I walked around the docks of Hilo, looking around the place as though I had no idea where I was or where I was going, wearing a backpack over my shoulder and a dumb grin on my face. Just a tourist, easy to manipulate and steal cash from. Oh woe is me.
The docks were pretty much how you'd picture it. Granted, I wasn't sure if Hilo had a dock like this in my homeworld. Hard to tell how different the DC universe was in little ways like this. Whatever the case, it was here, with people milling about and doing… boat things. A few looked at me, but were otherwise ignoring me.
"You should be coming up on him soon," Alakazam, currently sitting in the back of the SUV, which was parked next to the ocean, said through our link.
"...I would rather not deal with this man. He thinks like a Morgrem," he said, referencing an extremely mischievous and devious Dark-type Pokemon.
"He's currently stealing gasoline."
"Which means he doesn't want to deal with cops," I said in my own, much uglier, version of thought-speak.
"As long as he takes us to the right location, I don't care how much money he tries to 'con' out of us."
Our target was the scummiest mind Alakazam could possibly find. Obviously we didn't have police reports or anything to look at. But he could read surface thoughts, figure out the sort of person we needed. Namely, someone who took passengers to Honolulu, would do it for cash, and wouldn't ask a lot of questions. And our man just happened to be ready to head there with a small shipment of marijuana.
I didn't make a beeline for our target. If I was too direct, he'd end up getting spooked. I had to make him think tricking me was his idea. Instead, I headed near where he was carefully filling his own boat, walking up to a guy who was tying up his own vessel to the dock. "Hey, you mind if I ask you a question?"
The guy looked up at me. "What do you want?"
I smiled awkwardly, playing up my teenage features. "Hey, sorry. I kinda wanted to know if there was a boat around here taking people to Honolulu."
"Take a plane then, you fucking Haole," the guy said, hate in his eyes as he used the slur.
I almost lost the act. A few Hawaiians kinda hated on outsiders. Usually white ones, but the douchier ones would also become assholes when they pegged me as an outsider. Still, I'd dealt with racist assholes of all shades my entire adult life. A little more wasn't the end of the world.
"Well, I can't. But I have money!" I took out a handful of bills and held it up happily. "Like uh… I don't know how much. But I can pay!"
The guy began to look VERY interested, hate turning to greed when he saw how many hundred dollar bills were in my hand. Yeah right. If I ended up on a boat with someone who called me Haole, I'd end up breaking his arms.
"Whoa, whoa," a voice that was smooth as butter said, a tanned arm stretching around my shoulders. "Now young man, you want to go with this okole? He just called you Haole!"
I looked at the man who was speaking. He was a little overweight, wearing a green Hawaiian shirt that was opened to show a white tank top, black cargo shorts, and blue sandals. He was a little taller than me, with hair the color of mine that went down to his shoulders, except for the top, which was balding. He had a five o'clock shadow, and a bit of ketchup at the corner of his mouth that bounced as he spoke with a proud smile.
"Who are you calling okole you-" the guy began to rise.
The man ignored him, pulling me along. "Now, I hear you want to go to Honolulu?"
"Yeah!" I said cheerily and dumbly. "I always wanted to go by boat, so I got my money and came here!"
"Oh, that's interesting," he very carefully didn't look at my hand full of cash as he walked along. "Ah, best put that way. Let's not talk about money, let's talk about," he waved a hand out at the ocean. "Possibilities! What's your name?"
"Mahmoud."
"Well, Mackmon," God, why was that butchering of my name so consistent from person to person? "I'm Kalini! Owner of the finest boat on the ocean!" Kalini pointed at his boat.
To my surprise, it actually looked pretty good. Television had taught me that shady guys with boats had crappy boats, but crappy boats tended to sink. So it made sense that the blue fishing vessel he was pointing at was in solid-looking shape. It was about forty feet long, with a lot of attachments and ropes I didn't know anything about. "The Pussy Galore, after the Bond Girl! Like it?"
Damn, that name is horrible.
"It looks great!" I said honestly, ignoring the name written in pink letters on the side.
"Thank you," Kalini hopped into the boat. He waved me over to a chair in the back of the boat. "Now. What does a young man like you want to go to Honolulu for?
