Joe gasped. Coughed. His eyes burst open. A rotund silhouette was in his sight. He blinked. The shadow disappeared. Maybe a fleck of dirt. He saw white clouds casually floating along. He coughed some more. Sat up, turning his attention away from the sky. Bent his legs. Placed his arms atop them. Looked down. He was drenched. Water dripped onto the grass.
Joe looked forward. The river. Gravity had a serious bone to pick with Joe. Good job it was bright out, so he had easily seen which way was up.
To his right was the stone bridge. He was back where he started. He looked up. Saw ice and electricity leak over the ridge. Absol was still fighting Raikou. His heart rate calmed. He looked blankly across the water for a moment. He was powerless in a battle between supernatural animals. What could he do against a legend?
A problem for future Joe. He rose to his feet. Ripped his thick coat off. Tossed it aside. Saw how damaged it was. It had saved him from being injured. He clambered up the canal's embankment. Sprinted across the stone bridge. Absol had fought hard to protect Joe. He didn't like the idea of leaving Absol to its fate against such a strong foe.
Joe hit the base of the mountain and kept running. He had an idea, but he needed help. He reached into a pocket. Brought a ball out, let Sprigatito onto his shoulder. She yipped, happy to see Joe even though it'd only been a few hours.
"Hey, buddy." He said through sharp breaths. "I want to help someone, but I need help to do it. I promise I won't let anything happen to you, so can you help me just this once? I'll give you all the food you want later."
Sprigatito considered. It sounded like there'd be danger. Joe was big and strong. If there was a problem he couldn't solve, then Sprigatito doubted she'd be of much use. But Joe had been good so far. Jumped off a building to save her. She wanted to help in return. Believed Joe when he said he'd keep her safe. She tightened her face. Nodded.
The action was in the corner of Joe's vision. He smiled. "Thanks. So what can you do? What moves do you have? Any ranged attacks?" Of course, not caring for battle and seeing Sprigatito as a non-combatant, Joe hadn't bothered to test her until now.
Sprigatito hissed. Stood up straight on Joe's shoulder. The fur around her neck bristled and hardened. Energy formed at three individual points. Sprigatito let out a cute shout. The energy shot into the air. Spiralled. Turned and shot forward faster than Joe expected. The three green shards of energy struck the path ahead and Joe soon ran over the target.
"Perfect."
Sprigatito felt a swell of pride at Joe's reply. It was like she'd impressed a parent. She listened as Joe explained his plan. Joe had noticed how Raikou acted. It was simple. Drawn to one thing at a time. Not in a sense that it had assessed multiple threats and chosen the correct target. No, Raikou seemed more like a robot simply reacting to the newest attention-grabbing act. The exception of Shockwave proved the rule. Every other time Raikou acted, it had purely focused on whatever attention-grabbing event had happened last.
Joe was going to grab Absol as Sprigatito drew attention, then they were going to run. It was the best he had. This wasn't a battle but a rescue mission.
Joe heard the mountain go silent. The battle must've reached a conclusion. He picked up the pace as best he could. He hoped he made it in time.
Thank Arceus for Joe's decision to take up martial arts. He had a lot of stamina. This run was rough. His lungs started to burn. His legs grew tired with every step. But he powered through it just like every other time he helped someone.
He reached a damaged dirt path. This was where Joe had fallen from. He followed scars in the ground. Looked up. Saw a damaged ridge. Heard fighting again. Joe ran further up the path. He'd swapped dripping water for dripping sweat. He arrived at the aftermath of a fight a couple of minutes later. A meadow with massive gouges across the ground. Towering shards of ice that curved into walls. Raikou loomed over a battered Absol.
Joe crouched. Wanted to catch his breath as best he could. He tapped the grass. Sprigatito hopped down. "Okay. You go left and I'll go right. When I start running, you attack Raikou with that ranged attack." He looked down. Sprigatito was looking at Raikou. She was shaking. But she nodded. He stroked her head. "It's okay to be scared. It's natural. It's the reason you made it this far. I told you I won't let anything happen to you. You'll blend into the grass. As soon as I grab Absol, meet me. You can go back inside your ball."
