The Dave

A Viper in the Hole, chapter 14, part 2

After taking the moving stairs two at a time, Ran arrives on what is clearly not a particularly popular floor, judging by the small number of other shoppers, but that’s not his focus. Instead, he looks in awe at the rows of bookcases that aren’t just lined up from side to side, but rather form an enjoyable maze to get lost in. Right in the middle of the floor, positioned around the escalator, are large plaques and arrows, giving some means to navigate the maze and find the subjects he’s...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 14, part 1

The next morning, a few minutes after nine, Ran and Josie walk up to the large glass front doors of the massive Goldenrod Trainer Department Store. Already waiting for them out front is Grady, who waves enthusiastically at the approaching pair. 

“Hey guys, you’re finally here!” He greets them cheerfully, not even waiting for them to reach him but instead jogging towards them.

“What’s up Grady?” Josie returns with a smile, as Ran offers a silent nod of his own.

Interlude 3: Grady I

Grady Kendrick, Goldenrod City Gym sponsored trainer and all around cool guy, pictured his journey very differently to how it’s actually turning out. 

Oh sure, it’s still amazing! Of course it is! He gets to spend all day with his team, he gets to be out from under Whitney’s sharp eyes and he gets to do pokémon battles! Really, as far as all the ‘normal’ aspects of being a trainer go, his journey is everything it was supposed to be.

Already, he’s won the new Hive...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 13

It’s around noon the next day when Ran finally wanders into Goldenrod City. His team is fully recalled once more, a nighttime battle against a belligerent and rather powerful Drowzee and a late morning two-on-two against another two-badge trainer having put some serious strain on them. Of course they chased off the Drowzee and won the trainer battle with a score of two to zero, but with Golbat’s injuries keeping him benched and Aria having faced the wild Drowzee, it was the pair of Skorup...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 12

Days later, when the canopy above their heads finally starts to thin out properly and the ambient temperature starts to rise a few degrees, Ran notes Josie’s relieved sigh with some amusement. Though the parts of Ilex Forest they’ve traveled through are hardly the most testing, he can understand that to a girl who’s never really roughed it before, that may not have mattered. Even with his significantly greater experience in the forest, there’s still something tangibly comforting about...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 11, part 2

Over the next few days, as they continue to travel through Ilex Forest, Aria rapidly adapts to her new body, whilst Ran’s other team members work their tails off in battling and training, clearly inspired by her recent evolution. As their trainer, Ran happily encourages all of them, making sure to give Skorupi in particular plenty of battles against weaker wild pokémon and lower level trainers that are also traveling through the woods, whilst reserving the tougher fights for his more exper...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 11, part 1

Spending time in town, where the comforts of civilization are at hand, is always nice, but there’s something undeniably relieving to once more making camp for the night. Ilex Forest might not be quite as comfortable a location as an open plain, but sleeping under the open air at least means they can make a campfire without having to worry about smoke inhalation too much. 

It’s only the first night after their departure from Azalea Town, but already home feels far away again, as...

November update

Hi all, it's the 1st of November and I figured I'd provide a small update on the state of the Patreon, my plans for the month and just an overall word of thanks to you all for supporting my writing. Now, let me get right to it:

• A Viper in the Hole...

  • has reached 451 watchers, spread over SB, SV and RR. Of course there's likely some duplicates in there across sites, but that still feels like an amazing number of regular watchers to have, considering how relatively y...

    2024-11-01 15:51:55 +0000 UTC View Post

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 10

Five minutes after handing Spinarak’s ball off to the Pokécenter Nurse, Ran finally relaxes when she returns to the front desk with a comforting smile. She assures him that Spinarak will be fine to travel by the next morning, while Ekans is already back to tiptop shape after just a few minutes spent in Chansey’s care.

Ran gratefully thanks the nurse, his worry over his pokémon, which he’d suppressed during his battle with Bugsy only to resurface with a vengeance the moment he’...

Interlude 2: Bugsy POV: Follies of the slighted (Patreon Contributor Omake #2)

Officially becoming Gym Leader was a momentous occasion, which put the previous day’s events on a pedestal comparable to the day of his semi-final match at the recent Conference and the day he captured his starter. Today, however, his very first full day as a Gym Leader, is turning out to be a significantly more sour experience.

