Welcome to Pyxidis City
I Choose You|
01. Welcome to Pyxidis City
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Written by Blu3Wind
“Rapidash, use flamethrower!”
“Leafeon, razor leaf!”
Woohyun knew it was the wrong move. He knew it would have no effect. Even Leafeon hesitated before throwing a blade like leaf from his body, sending it straight into the whirl of Rapidash‘s fire.
As expected, the leaves got burned almost immediately, disappearing within the endless sea of flames. The flames penetrated through Leafeon’s defense, hitting the grass type Pokemon backwards.
Woohyun watched with dismay as Leafeon’s body touched the ground of the gym floor, his final hope gone. He had lost.
“You must think of yourself too highly if you thought you could challenge me, a fire based gym, using your grass type Pokemon,” the gym leader of Pyxidis City, Hwang Yerin spoke. She whistled for Rapidash to return to her side. “This is your second loss already.”
Woohyun clenched his hands into fists, thinking himself pathetic. The gym leader was right. He thought having perseverance and determination was enough to win, but clearly he was wrong.
“Next time you come back, I hope you’ll put up an actual fight,” Yerin said, indirectly taunting him. She sighed, patting Rapidash’s fiery manes. “We’re both getting tired of this pointless battle.”
Woohyun called Leafeon back to his Pokeball, keeping his gaze to the floor, unable to look Yerin right in the eye. He knew she was speaking the truth. His pathetic attempts were a waste of her time.
“I’ll come back again,” he declared, tucking the Pokeball in the sheath of his belt, before he exited the stuffy gym.
The air outside smelled of fresh possibilities compared to the smoke filled gym building. Woohyun took a deep whiff of the clean air, stretching himself before continuing his way to the Pokemon Center. The battle had taken a toll on his Pokemons, and he needed them to recover before forming his next strategies.
He would beat Hwang Yerin someday.
“It will take about an hour before your Pokemons will fully recover. They’ve received a lot of burns,” Nurse Joy spoke.
Woohyun pursed his lips, wondering if that was one of Yerin’s winning tricks. She gave his Pokemons a burn condition, which would deplete their health over time even when she didn’t attack. Perhaps he had to find a Pokemon that could inflict that same kind of condition too.
“Maybe you should take some time to relax and explore Pyxidis City. You’ve been so focused on the gym battle I’m sure you haven’t gone sightseeing yet, have you?” Nurse Joy said, their acquaintance proving how often Woohyun had lost and visited the Pokemon Center.
“I’ll be back in an hour,” he mumbled, taking his Pokedex as he set out to explore the city.
He wasn’t really in the mood to look around when his sole focus was to claim victory. There were plenty of things to do here, but none interested him. He saw a marketplace crowded by numerous people, the busiest part of the city. If he really had to choose a place to visit, that’d be it. So he tugged his arms in his pocket and headed there without any expectation.
“Get two master balls for the price of three!”
“Do you want your very own Pikachu t-shirt?”
“I have the best Pokeblock recipes you won’t find elsewhere!”
Woohyun walked through the market, looking left and right to see numerous stands, hearing each merchant yell out special offers. His solemn mood soon turned into curiosity, amazed at the variety of items available. Some were things he had never heard of before.
“I sell a wish. Come to me and I can make your biggest wish come true,” a guy with dirty blond hair spoke. An Aipom dressed in a mini kimono hung from his shoulder, reiterating the offer in monkey-like squeals.
“A wish?” He mumbled to himself, wondering how that’d even be possible. But the absurdity of the claim drew him closer to the nearly broken stand. Two velvety purple cloth covered the side, as if to hide the cracks and defect of the wooden planks.
From up close, the guy looked a little shady. He wore a dark blue Japanese kimono like his Aipom, carelessly thrown together to keep himself clothed. His eyes were hidden behind large, red tinted sunglasses that nearly concealed his prying eyes.
“Ah, have you come to inquire about the wish?”
“Yes.”
Woohyun stood with his mouth open, the words still stuck in his throat when someone else beat him to it first. He looked sideways, seeing a girl dressed in an all blue dress with matching white stockings, wearing a fluffy white feathered scarf around her neck. She wore similar large shades, looking just as shady and suspicious as the seller himself. Was that a dress code for Pyxidis citizens?
“Well, you have come to the right place. For twenty Pokedollar, I’ll give you this,” the seller spoke, snapping his fingers as Aipom obliged, holding out a vial in his tail. It contained a texture of different shades of blue, beautifully swirling together like a magical substance.
Woohyun noticed the girl’s eyes sparkling with amazement. He himself looked at the vial, narrowing his eyes. He had never heard or seen something like this before.
“What does it do?” She asked.
“Well, purchase this wishing potion and I shall give you instructions on how to use it,” the guy said, spreading his hand out for the payment. Aipom minicked the movement, holding his tail out.
“Hm,” she hummed, pursing her lips. “What do you think I should do?”
Woohyun flinched, not expecting her to ask for his opinion when she hadn’t even glanced his way even once. He began stammering, thinking of a clever reply when suddenly, a chirp sounded from her fluffy scarf.
