounced uselessly off the rock.
“After him!” the Team Magma grunt across Maressa shouted. “Drive him out of there with poison fang!”
The Golbat swooped low and headed straight for Golduck as he crouched beneath the rock overhang.
“Now!” Maressa shouted.
Once the Golbat were within Golduck’s sight, his eyes glowed purple and lances of psychic energy pelted towards the incoming Golbat. The Poison-types screeched as they reeled back in pain before falling to the ground.
Ooo! That would make them pretty easy to hit! Nice tactic!
“Great job!” Maressa shouted as the Team Magma grunt recalled his unconscious Golbat. “Let’s go help the others!”
Golduck joined her as they ran over the rocks and crags. Maressa ran up next to a Team Aqua member she didn’t know while Golduck went over to his Walrein. Her teammate’s forehead was wet with sweat—from the heat or stress, Maressa wasn’t sure, but she was willing to bet it was a combination of both.
Maressa surveyed the situation: the Team Magma grunt’s Mightyena was running circles around Walrein and evading all of the Water-type’s attacks.
“Golduck will hold Mightyena still and your Walrein can take him out. Sound good?”
Her teammate glanced at her and nodded.
“Golduck, fight the Mightyena in close combat!”
“Mightyena, use crunch!”
Golduck and the Mightyena tackled each other furiously. Golduck wrapped his arms around the Dark-type’s neck. The Mightyena sank her jaws into Golduck’s side, but she soon let go and was gasping for air.
I love the tactics and teamwork you are using here! Also, it seems like Golduck took damage, but probably not too much since Mightyena let go so fast.
“Walrein, use sheer cold!”
The canine looked up in terror as the Walrein flopped over to her. Ice coated the Walrein’s tusks. The temperature plummeted; the air shimmered. Once he reached the Mightyena—who was squealing and desperately trying to get out of Golduck’s grasp—the Walrein brought his tusks down on her side. Lances of ice seared through the Dark-type’s body and coated her with frost—she stopped moving.
OOOH! That was
brutal!
“Great job, you two!” Maressa called. “Come on, Golduck, let’s go help the others!”
Maressa and Golduck helped out other Team Aqua members with whatever they needed—Golduck pinned down Golbat while Crawdaunt clubbed them unconscious and he baited Mightyena so Walrein and Sealeo could shoot them down with water and ice attacks.
The team members that Maressa aided joined her and Golduck as they took on more Team Magma grunts. Eventually, Maressa saw that she was very near to Shelly, who was still engaged in battle with the Team Magma commander.
Niice! You also seem to know when it is better to summarize some battles vs acting out each and every one!
And I love how she helped to turn the tide of battle in Aqua's favor. It's also really cool that you can root for Aqua since they are fighting another evil team!
“Go, Ludicolo!”
Maressa stared in awe at the massive, yellow-husked Pokemon dominating the center of the battlefield. She hung back—she had never seen Shelly’s Ludicolo battle before! And this might be a good opportunity to let Golduck rest.
Shelly glanced back and saw the group of Team Aqua members hanging around her.
“Don’t just stand there! Talk with Mark and help him get the meteorite!”
Maressa had no headset and had no way to get in touch with Mark—should she have followed the rest of the squad and helped them out anyway? Maybe… But after being in the thick of battle, she didn’t want to give it up and go scavenging with the rest of them.
“Nature power!”
The air around Ludicolo shimmered—rocks ripped up from the ground and he hurled them in the air. Several Golbat squeaked as the rocks bruised their frail bodies and pinned down their thin wings.
But several Golbat still glided through the air untouched.
“Stun spore!”
Clouds of yellow spores puffed from the center of Ludicolo’s lily pad—dust filled the air and flew along in the breeze—Maressa covered her mouth and nose with her shirt.
She wasn’t convinced using stun spore out in the open was a good idea—but Ludicolo was doing damage! Golbat dropped out of the sky and fell flat on the rocks, clearing the air.
“Hyper beam!”
Maressa jerked her head as a beam—a really bright beam—of orange energy shot from a Mightyena’s mouth. The beam pulverized rocks and hit Ludicolo square in his back. The Grass-type flew face-first into the rock—smoke curled from a circular singe in his husk.
Looks like Shelly is taking on more than she can handle. Could this be the chance Maressa needs to prove herself?
But given how things will be going, I wonder if this will backfire and cause a falling out between her, Shelly, and Aqua?
Lowering her shirt, Maressa stared at the Mightyena in awe—that hyper beam was much more powerful than the other ones she had seen so far, and the Mightyena looked larger, more feral—his fur was matted, and every time he opened his mouth, the size of his fangs filled Maressa with primal fear.
