Pokemon Freelancer

Bright green burst from Sandshrew's hands as he initiated Fury Cutter. Cubone used Bone Rush. The Pokemon leapt at each other and clashed. They dropped while trading blows, Sandshrew's claws growing with each hit. Bone Rush got through his defences and struck him a couple of times.

They landed with a thud, and at the same time the extra power from Sandshrew's attack helped push Bone Rush aside. Sandshrew swiped down Cubone's face with one hand, forcing it to stumble back. Sandshrew dashed and swiped up Cubone's body. Cubone sailed through the air and landed on its back.

Sandshrew mimicked what he'd seen Pancham do, flicking his wrists and disengaging his attack. He watched Cubone rise. His foe was tough. He could tell that Cubone was already injured from a previous Pokemon Joe had used, yet it could still stand. Gym Pokemon were challenging foes. That meant Sandshrew had to try extra hard.

While he was originally just playing around and had no intention of using the move in combat, the Sandshrew species had an instinctual drive to burrow. In order words, dig.

Rotom buzzed, showing that Sandshrew learned Dig. Joe put the move into play immediately, deciding he'd likely cut Scratch for this fifth move. He watched Sandshrew jump and plummet head first into the ground. It looked like dirt just magically moved aside the instant Sandshrew touched it. Energy channelled through the ground and forced it aside.

Cubone looked around, fearing when and where Sandshrew would attack from. All it could hear was the rumbling of Sandshrew digging underground. The sound echoed through the arena and made it hard to pinpoint where the mouse was.

After enough teasing, Sandshrew burst out right under Cubone and landed a nasty uppercut to his foe's chin. They both flew into the air, with Sandshrew going higher. As he descended into Cubone, he swiped with Fury Cutter and landed on his feet as Cubone fell behind him. Sandshrew rose slowly and disengaged Fury Cutter. Nailed it. He'd always watched the cool Pokemon battle in arenas. Now he was the cool Pokemon in the arena.

Considering he hadn't been attacked, Sandshrew figured Cubone was done, but he turned around just to double-check. Sure enough, Cubone was done.

Gary returned his Pokemon and pocketed the ball. Tossed his second Pokemon out. It was bright orange with a white belly. It had a massive head and jaw, and black beady eyes. It matched Sandshrew's size as it stood on all fours. Trapinch. This was Gary's Ace Pokemon. A rule for a Gym Leader was to use a Pokemon that could be considered an Ace, so Gary had to keep the capabilities of all his Gym Pokemon in mind when creating a team for a challenger.

Just from the size of Trapinch's maw, Joe expected biting moves. He was gaining Trainer intuition, although some might just call it common sense.

Sandshrew ignited his Fury Cutter claws, ready for a fight. Trapinch's mouth opened and its eyes shone. It hopped around from side to side. Gary gave a wry smile, knowing why Trapinch was excited. Gary ordered the use of Bug Bite. Trapinch stopped dancing. Green energy wrapped around its jaw. It had met a fellow Ground-type that knew a Bug-type move. A somewhat uncommon combination.

Trapinch leaped forward with force, moving faster than Joe expected. Sandshrew used its arm as defence to catch Trapinch, the giant maw clamping down on him. He spun and slammed Trapinch into the ground. Sandshrew raised his other hand and slashed down with Fury Cutter. The hit had enough force to make Trapinch bounce off the ground. Sandshrew swiped again. Trapinch fell away and Sandshrew didn't let up. He ran after his foe, getting another good hit on Trapinch's head.

Trapinch moved with the force of the attack, doing a one-hundred-and-eighty-degree turn. Between the Pokemon, a giant ball of dirt rose and liquefied, dripping a little. Trapinch kicked out with its back legs and the mud ball burst into a dozen projectiles, most of which struck Sandshrew. Trapinch had used Mud Shot.

Sandshrew fell onto his back, quickly spinning onto his belly and digging into the ground. He'd disappeared by the time Trapinch could look for him, so Gary told his Pokemon where Sandshrew was. Trapinch used Rock Tomb, creating large boulders from nothing. They cracked and crumbled as they formed and grew to the size of a human child. Six of them. They slowly spun around Trapinch as they waited for their creator to launch them.

