Winds are really starting to pick up now, as the soft blue of the sky rapidly turns into grey. Those spider-like crestures are still sliding around, but the bee-looking things have dissapeared, probably hiding from the storm that was sure to come by tonight.
Beneath my right palm, I can sense the currents rising upwards, and it feels like rain.
It's what Nina had taught me. Back when we were still kids, she had this way of predicting rain, she'd stretch her arm out, hovering her palm above the ground. Close her eyes, claim that it was about to rain. She said it was her superpower, that she could feel the rain under her fingers.
But Nina is not here, her palms are not telling me it was about to rain, the skies were.
It sinks in, I was so overcome with all of this, that Nina was only now coming to my mind. I was too lost in all of this to think about her, or anyone else.
If this was all made up, this world, I couldn't help but wonder, if all the people that I knew were standing right above me, just waiting for a moment I take my last breath.
Was somebody holding my arm?
Even if they were, Nina wouldn't be there. Thankfully, she had nothing to do with military.
This world is where I am now, though, and wheter it is real or not doesn't matter. Not right now, at least.
That's what I try to convince myslef.
In truth, these thouhgts are too numerous to be seen in their entirety, they feel too sharp, making my mind go numb. I can not afford that right now.
In case, just in case this is all real, I couldn't afford thinking any of this. I was still not out of the troubled waters. I might have a place to stay for now, but I still had no money and no job.
And I had Charmander on my hands now. Once my time as a trainer runs out, I'd have to take care of him as well.
Moreover, I realise that the initial shock of waking up in a new world is slowly passing. This is about to be tough night, coloured in stormy weather and whatever storms through my mind.
Dread whirlwinds through my body, and I do my best to keep it at bay as I watch Xander and Leo follow the professor to some sort of the field.
Tonight, I think, I'll keep my composure until tonight, until I'm alone. These people don't know me, and they wouldn't understand it. They wouldn't even believe me.
So I watch, as the two boys my age walk around a patch of grass that looks like an undersized football field. They never died before, a thouhht jolts through my mind, but I quickly push it back.
Professor Lydia instructs the two to take their places on each side of the field, and they are quick to follow orders.
Charmander makes his way beside me, grabbing my pants with his claw. He wants to watch, I realise, bending down to pick him up so he has better view. He was probably in a battle already I realise. Didn't his previous trainer return him because he can't use some moves? He probably had to battle to find that out.
Cassie makes her way beside me, and Sprigatito leisurely walks around us, making sure not to pay us any attention. Fennekin, she had to put back in her pokeball, since the fox had refused to leave her hiding spot. I feel kind of sorry for her, she deserves partners that were as outgoing as she was.
"I assume this your first time seeing a battle", she whispers over at me.
"I saw battles in the anime", I point out.
"Yes, anime", Cassie nods, "what is that?".
It springs on me, I have no idea how my truth had made her feel. Even if she didn't believe me, I did tell her this world was an anime in our world. Thankfully, she didn't know what that was, but if I explained it to her, how would she feel? To know that her world is made up?
Really, if this all turned out to be the creation of my own mind, how would Cassie feel? How do you tell someone they might not be real?
"It's like a story", I try to explain the best that I can without saying to much, "but made for TV".
"Like a movie?", she questions.
"Yeah", I accept that explanation, "like a movie". Movie, at least, makes it sound somewhat real.
"So, you know how this goes then", she says, and I can tell that she simply doesn't want to question me any further.
"Honestly, no", I admit, "I watched it a long time ago". It feels like a lifetime away. All I remember is a lots of yelling and flashing lights.
"Well, it's not too complicated", Cassie takes a second to think about it, "each trainer gets to use a certain number of pokemon, one each in this case, and whoever knocks out all of their opponents pokemon wins".
"Right, I could guess that much", I nod, staring at the field.
Professor Lydia has finished giving Xander and Leo instruction, and they are both gripping their pokemon balls tightly.
"Okay, you can call on your partners now", she says, taking a few steps back. Both boys oblige immediately, letting Rowlet and Piplup appear on the field.
I stare at the two birds, thinking that they look all too innocent to be brawlers. But that's what they were.
"Are both of you ready to go?", professor Lydia says loudly.
Xander is quick to give a nod of agreement, and Leo musters a firm "yes".
"Alright, then", the professor cuts the air with her hand, "battle, begin!".
"Rowlet, hit them with Leafage", Xander's voice sharpens immediately.
The small owl swings his wing, as it starts glowing with some sort of green energy.
"Dodge it, Piplup", Leo says in response, as his penguin tries toggling away from the slashing owl. His legs being too tiny, it fails, so Rowlet manages to land the attack.
