The Pokemon Master - Chapter 3 Meeting Misty....before Committing Grand Theft Bicycle

Cold! This word perfectly summed up the world Vex had wound up in….it was also the word he would use to describe the temperature of the river he had jumped into. However, though it was admittedly cold, it was the least of his worries as the river swept him up in its current. Due to how the river was, the current was actually quite strong and didnt allow him to do much steering or even surfacing to take a gasp of air so he had no choice but hold his breath and hope that the he would come across a point where he could reach the surface where he could take a quick inhale of much needed oxygen. To be honest this was quite a stupid decision on his own part, jumping from a waterfall into a fast moving river without bothering to check his options first, definitely idiotic. However in a do or die situation, Vex wasnt the best at making the best judgements, it was very hard for him to pick out the correct option that would probably save his life.

Thirty seconds had past so far and the river didnt seem to be slowing down any, Vex having tried many times to head to the surface but his legs didnt seem to want to move leaving him helpless as the swift current kept carrying him further along. After a minute had past, Vex felt his lungs begging for air and the time for which he needed air was drawing closer and closer. He wasn’t sure how long Pikachu could hold his own breath but he was almost positive that he needed to breath soon as well, if not sooner then him. It was only a matter of time before his lungs gave out and he ended up inhaling water, drowning them both and becoming food for whatever Pokemon dwelled in these waters.

Luck seemed to smile on him though as something caught on his shirt, slowing him down slightly as the water continued to rush past at a rapid pace. The thing tugged hard on his shirt as if attempting to pull him out lifting Vex’s spirits as he tried kicking his legs to swim towards whatever was tugging at his shirt. Miraculously, he moved, and with the help of the thing yanking on his shirt, he eventually broke the surface with Pikachu raised over his head. Pikachu began coughing out water from its mouth, its eyes opening slowly. Vex looked around before finding a solid looking rock to the left of him and using the now hard pulling sensation from his shirt to help him swim over it. The rock was situated next to the shore and Vex was able to transfer over from it to land.

Though he wanted to do nothing more then pass the hell out, Vex had to make sure that Pikachu was okay. He had actually grown a bit attached to Pikachu, he seemed like he’d be a good companion to have around. Fortunately for him it seemed that Pikachu had merely passed out for the time being. Breathing a sigh of relief, Vex fell back and lay down next to the small mouse-like creature, feeling very tired and more then a bit fatigued, the fact that he he still had his backpack the only comfort to an otherwise horrible day. A sharp pain near the top of his shirt however was the only thing that kept him awake as he sat back up and reached behind him.

The thing that had been pricking his back turned out to be a fishing hook with a line still attached to it. It was this thing that had saved his life and without it he would’ve no doubt died in the river, killed in this world without even being here for a full day. That would’ve been a pathetic way to go out, and it told him that he either needed to get stronger or needed to get smarter or maybe both. He was lost in thought, holding the hook in his hand when a shout rang out.

“Hey, kid!” Came a female voice, clearly sounding very irritated. “You think you could let go of my fishing hook?” Vex turned to his left and saw a young girl around 14 to 15 years old walking towards him. This was the first person he had seen in this world that wasn’t an old man and he was mentally excited, but managed to keep a cool outer appearance. The girl was shorter then him, about two inches smaller to his own 5’8 stature and seemed rather tomboyish. She wore a yellow tank top that was a bit short for her to the point of almost being a basic crop top and a pair of shorts that reached midthigh along with a pair of red suspenders that served no purpose except for style. She had orange colored hair, viridian colored eyes and what would probably been a pretty face except that it was currently twisted into a scowl as she approached him.

“This is YOUR fishing hook?” Vex asked her curiously. If what she said was true then common courtesy dictated that he thanked her for saving his life. “This fishing line literally just saved my life and the life of my Pikachu here so I greatly thank you for your help Miss Crop top.” He gave a slight bow before picking up his Pikachu and placing it in his lap.

An expression other then anger appeared on the girls face as she immediately knelt down next to Pikachu to take a closer look at it. She seemed pretty disturbed about it as she reached out to touch it but stopped an inch away before retracting her hand. “You should take it to a Pokemon center before you even think about doing anything else.” She stood up and pointed to her left, indicating which way the Pokemon center was. “Hurry up or things could worsen with your Pikachu.”