Must be one from one of the leaders.
Mightyena pounced from his perch next to the Magma Commander and ducked into a shadow—and vanished. He reemerged from another shadow at the far side of the field—on the other side of Ludicolo.
“Ludicolo, behind!”
Shelly was too late—Ludicolo turned just in time to receive a face-full of shadow ball. He was blasted onto his back, panting as he rolled over and stood up.
Maressa watched the two fight: Ludicolo shot any sort of attack that came to mind—bullet seeds, leech sides, bursts of water, different powders… But Mightyena ducked in and out of the shadows as if they were portals, always keeping out of Ludicolo’s reach. The canine snarled, ducked into a shadow—and reemerged laughing from another one.
Veins stuck out in Ludicolo’s bloodshot eyes—it attacked with renewed vigor—it stopped using powder attacks entirely and only did what directly dealt damage—it smacked with its fists down on rocks, crushing them until its knuckles bled and its arms were bruised, always missing Mightyena.
Seems like
quite the foe...
“You see what’s going on, Golduck?”
Golduck nodded as he watched Mightyena dance in circles around the enraged Ludicolo, the canine laughing all the while. He and Maressa knew that Ludicolo’s time was almost up.
“Watch for the shadows—remember the tactics you use when you fight Sharpedo. Don’t let Mightyena get to your head, either—if he starts taunting or tormenting you, try to block him out.”
Golduck nodded again.
“Now, get in there!”
This will be pretty cool if it works!
Ludicolo had been reduced to a screaming mess—he was running into random rocks, missing Mightyena entirely and only hurting himself. Bits of rock and rubble clung to his scraped and bruised forehead; the yellow husk encasing his body was broken in several areas. His knuckles bled from constantly pounding them into bare rock. Maressa knew that Shelly would either have to recall him or watch him faint.
As Mightyena yipped and laughed from a hiding spot, Golduck blasted him squarely in the back with a jet of water.
“Arrf!”
Mightyena squealed and turned around—baring his massive white fangs at Golduck as water dripped down his back.
“Mightyena, incapacitate him!”
No input from Shelly on this? 🤨
“Golduck, get rid of the shadows!”
Mightyena ducked into a shadow—Golduck promptly fired psychic beams at the closest jutting rocks, leveling the battle field and exposing it to the sunlight.
Maressa waited with anticipation—she knew the Mightyena had to come out somewhere—
There! Several meters away from Golduck, Mightyena slunk out of a rocky precipice. He trod in a circle around Golduck, softly yipping. Golduck cupped his webbed hands over his ear holes, his eyes following Mightyena all the while.
Her mind ran a mile a minute—the battlefield was wide open, which was good, as Mightyena could no longer duck in-and-out of shadows and needed to stand on open ground. But that also meant that Golduck was stuck in direct sunlight and hot, dry air.
Ooo! The anticipation
builds!
Maressa bit her lip. Psychic attacks were useless, and if Golduck expended water, he’d only wear out more quickly. That left one option:
“Golduck, meet him in close combat!"
“Mightyena, shadow ball!”
Golduck raced on all fours, dodging balls of dark ethereal energy as he hurtled into his opponent. Mightyena squealed as Golduck swiped at him with his claws, ripping up his fur and carving thin red lines into his skin.
“Crunch!”
Tendrils of dark energy swarmed around Mightyena’s jaws—he lunged and sank his fangs into Golduck’s arm.
“Screech!”
A high-pitched shriek emanated from Golduck’s bill—Mightyena jerked his head away from the auditory onslaught.
“Get back and use sand attack!”
“Keep your distance!”
“Hyper beam!”
“Evade!”
Blood rushed in Maressa’s veins—her heart pounded—sweat poured out of every pore in her body—her muscles tensed, ready to jump from the cliff and run into the fight herself. Part of her wanted to—oh, she wanted to!
Even though part of this was reduced to one lines in dialogue, I was able to follow the action in my mind. Seems like she is going all out!
But Golduck was flagging—his movements grew slower, his jumps weren’t as far. Maressa’s heart twisted and she felt a twinge of guilt.
“Golduck, come here for a moment!”
“Mightyena, regroup.”
The two Pokemon rejoined their trainers. Maressa’s heart panged when she saw how tired Golduck was: dust coated his blue skin, which had turned from slimy to sticky under the noonday sun. He blinked several times, his bill hanging open as he took rasping breaths.
“Oh, poor dude—here, have some water.”
Dang, that took some toll on Golduck. It seems terrain will play an important part of the battles in this fic.
Maressa took a water bottle out of her pocket and poured the whole thing down Golduck’s bill. He swallowed, closed his eyes, and breathed deeply.