Piplup has no time to wince in pain, as Leo immediately growls out: "Bubble, quick, counter them". His partner manages to twist his body around, facing Rowlet and sending a small stream of bubbles into the owl.
The water speheres explode on contact, but they seem to only distract Rowlet, rather than hurt him
"Leafage again, quick, Rowlet", Xander says quickly, as his partner's wing flashes green yet again and he comes in swinging.
Stolen story; please report.
"Duck, Piplup", Leo counters, and Piplup manages to follow instruction in an instant, avoiding the attack.
"Now, use Pound", Leo ties in quickly.
Piplup's wing glows white, as he plunges upwards, digging it into the owl.
This seems to hurt Rowlet a bit more, thursting the owl backwards and making his face twist in pain.
"Let's go, Leafage again", Xander yells, "they can't run forever".
"Xander's too straightforward, as per usual", Cassie sighs beside me.
I watch as Rowlet charges in, attempting yet another swing. She's right, I think. He's doing the same thing over and over again.
"Duck, Piplup", Leo decides to follow the same pattern as well.
However, Rowlet is ultimately the one who seals the deal.
Clsoing in, the owl pokemon slashes his wing downwards, so Piplup can't avoid it by ducking. The force of the attack blows back Piplup, making the pokemon roll across the grassy field a few times.
Sprawling on its back, it's visible that the pokemon has reached his limit.
"Piplup is unable to battle", professor Lydia announces in a formal tone, "Xander and Rowlet win".
"Looks like Xander's way worked this time around", Cassie rasies her eyebrow in surprise.
"He's just a stubborn guy, isn't he?", I question.
"Yeah", she says quietly, "gets him pretty far, though".
"I could imagine", I say.
"I'm kind of sorry for Leo though", she sighs, "he did well, and he was at a disatvantage".
"Wait?", I say in surprise, "he was at a disatvantage?".
"Yeah, obviously, Rowlet's a grass type, and Piplup is water", Cassie says as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
"Uh", I gape open my mouth as I try to remember what she's talking about.
"God, Rory, don't tell me you don't know about types and match-ups", she gives me a look bathed in bewilderment.
"As I said, I watched the anime a long time ago", I admit.
"You're a piece of work", Cassie lets out a laugh.
I don' t get to respond, since professor Lydia waves us both over.
"Now, what did we learn in this battle?", she lands her hands on her hips as soon as Cassie and I approach her.
That Xander's one lucky bastard, I want to say, but I manage to hold myself back.
"That I hate type matchups", Leo scoffs instead.
"That you're too passive", Xander offers.
"That I hang out with airheads", Cassie rolls her eyes playfully.
"Hey, Cas, that's not fair, I did my best", Leo snarks, "Xander only won cause of the type advantage, if he didn't have it, he'd lose battling like that".
"If I didn't have it, I wouldn't battle like that", Xander retorts.
"Still, I battled smarter", Leo sighs.
"Maybe, but that's not necessarily better", Xander shrugs.
"It is", Leo responds.
"If you were right about that, you would've won just now", Xander points out, and I'm surprised to find myself agreeing with his rhetoric. I knew combat, certainly better than three of them, and just making your blows was necessary sometimes.
"Alright", professor Lydia cuts them off, "I'll let you think about it in your own time, right now, the four of you should head to the pokemon center".
Their bickering stops immediately, as Leo reaffirms what the professor had just said: "Piplup needs healing, so yeah, pokemon center it is".
"Rowlet as well, so I'm coming too", Xander nods.
"And I can't leave Rory alone with the two of you, so I'll join in as well", Cassie smiles.
"We won't bite his head off, Cas", Leo rolls his eyes at her.
"Though I might try", Xander says, without even looking at me.
"Shut up, Xander", Cassie shoves her fist his way, but Xander dodges it with ease.
"Too slow, Cas", he gives her a wink, and I realise this is the first time I saw him smile. The three of them just seem so used to each other, it colours me in alienation.
"Stop acting like children, you two", Leo sighs, even though he can't stop his lips from curling up.
"Alright, alright", the professor waves for them to go down, "the four of you go your merry way now, the weather is worsening already, so you better make it to the center then back home quickly".
"Right, the rain looks like it's going to be a bitch tonight", Xander scoffs at the grey-enveloped sky.
It strikes me as strange. Wasn't this a made up world, something out of a children's cartoon? Swearing felt off to me here, but the words crossed Xander's lips so easily.
Strange, how something as stupid as cursing can make me believe this whole world might be real. Cursing was a staple of relity for me, apparently.
"Yeah, you're right aunt Lydia, we should go", Cassie jumps up, catchimg the woman into a hug. "I'll come see you tomorrow morning before we leave, alright", the girl says slowly.