“What the…” he jumped backwards, seeing the scarf unfold itself into a pair of fluffy, cotton-like wings. It was attached to a blue potato shaped creature which he immediately recognized as a Swablu. Where and how it managed to hide on the girl, he had no idea.
The girl turned to him, and though he couldn’t see her eyes, he saw her lips forming a small grin, amused by his dramatic jump.
The Pokemon chirped hyperly, overly excited, which could only mean a yes.
“Alright, if my Swablu says so, I’ll get it,” she said. She must have had exactly twenty Pokedollars in her blue coin bah, cause she handed the entire thing to the merchant.
“Excellent,” he chimed, moving away from his stand to place a hand around he girl’s shoulder. Swablu settled itself on the girl’s head to give room for him. “Now, the real magic happens at the wishing well.”
“There’s a wishing well?”
“To the common eye, it looks like an ordinary well. But only some bear the knowledge of its true power.”
Woohyun squinted his eyes, having a bad feeling about this guy. He suddenly understood why everyone was wearing those ridiculous sunglasses. Every good stalker needed some means to conceal their identity. So Woohyun purchased one from a nearby stand and made do with this strange logic.
He followed the other two as they arrived at a fountain in the middle of a flower field park. There was nothing extraordinary about it. There was a statue of a Magikarp spewing water out of its mouth on top, and patterns of engraved Gyarados ran along the side of the curving basin.
“Now, pour the wishing potion into this water and chant the wish in your heart. Keep repeating the mantra for an hour long, and the wish shall come true,” the guy said, tapping her shoulder. “It was a pleasure doing business with you, I hope your wish will come true.”
Woohyun had unconsciously hidden himself behind a tree. He’d be too embarrassed to admit that he still believed in magic and was curious to see it work. But as ig turned out, the tedious process required quite some effort, and he did not have that kind of determination to do it himself.
“Alright, Swablu, I wish for us to win!” The girl cheered like she was chanting a battle cry. Her Swablu flapped its cotton wing into the air, dancing happily as it watched the blue liquid being poured into the fountain.
Woohyun widened his eyes, peeking a bit further from the tree. He expected a magical poof to appear, or some grandiose explosion to indicate a greater power at work. But nothing happened. How disappointing.
He wasn't planning to stay for another hour just to see whether the magical liquid would work or not. So he moved away from his hiding spot, deciding to return to the Pokemon Center. An hour had probably passed.
“I see you had some fun,” Nurse Joy said, pointing at her own eyes.
Woohyun realized he was still wearing the sunglass, so he flashed her a sheepish smile and quickly tucked it away.
“Here are your Pokemons, all healed and ready for battle.” Nurse Joy shoved six Pokeballs to him, and Woohyun fastened them back to his belt. His fingers, however, lingered a little longer over Leafeon and Cacnea’s Pokeball.
He remembered the way Yerin’s Pokemons had pulverized them earlier. Grass type Pokemons were not very effective against her fire and fighting type, but neither did he have enough water Pokemons. Maybe the key to winning the gym battle was to expand his aquatic Pokemon collection.
So he walked to the nearby PC, putting the two Pokeballs there with a heavy heart, knowing he needed to catch more Pokemons as part of his battle strategy.
“Thanks, guys,” he melancholically whispered, pressing the button to watch the two Pokeball teleport before his eyes. Leafeon and Cacnea would return to his hometown and reside with his mother. She’ll take good care of them.
He was about to exit the Pokemon Center when he saw a stand with maps and pamphlets about Pyxidis City. He grabbed one and went outside.
“Growlithe, come out!”
Woohyun threw the Pokeball, and out came his loyal companion. The fiery puppy Pokemon was just as excited to see Woohyun, immediately jumping on him like a dog that had been separated from its owner for days. He was so excited that he toppled Woohyun over, continuing to all over his face.
“Yes, I’m happy to see you too,” he chuckled, trying to push Growlithe away. “Nurse Joy suggested we should go sightseeing before challenging Yerin again. What do you say?”
Growlithe let out a bark. His movements were so joyful and swift as he kept hopping in circles around Woohyun. He’d spend time with Growlithe first and out the thoughts of catching a water Pokemon in the back of his mind.
“I even got a map of Pyxidis City,” Woohyun said, flapping the paper in his hand as he began reading to an overly excited audience of one. “Pyxidis City is named after a star constellation that is symbolized by a compass box. The entire city has different charms set up in the North, East, South, and West Side. Up North is…”
Woohyun pointed at the direction he had just come from, reading the words from the map. “The Flower Haven.”
He froze, thinking of the wishing well and the girl who had made a wish. He wondered whether she was still there and whether her wish had come true. If it did, maybe he could wish for victory as well.
Growlithe’s small confused noise snapped him back to reality, and he shook his head to continue reading.
“The East side is filled with numerous merchants to create Pyxidis’ very own market. A Pokemon Contest Building is located on the South, and Pyxidis Gym is on the West.” He finished reading and turned to Growlithe. “Where should we go?”
The Pokemon barked, holding a perfect statue-like pose with its paw stretched to the East.