Joe should follow his own advice. There was a difference between being fearless or courageous. Having courage meant feeling fear yet fighting against it to save someone anyway. Even soldiers felt fear.
Joe started moving. Sprigatito did what she was told. Raikou was too busy looking down on Absol. But Absol noticed Joe from where it lay. Absol's eyes widened. This attracted Raikou's attention. The Beast followed Absol's gaze. Saw the human. Roared and opened its mouth. The jig was up. Joe dug his feet in and launched forward full speed. Avoided the scars in the ground.
A white light grew brighter in Raikou's mouth. Hyper Beam aimed right at Joe. Absol wanted to react but simply didn't have the energy. Flying leaves struck Raikou's behind. The Beast cancelled the move. Turned. Couldn't see anything. Sprigatito was so weak that Raikou couldn't pick up on her energy signature. She was right there, shaking hard enough to be the motor in a massage chair. But Raikou's eyes just swept over her.
Joe had been granted the precious seconds he needed. He reached Raikou's side. Skidded and crouched at the same time. Threw his arms around Absol's torso. Stood and tossed Absol onto a shoulder while bursting into a sprint. Kept an arm over Absol to pin the Pokemon to his shoulder. Joe estimated Absol's weight to be sixty kilograms. The average guy at a fitness center could handle more than this, but Joe has the added strain of running around.
Absol was still fighting sheer disbelief. It had been doing this for a decade. Wandering around the world, helping anyone that needed it. Not once had someone come back for Absol. Absol felt extra energy course through its body. As well as something else. The first time it'd ever felt this feeling. Absol didn't know what it was, but it didn't matter. Absol would pour this extra energy into being useful for the sake of this human.
Raikou had turned its attention back to Joe. It fired a Thunderbolt at his back. Joe came to a halt, spun, and ran in a different direction. Narrowly avoided the electricity. Another bolt came his way. He reached a curved ice wall. Used it as a shield. It shattered as electricity struck it. A particularly aggressive shard cut Joe's cheek and drew a tiny amount of blood.
Joe was desperately thinking of an out as he circled around to Sprigatito. He pulled the ball out. "Sprigatito!" He yelled. The cat was already there. She'd tracked her Trainer. She jumped up. Headbutt the ball and vanished.
Another bolt came for Joe. Absol swished a claw. A pillar rose from the earth and absorbed the hit.
"Thanks!" Joe could hear what was going on. Assumed Absol had saved him yet again. He'd been distracted. His mind was thinking of a way out of this mess. He used another ice wall as a shield and kept running. He considered hard. Thought of something. He'd seen it in movies. Jump into the river. Stay below the surface. Let the current take them away. It relied on Raikou not pursuing further, but it was the best he could come up with.
Joe noticed something at the top of his vision as he heard paws thudding behind him. The clouds changed. They got brighter. First yellow, then orange. Fire burst through clouds and struck the ground behind Joe. He felt the intense heat at his back. Stopped, panting. Turned. A wall of flames separated him and Raikou. He could see those fierce pink eyes, obscured and morphed by fire. He noticed a flicker of emotion from the Beast before everyone looked up to the source of the flames.
Joe's breath caught in his throat. He didn't expect to see one Legendary Pokemon today, let alone two. "Ho-oh…"
Batting its hefty red wings was Johto's most recognisable legend. Its white bulbous belly contained a raging fire. Its bushy yellow tail released embers behind its body. Ho-Oh descended from the Heavens, sharp eyes aimed at Raikou. It opened its beak. Cawed at the Beast as a show of force.
Raikou responded with action. Called Thunder from the skies above Ho-oh. Ho-oh aimed its beak up. Let out a grand blast of fire. Fire and electric clashed and lit up the sky. Ho-oh locked eyes with Raikou again. The Beast surrounded itself with electricity and ran away.
Joe lost sight of Raikou in seconds. It zipped across the meadow. Around the distant corner of Mt. Silver. Deeper into the mountain range. Ho-oh cawed and followed nearly as fast. It left behind a trail of embers from its tail as it went. Ho-oh had left as quickly as it had arrived but had left a present behind.