Of course Bugsy hasn’t kept any particularly close track of the other applicants for Walter’s sponsorship, ever since he earned the spot for his year, but...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 9, part 2

“Confusion.” Bugsy orders dryly, catching Ran off guard. As Venonat’s eyes start to glow with pink energy however, he bursts into action.

“Shadow Sneak! Don’t give it an easy target!” He orders hurriedly. Spinarak obliges instantly, sinking into her own stretching shadow even as waves of pink psychic energy start to radiate off of Venonat’s fuzzy form. The barrier surrounding the arena, upheld by one of the Gym’s dutiful Mr. Mimes, ripples gently as the attack strikes it...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 9, part 1

The first few days following Bugsy’s late-evening text messages pass swiftly. Ran starts out by spending half a day visiting the Charcoal Kiln, where Josie casually displays her father’s deep pockets by buying six fire-type boosting Charcoal pieces at once. Ran’s old part-time employer is so pleased by the major sale that he throws in the commissioned work to fit each piece in a suitable accessory for free. 

For Ginger, they settle on an elaborately braided neck rope, the pie...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 8, part 2

“Get spooky and follow up with Poison Sting.” Ran orders, ignoring Tommy’s order for Paras to produce Stun Spore, trusting in Spinarak to handle that threat without further instruction.

His trust isn’t misplaced, as while Paras starts shaking and throwing paralytic spores into the air, Spinarak seems to triple in size within moments before seemingly crossing the gap to Paras in a single leap, her shadow stretching out underneath her as she goes. The other bug-type recoils in fri...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 8, part 1

After an almost uncomfortably tight hug and a move to the kitchen, where his father is clearly in the middle of making dinner, Ran ends up sitting at the dinner table with a glass of water, as his father slowly stirs the pasta sauce he’s got on the fire.

“Some advance notice would’ve killed you?” His father starts, annoyance clear in his message but not in his tone, as he looks at Ran fondly, “I would’ve gotten more food for dinner. Now I won’t have a warm lunch tomorrow.�...

Interlude 1: Through Darkness

Spencer Curtis, aspiring trainer and future Azalea Town Gym Leader, has been having a few absolutely rotten days. Which, considering he’d recently won his very first badge, was very much not what he’d been expecting. In fact, looking back on things later, he’d come to the vexing conclusion that things were turning out exactly how he hadn’t been planning them to.

It all started perfectly, as Earthbreaker, his Onix, had completely manhandled Falkner’s pathetic birds, to the stun...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 7

Journeying through Union Cave the second time proves a very different experience to Ran’s first jaunt through the most well-patrolled cave structure in Johto. The difference a few weeks makes is very apparent, as the native pokémon are far more active and belligerent, stirred up by the large increase in foot traffic compared to most of the year. The many rock-, ground- and water-types that inhabit Union Cave pose significant challenges to both Ran and Josie’s teams from a matchup perspec...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 6, part 2

A few more largely uneventful days later, a few hours before dinnertime, Ran and Josie arrive at a, for Ran, familiar location. Union-32 Rest Stop is a lot busier than it was during his previous visit however, the arena out back actively in use even as they approach and the tables out front hosting a few clusters of trainers. Ran grins enthusiastically at the sight, whistling for Golbat to descend so he can recall the flying-type for now. 

“Place looks nice enough,” Josie admit...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 6, part 1

The next day at three past eight in the morning, Josie comes rushing into the pokécenter’s foyer, shooting Ran an apologetic grin when she spots him. He merely lifts a single unimpressed eyebrow, before gesturing for her to lead the way out once more, which Josie does without complaint. Side-by-side, with only Chief the Growlithe for company whilst they’re still within the city proper, they set out towards Azalea Town.

It doesn’t take fifteen minutes before Josie’s goodnaturedl...

Totagi's War (Patreon Contributor Omake #1)

You are Totagi Kaneze. You are a chunin of Konohagakure. You are the most sensible member of the former genin team 24, led by jonin Hoheto Hyuuga. You are the most promising medic-nin Konohagakure has produced since Shizune-sensei at least, no matter what that old hag Tsunade claims about Sakura the thief.

Alongside your dear friend Takeo, the charming and polite Neji Hyuuga and the moody Sasuke Uchiha, you contributed to the fall of Otogakure, as an elite group led by Jiraiya of the Sa...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 5, part 2

Eager for a diversion, rather than having to endlessly mull over Bugsy’s words, Ran opens Josie’s messages, or, as he immediately finds out, singular unread message.

