DPA: Rivals

Chapter 11: The Little Mountain Town

Fuji wiped the sweat off his brow with his left hand as his right hand dug up another leek from the soil. He tossed the freshly dug leek into a basket with a dozen or so vegetables, before slowly getting to his feet. He picked up the basket, filled with a variety of foods grown fresh in the small vegetable garden in front of his house, and walked inside.

He was greeted by Cubone, whom he had grown quite attached to, as well as a trio of young, orphaned Nidoran, and a malnourished Vulpix. Also there were a few of the local boys and girls, who had been helping him convert his home into a safe haven for lost and abandoned Pokémon . Arin, Riley, and Ross had all been enormously helpful in expanding the cabin, building a sturdy fence, digging a small pond, and planting trees. In only a few weeks, what had been a small cabin had begun to transform into something beautiful.

At this particular moment, the three young men were working on a feeder for wild Flying type Pokémon . Arin's Magmar would heat up scraps of metal with a small, controlled Ember. Ross' Machoke, hands wrapped up, would bend the metal into the proper shape. And Riley's Gastly would float to the top of the cabin, carrying the feeder with it and dropping it off. They had installed three feeders with their combined effort.

Fuji watched the fourth and final feeder being constructed through the kitchen window, as various ingredients simmered in an enormous pot on the stove. Fuji stirred potatoes, cream, mushrooms, leeks, and spices together with a wooden spoon, an enticing aroma permeating the kitchen. After a few minutes of stirring, he lightly dipped a pinkie into the hot, bubbling chowder, before bringing that little finger to his mouth, having a taste. Perfection.

"We're here!" Daryon exclaimed, taking his first step into Pewter City. After having scrounged through the Viridian Forest for days on, with limited sunlight, constantly tripping over branches and bushes, the thought of being somewhere populated by humans instead of Kakuna and Metapod seemed wonderful.

Of course, the trek hadn't been a total loss, and it had allowed the group to get some training in, mostly with Daryon's Bulbasaur and Cameron's Weedle (Mudkip trained as well, but seemed mostly uninterested, preferring the cozy comforts of Cameron's backpack). After Logan's Oshawott had nearly demolished Pikachu without ever having heard a command, Daryon knew that if he wanted to keep up with all of the other trainers who would be competing in the Indigo League, he and the rest of his Pokémon would have to start learning silent combat.

Preoccupied with thoughts of training his Pokémon, Daryon seemed to be unaffected by the rugged, countryside feel that Pewter City gave off, something that the rest of the group, especially Cameron, failed to miss. Cameron took in a deep breath of fresh mountain air, enjoying the small town energy. Cameron wasn't one hundred percent sure why this was even considered a city, with less than a couple dozen buildings, mostly small businesses. A bookstore here, a coffee shop there, a barbershop not too far off.

The largest structure in the entirety of Pewter "City", without question, was the Pewter City Museum, a massive, older building, probably the oldest for miles. Marble columns guarded the outside, with walls made out of solid stone, possibly made using rock from the nearby Mt. Moon. Oddly enough, while almost the entire building looked ancient, the windows and door seemed brand new, as if recently installed.

"We should go battle the gym!" Daryon suggested, pulling Cameron's attention away from the Museum. "It can't be too far."

"Daryon, I'm tired," Cameron replied. "And I believe everyone else is as well."

"He's right," Skye agreed, yawning. "Besides, the sun will be going down soon."

"My feet are tired..." Max complained.

"As a mechanical being I do not feel the need for sleep," Vince commented. "However, 1.7 hours to connect my collective knowledge unit to the regional PC system will allow me to update my data as well as gain access to more detailed information about the Kanto region, a task I was unable to complete before given my former trainer's distaste for Rotom-based technology."

"In other words, you need to stop for a bit, too," Cameron summarized. Vince nodded.

"Fine," Daryon sighed, adjusting his cap. "We hit the hay tonight, and tomorrow we battle for our first gym badge."

"Actually, tomorrow is Week's End. Gyms don't operate on Week's End, remember?" Cameron noted sheepishly.

"Ah Spritzee," Daryon muttered. "An entire day just thrown into the Garbodor."

"Language," Skye scolded Daryon, holding her hands over Max's ears.

"My bad," Daryon apologized. "But still, what are we going to do, sit around and do nothing?"

"There's a Museum," Cameron replied. "We could go to the Museum, and we can sight-see, and most importantly, we can train."

"Okay..." Daryon groaned. "We'll do things patiently. Ugh."

"I was reading the map on my Pokédex," Cameron said, shifting the attention away from Daryon's moping. "Professor Oak registered a note on the map for an Inn that shouldn't be more than twenty minutes from here. The note mentioned that we should try the pancakes, whatever that means. Professor Oak always seems to know what he's doing, so I think we should do as he suggests."

"Agreed," said Skye.

"Fine," moaned Daryon.

"Okay!" Max smiled, excited.

"That should be acceptable," said Vince.