So, the quick bit of flash fiction below is a response to the prompt here from Chuck Wendig, on writing a flash fiction piece that is all action. Hopefully I’ve risen to the challenge… I thought it was an opportunity to dust off an old idea “what if Pokemon happened in the real world?” It’s a kind of throw away idea that probably won’t lead to great art, but maybe a few fun short stories… I’ll let you judge that.
PS – I know it’s got exclamation marks in the dialogue, but I was aiming for that authentic Pokemon feel 😉
Gwachal lowered his flaming skull and projected a second energy blast from the multi-coloured spiral horn in its centre. Kelar flapped her large leathery wings and rose into the air not quite quick enough to avoid the blast slamming into her left hind leg and spinning her into the wall of one of the buildings that backed onto this modestly sized urban car park.
Peering out from behind the smelly dumpster he had secured for himself at the beginning of the bout Suleiman winced and cast an apologetic glance at Kelar who was looking at him reproachfully.
“Kelar, fire bubble now!”
The great winged battlephant honked in reply and swooped down at Gwachal who was visibly powering up his horn in order to let loose another blast. Kelar sucked in a great gulp of oxygen and blew it back out with a sound like a sigh. A great flaming bubble of air floated in what seemed to Suleiman to be slow motion as it drifted down and enveloped the zombie unicorn below.
Gwachal panicked and released the energy blast, however the bubble absorbed its effects preventing the blast from escaping the ever shrinking confines of the hot burning bubble of air and fire.
Suleiman felt satisfied as he saw Ashleigh across the other side of the car park half hidden by the Merc she had made her base behind.
“Gwachal! Urinate now!”
Damn, thought Suleiman as the glittering zombie unicorn micturated everywhere within the bubble, his piss extinguishing the flames. Now that was thinking outside the box. He was about to order Kelar to bodyslam Gwachal when his phone pinged twice a quick glance revealed two blank texts from Maciek the look-out. Across the car park it was obvious Ashleigh had seen it as well. She frowned across at him. The feds were coming, time to go.
“Kelar to me” Suleiman shouted and held out the demon-pouch which sucked its resident battlephant back into it effortlessly. Suleiman shoved the pouch into his pocket and turned to run.
He shoved his way through the partially open fire escape behind him and through a narrow darkened corridor into a barber shop, he shoved past the barber who narrowly avoided shoving a pair of scissors into his customers ear as the customer turned and half rose out of his seat in surprise.
Suleiman burst out of the shop and into the high street, there was a shout to his left, he turned and skidded in the opposite direction.
“Shit”
Coming towards him at a pace was a giant turtle the size of a medium sized family car, with fatboy tyres instead of flippers and a spike covered shell, its eyes were glowing with animal rage and it as he dodged to the left it opened its mouth and at a shouted instruction from the police handler behind shot a great gout of scalding hot water right at him. Suleiman feinted to the right and slammed into an overflowing litter bin which knocked him onto his back as hot spray pattered harmlessly over him.
Suleiman used the momentum from his tumble to roll right out from under the turtle demon that was about to ride right over him and off the curb and under a parked van.
“This is bollocks. Fucking DSA protecting its monopoly with help of the police.” He didn’t have time to really get comfortably into his favourite rant as the van was rammed over onto its side with a massive booming sound as a six metre long snarling blue wolverine type demon smashed into it, landing on the upturned side of the van before spinning round and jumping off to land right next to Suleiman.
The beast lowered its snarling face towards him. He scrambled away from hot meaty breath, despite the number one rule of the pouch demons that they must not be used to directly harm humans, he had heard stories about the police not to mention the DSA’s private enforcers did to unlicensed fighters.
The wolverine’s face smashed into the ground as it gave a yelp of surprise, on its back was Suleiman’s new best friend Gwachal digging his clawed hooves into the wolverine demons tautly muscled blue furred back.
Suleiman dragged himself up and turned to run again straight into the outstretched baton of a black clad riot cop which smashed into the side of his face filling his vision with stars and blackness as he reeled back into the road straight into the path of an ancient roaring revving Escort driven by Maciek.
Suleiman grabbed a door open and slid in joining Ashleigh on the back seat. He was thrust further into to the seat as Maciek floored the pedal and drove the car straight through the middle of the two DSA vans that had been parked across the road to block traffic.
Ashleigh meanwhile was leaning out of the window holding out her demon-pouch and summoning Gwachal back.
“We’re fucked.” Maciek said, as he steered the car out into the traffic on the East Road and started weaving through heavy traffic.
Suleiman’s mouth was full of blood and an adrenaline taste.
“Yep they’ll have our faces, we’re probably all over the news channels already.”
Ashleigh was about to say something but was cut short as the car jolted forward and smacked into the big double decker bus in front the plexglass of the back window was knocked in and fell painfully across Ashleigh and Suleiman.
An armoured DSA branded truck had rammed them.
It was a month later and Ashleigh was sitting in the tiny room she shared with two other miscreant girls in Feltham Girls YOI looking at her paypal account on a smuggled phone. She grinned. Having recorded the whole bout and the subsequent chase and arrest on her phone and uploaded it to their ‘team rocket’ pay per view YouTube channel, they would have a useful little nest egg when they got out.
reticulated metal arms 