Josie: Hey, I’m still in town for the rest of the day and now that we’ve both had some time to cool off and you’ve also won your badge, I don’t really want to leave it like that. Can we meet up?

Ran hesitates for a moment, not looking for yet another fight today. However, the...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 5, part 1

“To winning our first badges!” Ran toasts enthusiastically, finally drawing a real smile from Spencer for the first time in what feels like forever.

They’re sitting in a small restaurant not too far from the Gym, drinks already arrived and lunch on the way, celebrating their accomplishment together. Spencer suggested a proper lunch at a slightly more upscale restaurant, rather than their usual modest fare within moments of them meeting back up outside of the Gym, which Ran happily...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 4, part 2

Glancing at his pokégear, he realizes with a start that enough time has passed for him to enter the Gym and enter its reserved waiting area. Ran moves to do just that, surprisingly not running into Spencer along the way, as Violet City’s Gym offers a handful of small private waiting rooms for challengers, rather than a single larger lobby like Azalea Town’s Gym. Ran spends another ten or so minutes waiting idly. He brings out Ekans, the feel of his purple scales under Ran’s fingers a f...

Character portraits A Viper in the Hole, batch 1

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 4, part 1

Eventful as Sprout Tower and meeting Josie were, the remaining days before Ran’s scheduled Gym challenge pass in that weird flow state where he’s very aware of each day passing and gets plenty done every day, but it still feels as if time’s flying by at an almost irresponsible pace. His team, liberated by fuller pockets that don’t have to keep as close a track of medical expenses as in the previous years, improves in leaps and bounds. They grow so swiftly and prove so dominant over th...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 3, part 2

The monk breaks eye contact for a moment to glance around the room, before speaking softly, “You examined our arts quite thoroughly. You’ve had a chance to see the beauty in cooperation. When next you are faced with conflict, will you act to seek reconciliation?”

Ran’s instinctive answer would be ‘no’, while he assumes the answer the monks are likely looking for is ‘yes’. His moment’s hesitation is enough for him to actually consider the question properly, rather than ...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 3, part 1

Five days later, just as afternoon is shifting into evening, Ran and Spencer enter Violet City. Route 32 had proven well-maintained and not in itself a great challenge. It held some nice variety as far as wild pokémon went, with the plentiful Mareep just one noteworthy example of the pokémon neither trainer had ever seen in the wild before. 

What had proven more interesting, was the number of other trainers they’d started encountering especially in the final two days. The close...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 2, part 2

After a very brief examination, Scyther is recalled as Ran approaches his defeated friend. Hesitantly, he speaks up in an attempt to offer some consolation, “You were unlucky, there aren’t many Spearow that know Steel Wing.”

Spencer’s answer is a sharp snarl, “I know that. Let’s just get to the pokémon center.”

Wary of provoking his friend’s anger any further, Ran drops the topic rather than discussing the battle or the signs that they’d been baited. It’s usef...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 2, part 1

They make it out of Union Cave four days later, the midday sun painfully bright after only having had their handheld torches to provide light for the better part of a week. They come out into a dry, harsh clearing, the forest receding away from the foot of the cave structure they step out of and yielding to the lack of rain on this side of the mountains. Near the northernmost parts of the minor range as they are, the effect the elevated landscape has on rainfall is particularly pronounced.&nb...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 1, part 2

The first hours pass easily enough, Ran entirely in his element, as the only difference with the errands he’s been running for years so far is Spencer’s presence. By lunchtime however, it becomes quite clear that while Ran hasn’t just been planning but, thanks to his jobs, also been physically conditioning himself for the lifestyle of a journeying trainer, Spencer hasn’t been doing so.

Instead, Spencer admittedly has a far more well-rounded education under his belt and a bigger ...

A Viper in the Hole, Chapter 1, part 1

On CGC-morning, Ran gets up with disgustingly mixed feelings. The moment he’s been looking forward to for nearly three years soured by the knowledge that he’ll be receiving his coveted second license out of Bugsy’s hands. He still carries out his morning preparations dutifully, sharing a final breakfast with his father. The moment is heavy and emotional, their impending goodbye stilted by their disagreement over Ran’s change in plans. 

His father doesn’t understand Ran’...