Chapter 11: Oh Crap! Poachers!
As the night deepened, the once-roaring bonfire dwindled to a gentle crackle, its embers glowing in the quiet darkness.
Lyle stood before the dying flames, holding a handful of wooden skewers. "Alright everyone, time to draw lots for the night watch!" he announced with a grin.
They were in the wild, after all. Even on the outskirts of the city, this was still Pokémon territory. While wild Pokémon rarely attacked humans unprovoked, it was always better to be safe than sorry. No one objected.
Among the skewers, four had been marked with a red pen. The system was fair.
"DAMN IT ALL!"
A cry of despair echoed through the forest. In front of Lyle, Leo stared at the skewer in his hand as if it had personally betrayed him. The red mark on its tip was unmistakable.
The rest of the class erupted in laughter, offering their most sincere "condolences."
"Hey, look on the bright side. All that training for the Insomnia ability has finally paid off," Kenji teased. Leo was notorious for pulling all-nighters playing video games and then sleeping through class the next day.
Leo grabbed Kenji's shoulders, his eyes wide and pleading. "Kenji... my friend... my brother... we're best buds, right?"
Kenji heartlessly slapped his hands away. "Don't even think about it."
The tent zippers were closed one by one. By the campfire, Leo was humming a cheerful tune, seemingly in a good mood.
Next to him, Kenji stared gloomily at the wooden skewer in his own hand.
Just like Leo's, it was marked with red ink.
"See? It's fate. This is why we're best friends," Leo said with a grin, slinging his arm around Kenji's shoulders.
"It's your fault, you jinxed me," Kenji grumbled.
The night grew deeper. The moon was a sliver, half-hidden by clouds. As Kenji sat by the crackling fire, staring into the dancing flames, he was surrounded by a chorus of snores. Leo was sprawled out on the ground like a starfish, snoring loud enough to shake the trees. Bizarrely, a single leaf had been carefully placed over his belly button.
Kenji looked away and let out a bored yawn.
Zzzzip—
Suddenly, the sound of a tent zipper being pulled open broke the silence.
Kenji sat up, alert. He turned to see Melody emerging from her tent.
He quickly averted his gaze. It was the middle of the night; there was only one reason someone would be getting out of their tent. Staring would be rude, and Kenji wasn't a creep.
A moment later, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. They grew closer until Melody sat down right next to him.
Kenji was a little surprised. "What are you doing up?"
Melody rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Couldn't sleep. You should get some rest. I can take over for a while."
A small warmth spread through Kenji's chest. He shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, but I'm not tired. You should go back to sleep."
She was about to say something else when a loud explosion suddenly ripped through the forest, followed by the furious roar of a Pokémon.
In perfect sync, both Kenji and Melody whipped their heads toward the sound.
"What was that?" Kenji muttered, a sense of unease washing over him.
Melody shot to her feet. "I'm going to check it out. You guys stay safe."
Before Kenji could stop her, she was gone, running headfirst into the darkness of the forest.
"Damn it..."
Kenji cursed under his breath. He grabbed the sleeping Leo and slapped him twice, hard, waking him up. Without bothering to explain to the dazed and confused Leo, he sprinted off in the direction Melody had gone.
That explosion was clearly from a Pokémon move, and a powerful one at that. He couldn't understand what possessed that reckless girl to run toward the danger with nothing but a level 6 Charmander.
Deep in the forest, a Voltorb lay motionless on the ground, its eyes replaced with swirls. Its body was covered in scrapes and burns.
Surrounding it was a terrifyingly large swarm of unconscious Beedrill, at least twenty or thirty of them.
"Good work, Voltorb."
A man dressed in black outdoor gear walked into the clearing. He looked at the defeated Beedrill littering the ground and a cruel smile spread across his face. He casually recalled his exhausted Voltorb.
Beedrill weren't worth much on the black market due to their low potential and short lifespans, but their sheer numbers made up for it. Twenty or thirty of them, even at just 3,000 Pokédollars each, would fetch a handsome price.
