Into the Unown (Pokemon Fanfiction OC)
Chapter 162

Nina gently reached out to caress the withered hand laying atop the yellowed futon, feeling nothing but skin and bones in her grasp.

The girl sighed, breathing in the distinct smell of wax and kerosene permeating the air, and looked towards the dishevelled, hollow cheeks of the old lady laying asleep before her.

“Did you manage to convince her granddaughter?” Nina asked Brock, who was also with her in the archaic little shed that Futaba used as her bedroom.

As it turned out, Nina wasn’t the only one that Futaba had requested for help in seeking out her estranged granddaughter. There were others as well, Brock and her grandma included.

Brock shook his head in exasperation. “No, unfortunately not. Whitney is a very stubborn person. And honestly, I can’t blame her. She’s never met Futaba before, not since she was a baby anyway. It’s probably quite awkward for her. And knowing her, she’s probably trying to avoid the unnecessary heartache as well.”

To be told that the grandmother you’ve never known was now on her deathbed and that her final wish was to be reunited with you. Yeah, Nina could see how that might be a difficult situation for Whitney.

And yes, Futaba’s granddaughter was indeed Whitney, Leader of the Goldenrod City Gym in Johto. “No wonder she said I was sure to find her…” If Nina had continued to journey as normal then there was a good chance that she would have gone to Johto to challenge Whitney’s Gym at some point.

“So what’s the deal anyway?” Nina asked. “What happened that caused Futaba’s family to abandon her?”

Brock sighed and leaned back a little to adjust his posture. “It’s all very petty to be honest. Futaba’s family is an ancient one, dating back to even before the war and the founding of Kanto — not that anyone actually knows when that was. Basically, they’ve been here since the very beginning.”

The man then explained that the family had been living in seclusion, distancing themselves from worldly matters that entire time, or at least the main branch of the family had.

“Throughout all of history, the Tsukigami family only had a single role — the preservation of the Moon Shrine.” Brock continued. Nobody knew why they were so obsessed with the shrine, just that they had been guarding it with stalwart devotion from one generation to the next.

“That all changed in Futaba’s generation,” said the former Gym Leader. “Futaba only ever had one daughter. And by this point, most of their distant relatives were either killed in the war or completely estranged from their storied tradition.” Brock chuckled. “Most of them aren’t even aware of the shrine’s existence anymore.”

Things got even more complicated when Futaba’s only daughter fell in love with a Johton, and a ‘westerner’ without a single drop of Kantonian blood in him no less. “To say that the reserved Tsukigami family was xenophobic is a huge understatement. So an argument ensued and you know the rest…”

Nina groaned. The whole thing sounded like an extremely complicated and melodramatic soap opera — everything that Nina hated in life.

“Dammit, she promised to answer my questions if I brought her granddaughter to her.” Nina whined. “Guess that’s not happening anymore…” 

Brock let out a wry smile. “Unfortunately, any important knowledge could only be passed down verbally within the Tsukigami family — such is their tradition. There are some scrolls that I found while rummaging around, but they’re very faded and from what I can tell, mostly contain trivial information of little significance.” 

Nina asked to see the scrolls just in case, not that she was well versed in the ancient Kantonian language. “What about going into her dreams?” Nina continued to ask, her tone hopeful. “My Gastly is still green but I’m sure we could find an experienced Ghost Type among our contacts.”

However, that suggestion was also dashed with another shake of the head from Brock. “We tried, but couldn’t get through. I imagine each succeeding Moon Priestess had barriers set up in their mind before being bestowed their duty.”

Nina slumped against the wall and let out a frustrated groan. It seems that her hopes of learning the secrets behind this world were lost forevermore.

“Cheer up. I’m sure you’ll get your questions answered somewhere down the line. Maybe you can ask me? I’ve been all over the world and seen lots of things, even Legends the likes you wouldn’t believe. Maybe I might have the answer?”

Nina shook her head, but thanked the man for his kindness all the same. The two then left the room and went outside to get a tour of Brock’s makeshift ranch.

***

“So you’ll be going on your journey this year, Nina?”

Nina replied to Brock in affirmation. “Yeah, me and my friend Kerry — she’s an apprentice Nurse Joy.”

At the mention of Nurse Joy, Brock seemed to wilt slightly, prompting Forrest to give him a reassuring pat on the back.

“Well, since you’re here anyway. Wanna get your first badge with me?” Forrest offered, in an attempt to change the subject.

“Erm… I don’t mind, but the new season hasn’t started yet has it?” In fact, last year’s season technically wasn’t even over yet, since the Indigo Conference was delayed to January due to the destruction wrought onto Indigo Village from Lance and Koga’s battle.

Forrest chuckled. “It’s fine. We can fudge the records a bit. Won’t be the first time anyway…” That last part was said with a helpless sigh from the Gym Leader.