“How are you holding up?”
Shrug.
“Do you want to go back into your Pokeball?”
Vehement shaking of his head—no! He’d much rather finish the fight. He could win—he would win!
Maressa sighed as reluctance settled deeper into the pit of her stomach.
“Golduck.”
He cocked his head.
“I hate seeing you get hurt.”
He opened his eyes wide—he didn’t often hear Maressa say something so sappy. He held her hand and quacked. He didn’t blame her for his injuries—someone had to fight this battle, and he was happy to do it. He would do it for her.
Well
that was completely endearing. 🥰
Maressa squeezed his hand. “You really are good to me.” Raising her eyes, she saw the Magma Commander crouching before his Mightyena, holding the Dark-type’s face in his hands and speaking softly to him.
The Magma Commander turned his head and met Maressa’s eyes. He stood up. “Are you ready to quit?”
“Never!”
Maressa leapt to her feet, her hands balled into fists, the blood boiling in her veins again as adrenaline coursed through her body.
“Golduck, let’s finish this!”
Quack!
Shelly seems to be oddly quiet during this whole thing.
Not sure how this second bout will go. I get the feeling Golduck is more worn down than the opponent...
The Magma Commander calmly stood up and the Mightyena leapt down from his ledge to be on even footing with Golduck.
She knew it was a gamble—but the battle needed to end, and this was their best shot!
“Hydro pump!”
“Hyper beam!”
Going all out right away!
Both Pokemon inhaled deeply—a burst of hyper-pressurized water blasted from Golduck’s bill. Bright orange light shone from Mightyena’s jaws and shot forward.
White water crashed into the orange beam—the heat from hyper beam evaporated the water, filling the battlefield with mist. A high-pitched ring sang through the air as energy collided with water.
“Golduck, keep it up!”
“Harder, Mightyena!”
Yeah! It's an old fashion DBZ beam struggle!
Golduck was on all fours—leaning forward, his feet staggered to brace himself. Loud hissing filled the air—the cloud of mist thickened—a high-pitched whistle grew ever louder—
And Golduck’s strength failed him. The burst of water died—the hyper beam sailed forward, its light throwing Golduck’s face into sharp relief, highlighting the terror in his eyes as his bill hung open.
The beam slammed into Golduck—he soared through the air before being pummeled into the ground as Mightyena’s hyper beam pushed him into the rock—
Ah, ok yeah. This duck is
done.
Then the light died, and Maressa saw Golduck’s form crumpled into the recess.
“GOLDUCK!”
She jumped off the ledge and raced toward her fallen companion—her heart pounded furiously—fear and terror overwhelmed her—her eyes stung with tears—
Don't tell me that savage freaking
killed her mon! Then again, this is evil team vs evil team! ANYTHING CAN HAPPEN!
No, no, no, no, no—
Mightyena raced forward—he reached Golduck first, grabbed the blue head in his jaws and shook him.
“Get away from him!” Maressa screamed. She flew forward as quickly as she could—she had to—she needed to—she needed Golduck to be okay—that was all that mattered—
Mightyena let go of Golduck’s head and growled at Maressa—someone whistled and the canine retreated, forgetting about her entirely.
Maressa sprinted forward and dropped to her knees once she reached Golduck.
“Golduck? Golduck, I’m here—I’m here—it’s going to be okay…”
She reached down and picked Golduck up with shaking hands, laying him in her lap. She watched his chest slowly rise and fall. His body was covered with dirt and scratches; blood oozed from several cuts; he was so dry—he had never been this dry. Maressa tried to pick out the rocks stuck to his body—but guilt constantly washed over her, filling her and welling up in tears in her eyelids and rendering her shaking hands useless.
“Golduck?”
No response.
Closing her eyes, she laid her forehead against his own. Fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I’m so sorry.”
What an incredibly somber moment.
She opened her eyes and gazed through the blur, grimacing as her throat tightened—she felt totally helpless as she gazed at Golduck’s unmoving form. All she wanted was for him to be okay, to say something, to do something—to let her know that he was all right and would recover quickly.
A shadow fell. The horned silhouette of a hoodie stood above her, the sun faming him like a halo. The Team Magma Commander looked down at her with his dark eyes, a small smile on his face.
Lovely.
Maressa immediately whipped out Golduck’s Pokeball and withdrew him. She leapt to her feet—and wheeled around as she heard a growl.
Mightyena stood behind her—Maressa shrank back when she saw him bare his enormous fangs and snarl. His fur was matted with blood and caked with dust. He breathed haggardly, his tongue hanging out.
“Don’t worry.”
