Dark, heavy clouds rolled through the sky, pushed along with strong winds that carried the scent of rain. Thunder rumbled threatening, though distance tampered its roar. The trees of the Giant’s Forest swayed, their thousand year old branches straining against the wind. Below, among their roots, two Pokemon slowed to a halt. The smaller of the two, a Quilava with a orangish-brown coat and a diamond-shaped jewel embedded in his forehead, adjusted a bulging satchel strapped to his body with one paw while the other rose to refasten the billowing striped scarf he wore around his neck. “Ugh, why’re we waiting here?” he asked impatiently, holding up his paw to stop the wind from buffeting against him. “This wind is pissing me off! Can’t we just get going already, Jeriah?”

“We already discussed this, Jet,” Jeriah said in the long tired drawl of one tired of repeating himself. The Sandslash stood, unphased by the harsh winds. The air currents flowed around his dulled and broken spines without even budging him. He glanced at the Quilava from his one good eye, the other covered by a blackened slab of necrotic flesh. His shoulders heaved and his wheezing could be heard even over the gusts of wind. “We’re meeting your travel companion here,” he said, his voice deep and rough like gravel. “He’ll make sure you get there safe.”

A particularly strong gust caused Jet to stagger, and he scowled. “Yeah, but I can take care of myself!” he protested, growling as tiny twigs and pebbles pelted his snout and dust scraped against his watering eyes. “When’re you gonna stop treating me like I’m still a Cyndaquil? You’re always giving me these babysitters. I can do it on my own!”

“These ‘babysitters’,” the Sandslash said slowly, “are for my peace of mind. I’d feel a lot better if you had someone capable of fighting with you.”

Rough artwork design © Me  Koshimoto
Story by the wonderful,  Gojithefox