The man pulled a stack of empty Poké Balls from his backpack and began tossing them at the fallen Beedrill, capturing one after another.
"What do you think you're doing?!" a sharp voice cried out from behind him.
The man froze, his movements halting mid-throw. He spun around, his eyes adjusting to the moonlight to see who had found him.
It was Melody, drawn by the sound of the explosion.
She was clenching her jaw, her face a mask of fury. "People like you, who hurt Pokémon for no reason, don't deserve to be called trainers."
Hearing this, the man's tense posture relaxed. He straightened up, stuffing the captured Poké Balls into his bag. "Little girl," he said casually, "who ever said I was a trainer?"
A poacher!
Melody's heart sank. Her hand instinctively went to the Poké Ball at her waist, ready to throw it.
Seeing her movement, the man didn't look concerned at all. Instead, a contemptuous smirk touched his lips.
"Kiki—"
WHOOSH!—
Before Melody could even press the button on her Poké Ball, there was a sharp whistling sound. A small stone shot through the air and struck the ball with perfect accuracy, knocking it from her hand.
"Ah—!"
Melody cried out in pain, clutching her hand as she looked to see where the attack had come from. Perched on a nearby tree branch was a purple, monkey-like Pokémon with a cheeky grin on its face. A hand-shaped appendage grew from the end of its long tail.
An Aipom!
"Now that you're here, you're not leaving," the poacher said, his voice cold and menacing. "Aipom! Use Fury Swipes!"
"Kiki!—"
The Aipom chittered in response. Its claws glowed with a white light as it leaped from the branch, lunging straight for Melody.
Melody's eyes widened in terror. She fumbled at her belt, pulling out a second Poké Ball, but there was no time. The Aipom was already on top of her. She shut her eyes, bracing for the attack.
"BZZZZZ—"
CRACK!—
"KIII!—"
Suddenly, a powerful gust of wind swept past her. Two streaks of white light cut through the darkness, followed by the pained cry of the Aipom. Melody opened her eyes to see the purple Pokémon being sent flying backward.
Hovering in front of her was a familiar yellow and black Pokémon.
"Beedrill!" Melody gasped, her voice filled with a mixture of shock and overwhelming relief.
Aipom
Level: 17
Ability: Run Away
Potential: F+
From behind her, Kenji stumbled out of the trees, panting heavily.
"Are you okay?" he asked between breaths.
Melody, still in a daze, shook her head. "How did you get here?"
Kenji gave her a look that clearly said are you an idiot? "You're so reckless. I was worried you'd get yourself killed if I didn't follow."
And he was right. If his Beedrill hadn't arrived in the nick of time, she would have been seriously hurt.
"What a pain," the poacher muttered, his voice laced with annoyance. His cold eyes were fixed on the Beedrill as he tossed another Poké Ball into the air.
Poof!—
A bat-like creature with a massive mouth that took up two-thirds of its body appeared, hovering in the air.
A Golbat!
Kenji's pupils contracted.
Golbat
Level: 33
Type: Poison / Flying
Ability: Inner Focus
Potential: E-
Against the Aipom, Kenji's Beedrill, with its absurdly high stats and dual abilities, had a fighting chance. But against this Golbat, the situation was hopeless. There was no way they could win.
"Go! Pidgeot!"
"SKREEE!—"
Suddenly, another Poké Ball flew through the air. A flash of red light exploded overhead, and a sharp, piercing cry echoed through the trees. A large, brown-feathered bird Pokémon with a magnificent red and yellow crest appeared in the sky.
Kenji turned. While he had been distracted, Melody had run over and picked up the Poké Ball that the Aipom had knocked away.
And the Pidgeot had come from that very ball.
Pidgeot
Level: 36
Type: Flying / Normal
Ability: Keen Eye
Potential: D-
A level 36 Pidgeot! It was even three levels higher than the poacher's Golbat!
A look of relief washed over Kenji's face. Maybe this reckless girl wasn't a complete idiot after all.