Maressa turned around. The Magma Commander stood before her with his arms crossed, the small smile still on his face. His voice was surprisingly soft but full of confidence.
“He won’t attack you—unless I tell him to. Well done, by the way.” His eyes shone with approval. “That was an excellent battle. We haven’t fought that hard in over a year.”
Ok what's this guy's angle? Magma
hates Aqua...
And where the HECK is Shelly? Don't tell me she only had ONE mon to battle with!
Maressa was stunned—her mouth was dry and couldn’t form any words—not that she could think of any. Stuck between the Magma Commander and Mightyena, she felt horribly helpless. She didn’t want to look at the Commander—but she didn’t want to look at the angry Mightyena, either.
She tensed as the Magma Commander stepped closer to her—but another snarl from Mightyena prevented her from moving. She watched the Commander walk up to her, her heart stuck in her throat, completely frozen beneath the harsh sun.
“What’s your name?”
Maressa could only stare at him as sweat poured from her forehead and her heart beat heavily with fear and dread. The Magma Commander continued to survey her with his calculating gaze.
“I haven’t seen you before. Are you new? Or just new to fighting missions? I can tell you’re not new to battling—not after seeing you and your Golduck together.”
This guy is after something but at least he isn't after her death or Maressa would already be a goner!
He stood at only an arm’s length from her—she desperately wanted to get away. She had no Pokemon; she didn’t think she could take him in on a fist fight (not that she wanted to try). But she couldn’t do anything.
What was he going to do to her?
I wonder if he is going to take her hostage? If he does, then I'm guessing Aqua will consider her an expendable casualty and proceed with their plans anyway. Either that or they will save her but then viciously blame her for it. Either option will be pretty awful for Maressa!
Loud hissing filled the air—the three of them turned their heads. A steady stream of smoke that had constantly issued from the peak of the volcano died down, leaving empty air in its wake. Maressa stared uncomprehendingly at the dissipating cloud.
“Flame One here, report. Where are you?”
The Commander sounded calm as he spoke into his headset but Maressa shuddered when she saw the anger and loathing shine behind his black eyes.
The Commander’s gaze switched from where the cloud had dissipated to Maressa, and her heart sank as she bore the weight of his calm fury.
“Round up all the Pokemon and report back to the helicopter immediately,” he said, his gaze still on Maressa.
“Well done,” he told her, but his voice was no longer coy—there was a fury hiding behind the calmness of his voice. “I see you don’t have a headset. Your team just got the meteorite and cooled off Mt. Chimney.”
So Aqua won.
Under his angry gaze, Maressa couldn’t feel happy about the good news.
“And seeing as you have no Pokemon left, I could take you with us now…”
His gaze turned calculating and thoughtful once more as he cocked his head.
Maressa’s heart skipped a beat—
Take me with them?
No, no, no, no, no—that couldn’t happen—did that ever really happen?
Before she could say anything, the Commander straightened up, took out a Pokeball, and withdrew his Mightyena.
“I don’t have time,” he said. “And you’ve earned your freedom today. Go back to your team—but you should reconsider being with Team Aqua. They might be a team for Water-type Pokemon, but there’s nobody on that team who can coach you in battling the way we could.”
Huh. So it gives her an easy out if she wanted to join a different team. I wonder if that is what she will do? And if she does, I wonder what that would be like?
Without another word, he turned and hurried off. Maressa stared after him, finally feeling a trickle of relief amidst the sea of dread in her heart.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Beep.
The heart monitor dully sounded as the lone voice in the room. All the patients slept soundly in their beds. A few groggily blinked their eyes before returning to heavy sleep. Nearly every patient was hooked up to an IV tube, the multitude of which formed a plastic jungle. A nurse walked around, checking tubes, administering food, and adjusting pillows to make the patients more comfortable.
Maressa clasped her hands and hunched over. It seemed that the Magma commander had been right: while she and Golduck were fighting, her team left, secured the meteorite from the scientist, and put Mt. Chimney to sleep for good. Though Shelly ordered the team to get back to work when they returned, most of the squadron put together a party. Maressa had walked into the grunt’s lounge, looking for Sarah to ask if she could borrow a pair of gloves and instead found people celebrating their successful mission.
Maressa couldn’t stay. She couldn’t celebrate—she had half-hoped that, in finding Sarah, she could have someone to talk with. Someone to talk to about Golduck’s injuries, about how guilty she felt for letting him get hurt—not just allowing it to happen, but for enabling it.
But when she saw Sarah and Cloe celebrating with the rest, she couldn’t pluck up the nerve to take them out of the celebration. Golduck’s injuries were her fault—no point in putting the burden on anyone else.