Sandshrew appeared at Trapinch's side. He burst out of the ground in a way that made him travel further, not higher. He darted past Trapinch without lashing out, instead dipping into the ground on the other side of his foe and disappearing again. Trapinch had already launched Rock Tomb at Sandshrew's back, only knowing it'd missed because Joe had told Sandshrew to use Dig again. Before Trapinch could respond, Sandshrew appeared underneath Trapinch. The uppercut sent both of them into the air, and then a tremor occurred, missing both Pokemon.

The tremor machine was on a random timer, so sometimes it went ten seconds without firing off, and other times it went thirty seconds. They didn't want an easily exploitable pattern.

Sandshrew swiped with Fury Cutter and Trapinch used Mud Shot again, this time summoning a ball of mud out of nowhere. If a Pokemon used more energy, they could create rather than manipulate. Trapinch didn't just need the ground to use a move like this.

Mud Shot and Fury Cutter clashed and caused an explosion from energies disliking each other. Both Pokemon fell out of the smoke, with Sandshrew falling back towards his Trainer. He clawed at balls of mud shooting his way, ensuring he got hit as little as possible. The giant mud ball was like a turret, pumping out bullets of mud and shrinking as it did so. Sandshrew landed on strong and steady feet, still deflecting mud until a tremor shook him and caused him to stumble. He took the last few rounds of Mud Shot to the face.

He wiped mud from his face and saw Trapinch closing the gap between them with Bug Bite. Sandshrew spun and dug his tail through the ground. Use Mud Slap, shooting dirt straight into Trapinch's mouth. It coughed and sputtered as Sandshrew jumped back a short distance. Trapinch sailed through the air where its foe was just standing. Sandshrew used Fury Cutter and struck Trapinch's side, hitting it into the ground.

Trapinch dug its front feet in, skidded and turned. It roared and summoned Rock Tomb, shooting them at Sandshrew. Sandshrew immediately dove into the ground, using Dig to escape the attack as giant boulders sealed the hole.

The ground shook from the tremor machines. At first it rattled Sandshrew. But he hunkered down and stopped moving, letting it pass. Sandshrew darted under Trapinch and kept going until he was behind his foe. He burst out of the ground and aimed at Trapinch's back.

Trapinch turned as it heard something at its back, but it wasn't fast enough. Sandshrew landed on Trapinch's back and smacked its head into the ground, then rolled forward and off the Pokemon.

Sandshrew scrambled to stand as Rock Tomb came his way. He slashed at the first boulder with Fury Cutter. He dodged another and then ran up it, using his claws to bounce off another. He angled himself at Trapinch. Trapinch jumped up with Bug Bite to meet him. Fury Cutter had more reach so struck first, hitting Trapinch on the side of the face. Sandshrew kept up the assault as they fell to the ground, getting in another two swipes and practically punching Trapinch into the ground at the end.

Two Ground-types of decent weight striking the ground at the same time and place kicked up dust. When it cleared, Sandshrew was standing but its shoulders heaved from deep breathing. Trapinch lay on its side.

It was closer than Sandshrew let on. If he was lucky he would've been able to take another couple hits, but that was it. He was close to collapsing.

Seeing the screens change to 'CHALLENGER VICTORY', Sandshrew raised a clenched fist. The people cheered. Despite their favourite Gym Leader losing, it was good sportsmanship to show respect to the winner. And Joe had put on a good enough show considering this was his first Gym battle.

Joe realised he'd held his breath at the end. He let it out. Looked at a screen. Smiled. Some might claim it to be beginner's luck, but Joe thought otherwise. Joe and his Pokemon had earned their first official sport victory. They'd fought hard and well. Joe was proud of this victory.

Sandshrew approached Joe. He had seen Joe and Nidoran hi-five at the beach, so he jumped high, reaching Joe's chest. He stretched out his hand. Joe grinned and gave his Pokemon a hi-five.

"I couldn't be prouder of you and Fomantis." Joe said, crouching to the mouse. He hoped Fomantis heard him. He didn't want her to feel bad for falling before taking an opponent out. A fight wasn't always going to be an equal trade. Fomantis had done all she could, which was enough. Joe's face hardened. "But this is just the start. We have a long way to go until we're the best of the best."