I move to look at her face when she lets her aunt out of her embrace. "And come by tonight for dinner if you have time", Cassie's voice becomes a mere whisper, and I can see tears forming in her eyes. She brushes them off with her hand, and gets on a smile that seems forced.
Right. This was her hometown. She's leaving it behind, everything that she knows, tomorrow morning. They all are. Maybe, if I come along with them, I could ask about it.
"I'll do my best", the professor says, caressing her niece's hair, and I can hear Cassie sniff a little. "The four of you should get going now".
"Right, we'll go", it seems it takes too much for Cassie to step back, but she manages. As she turns around, she doesn't dare to look back.
I give a short nod to the professor as a goodbye, as I remember to place Charmander back in his pokeball. I don't think he'll like it if it starts raining. Xander and Leo say their goodbyes, promisimg to stop by tomorrow morning if they can as well.
With that, the four of us embark on our mission to find the pokemon center. My future home for the season.
The three of them took professor's warning literally, as they rush down the path that I don't know. In reality, Xander is rushing, with me following in step, Cassie skipping to keep up with us, and Leo having to run every now and again to catch up, panting all the way through.
It might be a comical way of transportation, but it gets us where we need to be quite effectively. The best part - we don't have to do too much talking, since none of them can catch their breath. Even Xander, who seems to be the best built amongst them can't talk too much. I, on the other hand, have been hardened by 2 years of service, so this was nothing to me.
I'd lie if I said it didn't give me sense of superiority. They might be better at battling magical animals than me, but I was better at fast paced walking.
The pokemon center turns out to be another square building, few stories high, with a glaring red roof, and a giant pokemon ball sign plastered above the entrance.
As we enter, I immediately find it strange that this place doesn't smell anything like a hospital. It doesn't look it either. The large foyer seems to be the only room, and it's drowning in plants and pictures, with giant sofas scattered by the walls done in wood. If the pult didn't have some strange looking machines tied to the giant screens, the place would look like a hotel lobby.
"Let's go", Cassie drags me by my hand, "let the two of them heal their pokemon, and I'll help you out with registration".
I'm grateful for her assertiveness, as I hated following Xander and Leo around. Besides, I have no idea what steps to take.
As we approach the pult, a pink haired woman behind it makes me take a double take. That was not the colour of hair, no, she seems like she had stuck cotton candy on the top of her hand. In my mind, another point goes under the 'this place isn't real' tab. I didn't even realise I've started to keep score.
"Hi, nurse Joy", Cassie slams her hand on the pult energetically, "my friend here needs to register as a trainer, can you guide him through it".
The woman laughs lightly, as she rises from her chair. "I think I can help out", her voice is sweet as she extends her hand.
I just stand there, dumbfounded, until Cassie strikes her elbow into my side, almost hissing at me: "your pokedex".
"Oh, yeah, right", I instantly remember the device I had placed in my pocket. I quickly offer it to the nurse.
"And Charmander's pokeball", Cassie coughes out.
"Right, here, the pokemon ball as well", I say, offering up the second device to the nurse as well.
Cassie slaps me across my shoulder, and I turn to see the look of utter betrayal plastered across her face.
"What?", I says, questioning myslef. Did I do something wrong?
"Pokemon ball? Really, pokemon ball?", she says and I have no idea what she's on about.
"What's wrong with it?", I question.
"It's pokeball, you bastard", she growls at me.
"Uh, does it really matter?", I raise my eyebrow, not knowing why this matter had made her so furious. "It's a ball for your pokemon, a ball in which you keep a pokemon, so it's a pokemon ball".
"Well, pokemon ball is not techinaclly wrong, but it just sounds terrible", Cassie sighs, punching me again, "don't ever call it that again".
"Alright", I say, still confused out of my mind. "Pokeball it is".
"That's better", Cassie lets out a sigh of relief.
The nurse laughs at us sweetly, she probably finds Cassie's outburst endearing, unlike me.
I notice she's placed both the pokedex and Charmander's pokemon ball, pokeball, into some some sort of a machine that's been worked into the table.
"This will only take a moment", she says, typing someting away on the computer, "I'll need to get your name though".
"Rory, Rory Mulligan", I offer.
"Good", her fingers fly across the keyboard, and she slams the enter button with a force of a sargent. One of the screens flashes behind her immediately, showcasing my name and a small picture of Charmander, followed by 5 empty circles, that occupy the middle of the screen, and 8 darkened squares that are placed at the bottom.
She takes the pokedex and pokeball, offering them back to me. "You can also add your picture later on, if you want to do that", she smiles at me.
"Uh, right, I'll think about it", I says, taking back my devices, "so... that's it?".
"Yeah, that's it", Cassie smacks me across the back encouragingly, "congratulations, you're officially a pokemon trainer now".