Joe realised he'd been holding his breath. He finally started breathing again. Watched the embers fall. He put a palm out. Caught one. He felt a strong jolt run through his arm and into his chest. The ember sunk into his hand. His vision shifted for a second. It evened out. Suddenly Joe was assaulted by his senses. He heard birds chirp. Saw vibrant flowers. It was like he was thinking clearly for the first time in a very long time. Like he'd been liberated.
Joe returned to the present. He crouched. Put Absol down on the ground. Heaved a sigh. Fell back onto his rear. He sat next to Absol who had also enjoyed the reinvigorating embers. For a time neither made a noise. They just sat together, watching the same sky.
Joe instinctively patted Absol's side. Enjoyed the soft fur. Absol let him, just for a minute. Eventually Absol shifted. Gave a gentle bark. Swatted Joe's hand away.
"Oh. Sorry." He said. He planted his hands into the dirt and leaned back. Stretched his legs.
Absol huffed. It'd been alone most of its life so it wasn't used to getting attention. Didn't know how to feel about it. Maybe it was okay, in moderation. Absol lay there, front legs crossed and head resting atop them. It was still processing that Joe had come back for it. People always ran from danger, not towards it. It made sense to Absol. It journeyed to protect the weak. The weak ran from danger. That was why Absol had been rough with Joe at first. Scare him off. It didn't matter if he hated Absol for scaring him. He'd be safe. To Absol's surprise, it wished it had used a gentler approach. This was out of respect. Joe had shown decency, so Absol wanted to show some in return. And Absol still had that feeling from a minute ago to consider.
Joe sat there and watched clouds drift along. Considered what to do next. Something was going on. His instincts were talking to him. In that last second, when he met Raikou's eyes through the flames, he saw a change. The Beast's expression softened. Gave Joe puppy dog eyes. Pleading. Apologetic. What did that mean? Joe could only think of one answer. Raikou's true personality broke through for a moment. Which meant this anger was not its own. It was being controlled. That was the feeling Joe got. If that were the case, then Joe had a mission. He was going to save Raikou from whoever or whatever was controlling it. He'd set his sights on an objective. Saving someone. He was going to achieve this goal no matter what.
He couldn't go after Raikou now though. It'd raced off, deeper into the Sterling mountain range. Even if Joe could track animals, he knew of the Sterling range. He could be lost in the mountains for months.
Joe considered the Pokemon that lay next to him. Absol. An animal seemingly as righteous as he was. That was a good idea.
"I get the feeling you're about to rush off to help more people." Joe commented. Looked over at Absol. It barked. He took this as an affirmation. "You're in good company. My mum's always complaining, saying I'm going to get hurt one of these days." Silence. He considered his next words. "What I'm saying is, why don't we work together? I can become a Trainer. I can create a team to support you. The stronger we get, the more people we can help."
What a coincidence. Absol had the same thought. Clearly it couldn't continue like this. To rival a legend, Absol needed support. And it'd warmed up to Joe. The first human to ever come back for it. Joe was someone with unmatched resolve. If Absol was going to fight alongside someone, it needed to be someone like Joe. So, it would be Joe. Absol barked once. Accepted Joe's proposal.
"Sorry, I don't speak Pokemon."
Absol sat up. Stood in front of Joe, which forced him to look at the Pokemon. Absol barked again and nodded. It saw a big grin spread across Joe's face. He put a fist out.
"I look forward to working with you, partner."
Absol eyed the fist. Brought its own claw up and looked at it. Turned it over. Retracted its claws. Bumped its paw into Joe's fist.
"Well then…" Joe put a hand on a knee and rose. Absol watched with a blank expression. "For now, let's go to New Bark." He pointed. Absol looked. "That town down there. I think we've earned a rest."
It'd been a tough fight. While Absol had some energy restored thanks to Ho-oh's embers, Joe was right. Absol nodded.
The pair of Trainer and Pokemon walked down the mountain. Back down the path until they crossed a bridge. Joe quickly when down the bank. Grabbed his coat. Considered patching it up. Decided to hand it off to a charity shop. They could fix it or use it for parts.
Joe and Absol reached the outskirts of town. At one point Absol was drawn to Joe's shadow. Wondered if that was the reason Joe had survived the fall. It didn't seem evil, at least.