A natural goal for a man like Joe. He needed strength to combat criminals. The stronger he was, the better he would be at helping those in need.

Sandshrew's eyes sparkled, liking the idea of becoming the strongest Sandshrew in the whole world. That sounded like a difficult but worthy dream for a boy like Sandshrew.

Gary clapped a couple of times after returning Trapinch. He began walking along the side of the arena. Joe followed suit. They met in the middle and shook hands.

"This belongs to you now." Gary said, pulling a green Badge out of his pocket. It was long, like a trimmed bush, with some extra parts at the top sticking out like leaves. "The Earth Badge."

"Thanks." Joe marvelled at the Badge for a moment. Receiving a Badge, a trophy, felt like acknowledgment of his efforts. The thrill of the fight, paired with the trophy for his achievement, caused a surge of dopamine in Joe's mind. If he liked the idea of continuing the sport in Amethyst, then now he loved it.

Joe pocketed the Badge after realising he was staring too much. He looked up at Gary.

"By the way, do you have the Macro Cosmos app?" Seeing Joe shake his head, Gary continued. "Speak to the receptionist on your way out. He'll set it up for you."

Joe thought he hadn't heard of it before, but after some thinking, he could recall exactly one instance where Jasmine had mentioned it. The Macro Cosmos app had various functions. A tally of wins and losses both inside and outside of the Gym Challenge. It had a digital collection of Badges, with video evidence of a match attached. There was a forum for people to talk, so it was also a social media app. There was a map where Trainers could look for nearby arenas or they could put an alert on the map saying they wanted to battle, which enticed other Trainers to go hunting.

"More importantly, I hope that offer of a friendly match is still on the table."

"Of course." Joe looked down at Absol. "You up for it?" She barked and Joe ruffled the fur atop her head, much to Absol's annoyance.

Both sides split up and went back to their end of the battlefield. The audience had grown a little, some people appearing in the middle of the Gym battle. But the audience had also tuned out. Joe won. The battle was over. They were going to hang around and wait for another challenger, but until then they focused on other tasks or hobbies. But when one saw movement in the corner of her vision, she looked to see Joe setting up against Gary again. She was confused but acted automatically, nudging a friend. This started a chain reaction of people turning to the arena once more.

"Rotom, start up the livestream again. And don't use the gimmick. I want a clean fight." Gary didn't have to speak loud for the Gym's device expert to hear him. As he'd ordered, the livestream booted up.

Gary grinned and grabbed a Pokeball from his back holster. He kept his personal team on him at all times because he never knew when he'd get to engage in a personal battle. He threw a ball and unleashed a bipedal beetle. The bug had a large horn atop its head and yellow eyes searching for a foe.

The crowd went wild at the reveal of Heracross, one of Gary's personal Pokemon. It wasn't every day that his fans were treated to an all-out battle. They roared and cheered. They were one step away from chanting 'Blue,' which was Gary's nickname. He'd earned it for his apparent penchant for blue-coloured Pokemon. Blastoise, Gyarados, Heracross. That paired with the fact he used to often be seen wearing a blue shirt.

The livestream lit up almost immediately too, since it was uncommon for two streams to be back-to-back. The notifications went out which confused and interested people, only for them to see Heracross. Word spread fast. Before the battle even began, there were tens of thousands of people watching. By the end, it would be hundreds of thousands. A video after the fact would garner millions of views. That was just how popular the Gym Challenge, the League, and Gym Leaders themselves, were.

Joe looked down at Absol and nodded, causing Absol to jump into the arena. She took a stance and growled at her opponent. The friendly battle began.

Heracross led with Pin Missile, the shell on its back opening and its wings moving out of the way to unleash ten glowing green bolts of energy. They curved around Heracross and flew at Absol.

Absol took a few chunks out of the ground with Rock Slide and launched them, causing an explosion in the center of the arena. That was a superpowered Pin Missile. It was typically a low tier move for weaker bugs, but for a Heracross that had entered the League, its power enhanced the move. It was a much bigger threat. Audience members used arms to cover their faces from the force of the blast.

Heracross hovered above the ground. It charged through the smoke covered in bright green energy, dirt beneath it cracking and tearing. Trailblaze. It met Absol's Quick Attack, their heads clashing. They backed away and stood their ground.