Vex, spurred on by the urgency in her tone, picked up Pikachu in his arms and ran up the slope with his wet shoes slipping and sliding everywhere. He was about halfway up when he saw it, a bright red bike that looked rather new with black handlebars and a silver basket in the front of it. He wasn’t going to take it, feeling that he didnt really need to take something from someone who just saved his life evem though she hadnt meant to. However he was reminded why he had originally been running in the first place as a choir of screeching bird cries filled the air once again followed by a rumble of thunder.

Vex glanced back as he ran, and saw a huge almost completely black storm cloud heading in his direction though he wasnt entirely worried about the storm, what worried him was the group of bird Pokemon headed straight for him. It was a stretch to say that they were coming this way just for him as he doubted any creature in this world could hild that much of a grudge against a little hit with a rock. It was much more likely that the rumble of thunder and the approaching storm was pushing them towards him, but he knew that once they laid eyes on him they would most likely remember him and begin to attack in earnest. With Pikachu out for the count, he didn’t even have a choice of fighting back, having no chance in a fist fight with birds that could fly out of his reach.

He glanced at the bike again and cursed under his breath before rushing over to it and placing Pikachu inside of the basket. “Hang on Pikachu, I’ll definitely get you to a Pokemon Center if its the last thing I do!” He rolled the bike onto the pathway and started to climb on.

“Hey you dork, thats my bike,” Yelled the orange haired girl, waving her arms furiously as she started running up the slope, though it was pretty clear that she wouldnt catch up in time to stop him and this fact obviously pissed her off even more as a look of seething rage appeared over his face.

“I’m sorry Miss Crop top, but I’m gonna need to borrow this since more then one life is at stake here.” Vex climbed onto the bike and began pedaling. “Just head to the nearest Pokemon center and find me there, I’ll return it to you.” He then faced forward and began pumping his legs for all he was worth, his adrenaline and his desire to live until tomorrow spurring him onwards. Every single thought that didn’t involve pushing his legs and escaping from the screeching of the birds was erased as he sped along the path that the girl had pointed. If he just kept going straight he was sure he’d make it there eventually, but whether or not the birds beat him was still under debate as the sound drew increasingly closer.

Vex glanced behind him and saw that the birds had almost reached him so he pushed harder, giving all he had and more to pedal the bike to greater speeds, and succeeded in furthering the distance between himself and the flock. This didnt last very long however as the short burst of speed was used up and the birds were almost on top of them once again.

It was then that the storm reached them, the rain suddenly pouring down as if someone had flipped a switch. It was cold, the sudden increase in wind only adding to the biting chill of the drenching rain. The rain wasnt much of a problem at first, but in as few as thirty seconds the rain became a real pain in his ass.

The rain was coming down in sheets, and with the wind blowing the opposite direction from which he was going, not only did it blind him, it slowed him down by a large margine. The pounding rain began to soak into ground and made the dirt road wet, reducing the friction the tires had on the floor. All of these things slowed him down almost to a complete stop, but he powered through it as best he could, never stopping even when the birds caught up with them and began to stab at him with their beaks and scratch at him with their claws. Vex continued onwards until, by some miracle, he saw lights in the far off distance, giving him newfound energy as he pushed himself onwards finding a whole new level a strength.

The birds kept screeching amd scratching and the rain kept falling but no matter what happened, Vex’s legs never stopped moving as he grew closer and closer to the lights. It might’ve been his imagination but Vex felt like that the closer he got to the lights, the less birds there were attacking him. He was only a hundred feet away from the first light when the bike hit a tree root and sent both him and Pikachu flying forward. Though the landing was rough and he felt like he was about to pass out, Vex rolled on the ground and jumped straight back up, picking up Pikachu, placing him in the basket and riding once more in the blinding rain. The birds at this point were hardly attacking and seemed to even be retreating away from them as Vex passed the first light which turned out to be a house.

Vex laughed softly to himself as he kept riding the bike forward, but with less and less strength. He didn’t realize it but he had rode over a mile in the rain with bird Pokemon attacking him while pushing himself to his maximum limit. This combined with the ebbing adrenaline forced him to pass out as both he and Pikachu crashed to the floor.

Vex attempted to rise to his feet, but found that even his arms which were scratched, clawed, and scraped, were unable to muster up enough strength to push himself even a bit upright. He eventually gave up trying and pulled Pikachu closer to him, hugging him to his chest as the rain kept coming down in sheets, pouring over the tow of them as Vex eventually passed out.