They passed Joe's flexing Feraligatr friend at the cabin. Joe figured he'd explain himself. "Tomorrow we'll visit Professor Elm. He lives in this town. We can get information from him, and some help. After that… We'll figure it out."
Joe wanted to grab a PokeDex. He knew of them from school. They contained infinite knowledge about every known species of Pokemon. It would be invaluable to Joe.
They reached the town center. Joe caught people's attention as he walked. Maybe because he had taken a dunk in a river. Joe went into a clothes store. Grabbed some for now and tomorrow. They didn't have many items in his size, but at least they had his preferred casual style. He also found some deodorant and simple cologne in the clothes store. The only downside of being out in nature with no rivers was that Joe hadn't been able to freshen up. He bought the clothes and put them on in a changing room. Sprayed deodorant. At least now he smelled decent.
They passed a phone store. It made Joe think. He pulled out his smartphone. It was dead. Not surprising. Joe believed a phone was for two things. Calls and texts. He bought cheap. They had no waterproofing. He sighed. Went inside. Absol waited outside, by the windows. Absol yawned as the salesman tried to get Joe to sign up to a contract he didn't want.
Joe walked outside, tired from having his ear talked off for half an hour. Checked his new phone. Had his old number put on it. He'd rushed through the settings while half-listening to the salesman, so his phone was done booting up. No calls or texts came through. Good. That meant everyone important in Joe's life was okay.
All Joe's other tasks could wait. He had to buy all new hiking gear. Visit Professor Elm. He also had to go to the bank. He thought he was smart for having cash on hand. Now it was ruined. He needed to exchange it. Just another task for tomorrow.
Silver lining. At least he was safe. Needing to complete numerous mundane tasks is preferable to being in hospital, or worse.
Joe walked to the sea. Found a hotel. Decent room for the price. He freshened up, which included shaving his growing beard. Face-planted the bed. Absol had already curled up on the rug in the center of the room.
"Oh. How could I forget." Joe rolled over. Absol opened an eye and looked at the bed. "I'm Joe. Nice to meet you." Absol barked. Joe closed his eyes. The sun was still up but it didn't matter. They both fell asleep.
* * * * *
Joe had the weirdest dream that night. He watched two familiar faces from up close. Two legends.
Raikou raced through the Sterling mountain range. Despite its speed boosted via electricity, Ho-oh kept up. Any attacks Raikou sent the bird's way were simply dodged. Ho-oh was agile. The bird retaliated in kind. Raikou was fast so the bird's attacks were easily avoided too.
Ho-oh could end this fight now, but it wanted information. It did not know this Beast. That Raikou was long gone. As the legend went, Ho-oh reincarnated a trio of Pokemon into Beasts. Ho-oh remembered it. A few centuries ago. But those were not the first nor the last Beasts. Ho-oh had reincarnated those three using the image of a species it knew.
They travelled North. Passed half a dozen mountains. Ho-oh rounded the corner of a cliff. Something was there, and it was close. So it was a trap. Ho-oh instinctively let out as much fire as it could. It used Overheat. Similar to Shockwave, immense fire spawned in a sphere around the bird. They spread and circled Ho-oh, reaching out a couple dozen meters. Scorched everything in range.
A device was launched. Multiple metal cubes the size of an adult's fist. They were melted before achieving whatever they were made for. Globs of metal fell to the ground. Ho-oh hovered. Looked at its new foe. A group of humans. They had some steel machines, some bigger than the trucks that transported them here.
Ho-oh observed the people. Mainly men. All shapes and sizes. Missing teeth. Poorly cut beards. Simple leather clothes. They looked like ruffians. All except one. He wore a white business suit. Had perfectly kept combed blue hair. He eyed Ho-oh with interest. Ho-oh was not part of the plan, but they'll take it.
In their dreams. Ho-oh was a phoenix. With every reincarnation, its flames grew hotter. This Ho-oh had been around for a long, long time. It had lost track of its reincarnations.
The group of ruffians released Pokemon from Pokeballs. Probably wanted to weaken Ho-oh before forcefully capturing it. That was fine with Ho-oh. It'd been a while since it got into a good fight. Raikou hadn't been enough to get the bird's blood pumping.