Nina hummed in consideration. She was planning to complete the Gym circuit within one year reagardless, so the two year validity on the badges wasn’t an issue. The half year delay on her journey gave her plenty of time to bolster her team and she was confident that even with just five Pokemon, she was more than capable of earning all eight of her badges at the Intermediate to Expert tier. 

However, what Nina was really after were three Star badges. That way, she could skip the hassle of battling her way through the preliminaries and go straight into the main tournament. It would also allow her more leeway to explore more interesting places rather than just going from city to city, since she wouldn’t need to bother with the other five badges.

Nina had already marked out a few of the ‘weaker’ Gyms in both Kanto and Johto that she had the highest chances of winning against, as well as the Cerulean Gym of course. Nina had to end her circuit at her home Gym with a Star battle against her mentor as per tradition.

Unfortunately, the Pewter Gym was not one of the Gyms she considered weak, despite their reputation as being THE beginner Gym. Forrest was no joke and was a much more competent trainer than his older brother.

In fact, word on the Pokenet was, newbie trainers had been flocking to Viridian Gym as their first Gym, away from Pewter, ever since Forrest took over.

“If I challenge your Star team and lose, will you give me a lower tier badge if I do well enough?” Nina asked sheepishly, eliciting an amused smirk from Forrest.

“Sure, I don’t mind.” The Gym Leader replied. “But I don’t have my full Star team with me right now, so I’ll have to borrow some of your Pokemon, Brock.”

Brock chuckled and beckoned for his two companions to follow him. “Sure, you spend more time with them than I do anyways. C’mon, I know a good spot where the two of you can go at it without restraint. I’ll be the ref.”

Nina tilted her head in confusion. “I thought we were going to the Gym?” 

“Nah, you should know that Gym Leaders can give out badges anywhere they want — the Gym is just a formality. So long as we record the battle for the League’s records then all’s good.”

***

The place that Brock took them to ended up being a massive empty cavern within the depths of Mount Moon, lit by luminescent moss and past a steep, precarious looking tunnel dug ages ago by some stray Onix.

Nina heaved as she climbed the massive stalagmite that would serve as the platform where she would stand, its tip broken off to enable a stable foothold. Opposite of her, Forrest did the same, looking much more at ease in the rocky environment than she was.

Between the two trainers was hazardous, uneven terrain, fully covered in rocky spikes — smaller stalagmites than the one that Nina was perched on. The only consolation was the tall ceiling, providing plenty of room for a Pokemon to Fly.’

To their side was Brock, who found a little indent up in the cavern wall to sit in. The former Gym Leader had his Pokedex out, ready to record the battle that was about to take place.

“Trainers! Are you ready?” Brock yelled, his voice echoing throughout the vast cavern.

“Ready.” Forrest responded, his voice steady and calm.

“Ready…” Nina murmured, feeling a little apprehensive about her odds. 

The girl was at quite a disadvantage here; the terrain favored her opponent and she only had five Pokemon as opposed to Forrest’s full team of six. Not to mention her relative lack of experience compared to the seasoned Gym Leader.

“That said, I do have one advantage. So might as well make full use of him.” 

Aces were usually reserved to the end, and Nina was going to take full advantage of that convention. That and the fact that Forrest was bound by etiquette as a Gym Leader. Meaning, he would always go first and he would refuse to swap out his Pokemon, even if he was allowed to.

So the moment that Brock announced the start of the match, and when Forrest unveiled his first pick, a Golem, Nina’s plan was set in stone.

“Let’s sweep through as many of his numbers at the start and even the odds!” And with that, Nina expanded her Pokeball and threw it into the makeshift arena. “I choose you, Nitey!”

“DRAGOOO!!!”

With a flash of light and a mighty roar, Nina’s Dragonite appeared on the field. His voice reverberated throughout the empty space, causing rocks to quake and stalactites to fall.

“Time for a Tsunami, Nitey. No mercy.” Nina called, her voice cold as ice.

With yet another roar, dark clouds covered the rocky ceiling, lightning rumbled and rain fell. And with a powerful sweep of his tail, the Dragonite conjured a massive wave that engulfed the entire battlefield, completely flooding it and turning the space into an underground lake.

Everything happened so quickly that Forrest’s Golem didn’t even have a chance to react as it was washed away by turbulent waters, sinking deep within its murky depths.

Nina let out a smirk. The first lesson she ever learned while training under a Gym of Water Type specialists was; if the terrain wasn’t favorable, then make it so. It was part of what made challenging a Gym in their home turf that much more difficult, but there was more to it as well.

It was also the foundation underpinning the establishment of a Pokemon’s domain — a relatively advanced concept that most non-legacy trainers wouldn’t be made aware of until too late in their career. But nepo babies like Nina were of course already trained with the proper fundamentals from the very beginning.

“Now then, what are you gonna do, Forrest?” The man had decisively lost the first move. For a Rock Type Pokemon to overturn such a strong Water domain was exhausting. And Nitey sure as heck wouldn’t just standby and let it happen for free.

Nina’s opponent made a little frown, but still maintained a steady calm as Forrest opened his mouth to give his first command…