Maybe so, but it also isolates her. I could see this thing weighing pretty heavily on her.
A Walrein behind her let loose a deep sigh as it rolled over. Though Maressa loved her teammates, she couldn’t feel justified in celebrating with them. Their mission worked out but her battle was a disaster. She succeeded in holding Team Magma off but every time she looked at Golduck’s damaged form, the word “success” didn’t seem right.
The guilt didn’t go away. The longer she sat with Golduck, the more her eyes rested on his various cuts, scrapes and bruises; on the IV tubes hooked up to him; and on his exhausted frame, the worse she felt.
Aww... I feel bad for Shelly.
Golduck too, but more for Shelly.
How could she not feel like a horrible human being? She considered Golduck her best friend—he was her best friend—and because of her, he was laying on a hospital bed.
I guess they can't use Pokemon centers because they are an evil team. That's rough.
She checked her watch; she had been sitting there for nearly two hours. Her stomach rumbled but she wasn’t in the mood to eat. The nurse said that Golduck just needed to re-hydrate and rest for a few days but Maressa didn’t want to leave him until she saw in full health.
Her bond with Golduck is touching. Poor Maressa.
But a nurse? So she is in a Pokemon center? Still doesn't seem likely, but I'm not sure.
Rubbing her temples, she groaned when she thought of the next assignment she had been given. She glanced up at Golduck, wishing she could stay with him, but she was due to move out in two days and he needed more time than that to recover.
“You did an excellent job,” Shelly told Maressa when they had returned to the helicopter. Maressa was still shaken from her encounter with the Team Magma Commander. “I understand your Golduck lost, but you really pulled through with helping me and Ludicolo. There’s a group going diving to research ruins soon—you can take your other Pokemon and help them out!”
Where the crap were YOU when things went down,
Shelly? HUH?!
Maressa sighed when she thought back to Shelly, her eyes shining with pride—and thinking of it did make Maressa feel better about herself, at least a little. But even that didn’t bridge the river of guilt that coursed through her heart.
She reached over and touched Golduck’s webbed hand. The bandages wound around his arm covered the needle connecting to an IV tube. His body was marred with slashes and scrapes.
Ok, we
get it with the slashes and the scrapes!
At her touch, he opened his eyes slightly, gave a grateful nod and then closed them again.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
He gave her a quizzical look.
“This was my fault. I knew you were exhausted, and I had you use hydro pump.”
Golduck shook his head slightly—he didn’t hold her to any blame.
Aww... Golduck is best duck. Number one duck award, right here! 🥹
Still unhappy, Maressa took her hand away while Golduck closed his eyes again and returned to sleep.
She thought back to the mission overall: none of her teammates had gotten hurt, which was a huge positive. And with Mt. Chimney cooling off, the crater should fill with water and become a lake at some point—a new ecosystem, one that gave life. Not one that belched out smoke, toxins and lead to death and ruin.
Makes sense.
Maressa twisted her hands as she recalled her conversation with the Team Magma Commander.
Would he really have taken me?
Did teams capture each other? She supposed it was possible—but she was still so new at this. And what would they do with each other? Get information? Trade them for… For what?
She seems curious even though it scares her.
Burying her head in her hands, she groaned. There was still so much about Team Aqua that she didn’t know—so much that she wanted to know and learn, but she was still so green and things were already happening so fast.
There’s no one on Team Aqua who can coach you in battling the way we can.
Anger sparked in Maressa’s heart—the Team Magma Commander was not better at Pokemon battling than she was. The terrain allowed him to win—Golduck was at a disadvantage. If there had been water nearby, Maressa’s Pokemon would have totally wiped him out.
That
does seem possible.
“Why does he think he would be able to teach us anything? I bet he’s never worked with a Water-type in his life!” she fumed. “And telling me that I ‘earned’ my freedom—he’s not our boss! Why does he think he can say that?”
She looked over at Golduck, blood still boiling in her veins. Why would a Team Magma member want her with them? Team Aqua strove for oceanic conservation and Water-type preservation—Team Magma wanted to destroy that! They didn’t care for or understand Water-types—did they? No, they had tried making an active volcano erupt. How was that supposed to be good for anyone? They weren’t just trying to make more land—they were trying to destroy what was already there!
As her stomach clenched with pangs of hunger, she stood up, giving Golduck one last glance.
“Don’t worry, boy,” she whispered softly. Golduck lay unmoving, eyes still closed.
“One day, we’ll make this right.”
Interesting! It seems from this that she might join Magma later. That means we would still see things from the interesting perspective of being on an evil team and it would lead her to clash with Aqua later too!