Speaking of, Raikou stood on the sidelines. Waiting. This confirmed Ho-oh's suspicions. These people were controlling Raikou. Ho-oh could sense another energy signature. A psychic one. It came from the back of Raikou's neck. That was the how, at least. Useful information.
Raikou made the first move. It glowed white and gold as it pounced. The ground under it was demolished. It moved fast. Extreme Speed. Ho-oh reacted just in time. Its claws glowed brown with energy. Caught Raikou. Spun and threw the Beast into the ground. The size and power difference was too much. It didn't matter that Raikou had a type advantage. The Beast hit the ground. It lay in the center of a crater.
Ho-oh's instincts kicked in again. It flapped its heavy wings. Moved left. Saw a long pink tongue. Turned around. A big lizard with a tongue that can stretch fifty meters. Lickitung. Ho-oh wrapped itself in blue fire. Brave Bird. The bird dive bombed Lickitung. Hit it like a train hitting a car. Created a massive crater. Gave a strong flap of its wings to clear the air. Lickitung had been instantly knocked out. It rested under Ho-oh, seeing stars.
The bird saw its next foe step into the arena. A big fellow with blue legs, a hairless head, and big orange hands. Hariyama. It seemed much bigger than normal. An Alpha.
Ho-oh dug its front talons under Lickitung. Kicked it away. Met Hariyama in fair combat. Ho-oh flicked its wings. They glowed white. Hariyama held its hands in front of its body in a karate stance. Bright orange energy ran across the sides of its hands. Wing Attack vs Cross Chop. Ho-oh parried hand with wing. Brushed a hand aside and struck with the tip of its other wing. Hariyama was sturdy. Took the hit. Retaliated thrusting its palms. Ho-oh dipped its wings inside Hariyama's range. Pushed Hariyama's hands outwards. Kicked out with a claw enhanced by Superpower. Blasted Hariyama away.
There was one Ho-oh forgot. A lanky blue and black water chameleon. Inteleon. It had blended into its surroundings. Waited patiently for the right time to strike. The time was now. A powerful beam of water, Snipe Shot, left Inteleon's pointer finger. Raced towards Ho-oh. Ho-oh twisted its head last second. High pressure water grazed the bird's cheek. Took out a few feathers. Inteleon blended in again. It essentially turned invisible. It appeared behind Ho-oh, its tail engulfed by water. It swung Aqua Tail.
In the same moment, Raikou had recovered. The Beast was rushing in with an electrically charged Extreme Speed. A pincer attack of super effective moves. Not like they mattered to a legend of Ho-oh's calibre. It pumped out as much fire as it could. Overheat again. It blasted once. The water on Inteleon's tail turned to steam and drifted on the wind. Inteleon was blasted away from the force. Raikou managed to stand its ground but couldn't advance. Ho-oh blasted Overheat twice. Walked to Raikou who was somehow still standing. Ho-oh pushed Raikou down with a claw. Blasted Overheat for a third time.
The rock in the crater was close to its melting point. Everyone was taken out of the fight. Raikou's blood had boiled. Ho-oh took off into the sky with Raikou in its claw. Tossed the Beast at the humans. Let out a might caw. The humans had already retrieved their Pokemon. They retreated. On foot. Ho-oh looked around. Its Overheat had destroyed all the equipment and vehicles. It huffed in triumph. Flew away. It was satisfied with the look of annoyance on the faces of the humans. They got what they deserved.
Ho-oh decided this was enough. The tradeoff for the immense power of Legendary Pokemon compared to regular Pokemon was that it took longer to recover. Raikou would fall ill from the boiled blood. It would be out of the fight for weeks.
This information would be communicated to the man from the mountain. Joe. He was not a chosen warrior. Just a witness to what Ho-oh saw for a time. All Joe had to do was tell someone. Let the information travel until someone capable decided to fight these criminals. Ho-oh had used the power of Aura. Tapped into Joe's soul using its embers. Showed him what had happened. It was up to humans to deal with this problem. Ho-oh might be seen as callous, but it believed that humans should solve as many problems as they could. Ho-oh wanted people to grow. That couldn't happen if legends like Ho-oh coddled them and solved all their problems for them. Ho-oh looked forward to seeing humans succeed.