“The Market it is.” Woohyun tucked the map back in his pocket. He didn’t mind visiting the place again since he hadn’t seen every stand the first time round.
Upon his second visit, it seemed like more merchants had appeared to bring life into stands that were off business hours earlier.
“Join the Magikarp fanclub and get a Magikarp keychain for free!” A tall guy wearing a Magikarp onesie spoke. His entire stand was decorated with fake orange scales, selling all sorts of Magikarp merchandise. It seemed to be the only stand which people avoided at all cost.
Woohyun shook his head, wondering how anyone could develop such an attachment to the splashing fish Pokemon.
He scanned all over the market, his eyes falling to the familiar stand of the guy who had sold the wishing potion. The stand had always seemed shady and on the brink of falling apart, but without its velvety purple cloth covering the sides, and the big ‘closed’ plank in front, it seemed even more suspicious.
This didn’t make sense. Whereas many other merchants set up their stands during this golden hour when visitors doubled in number, why would he abandon his business?
“Be careful of that one,” a voice warned, and Woohyun looked sideways to see the Magikarp fanatic standing beside him. “He is known to sell scams and illegal Pokemon.”
“What? He’s a scam?” Woohyun asked, Growlithe even barked along in similar surprise.
“Yup. Officer Jenny is on to him, but he’s very good at hiding and escaping,” the Magikarp fanatic continued to say. “But you know who isn’t a scam?”
He snickered to himself, rubbing his nose, ready to make a majestic introduction of himself only to look up and realize that Woohyun was gone.
“Me! I was talking about me and my Magikarps!”
Woohyun retraced his steps to the Flower Haven as Growlithe steadily ran beside him. He thought of the girl, hoping she wouldn’t still be at the fountain. Hopefully she realized it was a scam by now. But a part of him needed to make sure his assumptions were right, or he’d be unable to sleep knowing he let an innocent person fall for a scam.
As the flowery garden came in sight, he felt his heart drop. The girl was still there, doing some sort of weird ritual dance around the fountain joined by her Swablu, and apparently, a Wooper. She was still chanting the same wish, turning it into a song catchy enough to replay in his head later on.
“You know that was a scam, right?” Woohyun blurted out.
His sudden voice made the other three jump, freezing midway in a weird pose as they turned to him, caught red handed in their embarrassing act.
“You’re the guy that was following us,” she identified him first instead of focusing on his words.
Woohyun gulped, surprised he wasn’t as subtle as he might have thought. The girl was no longer wearing the strange sunglasses, regarding him with a look that wasn’t hostile, but not nearly as friendly as first impressions should go.
“You got lied to. The merchant with the Aipom scammed you,” he elaborated. “That wishing potion does nothing. Neither does the fountain.”
“What? How do you know that?”
Woohyun and Growlithe approached her. He took out his map, pointing at the section that described the Flower Haven. “If it was a magical fountain, it would have been written here.”
Her eyes widened, carefully perusing Pyxidis City’s map before she helplessly looked up at him.
“I went to the stand just now and realize he was gone. His stand was closed. According to nearby citizens, he’s a famous swindler wanted by the police force,” Woohyun shared a more convincing explanation.
“Great.” The girl sighed, plopping down at the edge of the fountain and swung her hands midair. “I got tricked again.”
Her Swablu took the spot on her right, and the Wooper on her left, leaving Woohyun to awkwardly keep standing in front of her. He’d feel a little rude for literally talking down to her, so he had no choice but to get down on his knees.
“Again? Has this happened before?” Woohyun carefully asked. “We can go to Officer Jenny and report this to her. She’ll know what to do.”
The girl tilted her head immediately, meeting his eyes with a fiery glint. “Or, we can get him ourselves and have him pay for his crimes!”
Swablu, Wooper, and even Growlithe seemed excited about her suggestion, cheering festively.
Woohyun blinked, not expecting this development. “That’d be dangerous.”
“Ck, don’t underestimate my Swablu just because it’s adorable,” she swayed her finger as Swablu striked an adorable pose to back up her statement. “She can defeat him with style.”
Swablu chirped in agreement.
Woohyun frowned at them, looking at the Wooper that was jumping up and down with the same burst of energy. “And your Wooper?”
“Oh, it’s not mine. It just joined along when we started dancing,” the girl said, standing up so abruptly it made Woohyun fall backwards. “Alright! Let’s go find him!”
Woohyun watched as she and Swablu immediately ran off, laughing at their forthcoming victory as if catching a swindler was that easy of an task. He looked at the Wooper that had been staring at him with its wide smile.
“Would you like to come along?”
The Wooper nodded its head, bouncing on its tiny blue legs, waiting for Woohyun to get back up on his feet.
“Let’s go then,” he told both Growlithe and Wooper. And off they went to find the swindler.
who is that pokemon?
 Rapidash |
 Aipom |
 Leafeon |
 Swablu |
 Cacnea |
 Magikarp |
 Growlithe |
 Wooper |
Well, I told you it's very childish and random... XD I honestly have no idea where this story is going. I hope you managed to still enjoy it! Thanks for reading! :D
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