Absol roared and used Rock Slide again. Instead of just creating them close by, chunks of dirt rose all around the battlefield. She tossed a few at Heracross from different directions, forcing Heracross to defend. She'd drawn out another move. A strong purple aura spawned from Heracross as it spun and struck down each rock that came its way. Outrage. A powerful Dragon-type move, but the cost of the move was to muddle the brain for a time.

Heracross turned its attention to Absol and charged at her before she could send the rest of the rocks its way. Absol retreated with Quick Attack, pouncing along her rocks before they fell. Heracross caught up and the Pokemon clashed headfirst, Outrage against Night Slash and Shadow Ball. They darted through the air, Heracross flying and Absol jumping on the rocks she'd created. They clashed half a dozen times in a matter of seconds before skidding to a halt near their Trainers. Finally, the rocks had enough time to hit the ground.

Despite using Outrage, Heracross remained focused and calm. It looked at Absol with narrowed eyes, awaiting orders. Gary had gone out of his way to train his Heracross with the Own Tempo Ability, which gave it perfect control over its own mind, remaining stable under pressure.

With a brief respite, Absol took a moment to try something. Small embers left the corners of her mouth as she built up fire at the back of her throat, but that was it. There was no follow up. She failed to use a move. She was experimenting. Testing her limits. This little failure was good information.

Absol understood how Fire-type energy worked and wanted to use it, but she was trying to use it like Ice Beam. She was trying to teach herself Flamethrower. But her wavelength wasn't strong enough to support it.

The battle resumed as Rotom took note of Absol's attempted use of Fire-type energy. Her horn turned pink and she unleashed Psycho Cut as Heracross rushed in with Trailblaze. The effective energy cut through the bug's attack and made it stumble.

Seizing the opportunity, Absol dashed forward with Quick Attack. That was it. Joe had a reliance on movement, which caused him to favour Quick Attack. Absol had used it a lot since teaming up with Joe. Absol took advantage of the move. Embers began spawning around her. Quick Attack's white energy burst into a brilliant fire as she struck Heracross full force with her own body. Absol learned Flame Charge.

Absol, more than anything, wanted utility. She wanted to be capable of fighting any and all threats. A good way to do so was to learn a move of every type.

Being around a team that was growing quickly had made her realise she'd stagnated for a long time. Teaching herself Stone Edge by the time she arrived at Mt. Silver was the first move she'd learned in years. It was time to do more and do better. She didn't want to let others down, nor did she want to fall behind. To her own surprise, Absol wanted to lead by example, which meant keeping her position as Joe's strongest Pokemon.

Heracross fell back and barely countered another Psycho Cut with Pin Missile before it corrected itself and hovered above the ground. It flexed and put its hands forward, shooting two rushing winds, Vacuum Wave, at Absol. They were like tornados, kicking up a strong gust. It was perfect manipulation of the surrounding air using martial arts.

Absol jumped as Vacuum Wave struck the ground where she'd been standing. She felt it was easier to do so. Flame Charge had done something to her. Made energy circulation better, which resulted in her feeling lighter and faster. She used Stone Edge under Heracross' foot to destabilise it, then used Flame Charge. The fire attack was like having thrusters. She bolted forward despite having nothing to jump off.

Heracross darted to the side using its wings. Absol struck the arena with force, creating a small crater and kicking up dust. Heracross was preparing Vacuum Wave when a pink arc struck one of its arms, knocking it back. Its focus shifted to its own arm briefly. Out of the corner of its eye it saw a great fire approaching. Before Heracross could react, Absol struck the bug down.

They landed some feet apart and turned to face each other, glaring. The battle continued like this for a time, trading small blows, until both were panting heavily. The arena was torn up from the regular use of Rock Slide and the force of attacks hitting dirt.

Heracross used Outrage again, rushing at Absol with the aim of handing a powerful hit. Absol used Rock Slide to try and crush the bug. Her attack forced Heracross to stop, but it swiped at the rocks, successfully defending itself. Absol tossed more rocks, giving them momentum, then swapped to a different move. Through the gaps of Heracross fending off rocks, Absol launched Psycho Cut. Her attack chipped a rock and Heracross didn't see it coming. Psycho Cut hit the bug, causing it to not be able to defend as a rock landed on it.

Heracross used the remainder of its Outrage power to create a blast, the rocks atop it scattering. It stood up, only to receive a Flame Charge to the torso. It hit the ground near its Trainer and skidded to a halt. It tried to sit up, but it fell back, its eyes spinning.

Gary wore a playful smile. "...Are you serious?"

The crowd roared and the livestream chat went wild.

Absol had one foot in the grave, so to speak. She was squinting, her vision blurry. Her legs shook from the strain of standing. She had won, barely. The smallest graze from an attack would've taken her out. They had traded a lot of small blows over the course of the fight. There had been no massive strike from a powerful move. But it all added up. Death by a thousand cuts. She didn't hear Joe walk to her side, but she felt him pat her back.

"Congratulations, Absol. You won. You can rest now."

Hearing those words, she collapsed from exhaustion. Joe tapped her with a Pokeball and put her away for a bit. He rose and met Gary at the side of the arena.

"Not bad. Not bad at all. You keep raising Pokemon like that and we're going to have some real fun. Feel free to come back when you're stronger." It'd been a while since Gary had engaged in a tough personal battle. That was worth it. Gary had placed Top 4 in the League, but Heracross in its current state wasn't fit for such a position. The main reason was that Gary had tried something different. Clearly he was wrong. Trying a variety of weaker moves wasn't for him. A prolonged fight had too many chances for the opponent to strike back. If… No, when Gary and Joe battled again, Gary's Heracross would have an entirely new moveset.

"I might just take you up on that offer." Joe said. Another fight meant more learning. Couldn't go wrong with that. If he found himself in the area, he'd definitely come back.

Joe shook Gary's hand again and left the arena. He did as recommended. He stopped by the receptionist's desk in the lobby. Got the Macro Cosmos app set up. His idea of the Macro Cosmos app, labelled Trainer's Emporium, was roughly what he remembered. But there was one feature he didn't know. He could link his PokeDex account. He thought about the implications. Probably related to the League. He connected the two apps because it was as simple as tapping a button, but he didn't think he'd get much use out the feature. Sure, he was enjoying the sport, but he didn't know if he'd enter the League.

A Regional League happened once per year, and it lasted a couple of weeks. It was too specific a time. Gyms were open almost every day of the year so Joe could get to them whenever, but if Joe found trouble around the time the League started, then he was locked out of the League for an entire year because helping people came first.

Besides, he had to earn eight Badges first. Just because Joe wanted to be a strong Trainer, didn't mean he could actually become one.

Joe looked at a map of open Gyms in Kanto, courtesy of Trainer's Emporium. He could head East to Celadon. But Joe chose not to. There was a massive forest between Viridian and Celadon. He'd be off grid for weeks. Weeks he could instead use to help people and train his team. Heading North until Pewter, then heading East along the base of the Sterling range, allowed Joe to travel through more towns. More chances to find people that need him.

Since it was afternoon already, Joe took it easy, heading to a fitness center with Absol once she was healed. She saw Joe work out. Saw the effort required for humans to be strong. She figured there was more to it than running like in New Bark, but still, she didn't expect it to be this extreme. The equipment was insane.

Afterwards, Joe considered how his phone was getting used more than usual. "Hey Rotom, is the weak phone a problem?"

Joe bought the cheapest phone he could. Spending less money meant much weaker technology. It was fine for calls and texts, but he knew enough to know it was a bottleneck for Rotom.

"Yes, I cannot function at full capacity due to weak hardware."

Time for an upgrade. Joe spent the rest of the afternoon having his ear talked off about things he didn't care about. All he wanted was a damn phone upgrade.

One last stop at the nearest PokeMart. He bought a Badge case. A small tin with a glass window and plush red velvet. It had eight slots. Joe put the Earth Badge in the first slot. Smiled to himself, satisfied.

- - - - -
Author's Note

I swear I saw Gary with a Heracross somewhere, but I can't find it now. But I think it's a fitting Pokemon for him so I left it in.

Also, I am writing a second story! I think I'll post a couple chapters on Friday. It's an original action story, and I hope you like monster girls because they're the focus for the harem. First girl is an 8 foot tall silk moth woman.