"Mostly, sand, sun, and babes," I answered casually. "My parents came here to visit the volcano," I sighed sadly. "I mean, it was cool for a bit. Then you're just looking at rocks melting," Sorry Slugma, I love ya.
Kalini nodded, rubbing his 5 o'clock shadow. "Parents. Is that so? So you aren't about to get me stuck with a kidnapping charge."
I chuckled at the thought. "No, not at all. I just want to go to Honolulu, and my parents said I could go if I found someone willing to take me."
"Hm," he still looked a little suspicious. Alakazam looked through my eyes, watching him carefully. "Well, I'm actually about to leave in twenty minutes. So I'll need payment upfront for taking on a last minute passenger."
"That's fine. How much?"
"2000 dollars, usually," he said while leaning back in his seat and giving me a grin. "But hey, I like you kid. How about a discount. Say, drop it to 1800."
Discount my ass. A plane ticket there was 98 dollars. If I wasn't desperate, I could have found more reputable ways to get there for a lot less money. But I was desperate, and I'd honestly expected a hell of a lot more to be charged.
"That's great!" I said, pretending to be stupid as hell. "Here, let me call my dad and mom and tell them, then I'll come back!"
"Uh, do you really need to tell-" Kalini cut himself off as I leaped off the boat, rushing for the SUV. I made sure to leave my bag behind.
I dropped my smile the instant I was out of view of the boat.
"He is looking through the bag," Alakazam told me.
"He found the decoy money, but he wants to wait to steal it. He thinks you might be a runaway, but doesn't care as long as the cops don't come. And if they do, he might get reward money."
What a standup guy.
I got to the vicinity of the SUV, making sure to walk calmly.
"He's found the snacks you brought, as well as the clothes."
"No need for the play by play. Just tell me. Do I need to fight a grown man to keep from getting tossed into the ocean?"
"No. He's at least going to do the job. He will take you for every cent he can, but he'll take you to Honolulu."
"Good. But just in case, Mudkip is gonna swim in our wake."
"A reasonable precaution. And me?"
"Stay in the Pokeball," I opened the SUV doors to see him sitting calmly, eyes meeting mine. "But the second he causes the right kind of trouble… Well. No skin on my nose if he's knocked out."
"...Be careful."
With that, he disappeared into his Pokeball at my waist. I closed the SUV, placed the keys away, and headed back.
When I got back to the boat, the Captain gave me a grin as he untied the boat from the dock. "Ah, good to have you back! Your parents all right?"
"My mom doesn't think I should go," I said with a shrug. "But otherwise they're all right."
"Goodie! Then let's get going Mackmon."
I sighed internally at that. Once his back was turned and he was entering the boat, I took out Mudkip's ball and followed. He turned to look at me, and held out his hand. I reached into my pocket, counted out 1800 dollars in cash, and passed it to him. He gave the rest of my money a look of greed, but took the money I handed with a happy laugh.
"Go ahead and sit down," he said, pressing some buttons on the console of his ship. "We'll be off soon enough."
The boat started up with a sound like a tiger's purring. Using the noise for cover, I leaned my arm out of his view and released Mudkip. He popped out in a flash of light and jumped into the water. The boat began moving. I looked with practiced eyes, and could see Mudkip's trail, the little guy dancing happily in our wake.
------
"This thing is a lot faster than I thought it was!" I noted to Kalini as we bounced across the waves about an hour later, the sun shining high above.
"That's the beauty of the Pussy Galore!" Kalini patted his dashboard happily. "Ah, my little Ku'uipo has gotten me out of many scrapes before!"
"Like sharks?" I asked.
"...Well, something like that," he said evasively.
Yeah, cops more likely. Oh well.
"Anyways, this little Ku'uipo can go 50 knots, er, that's around 57 miles, an hour if she wants to!" Kalini chuckled. "Don't worry, Mackmon! You'll be in Honolulu in about five hours! Little more if you wanna stop and fish!"
"I'm good," I said to the friendly Hawaiian scammer. "I'm not much of a fisher."
"Ah, crying shame," Kalini shook his head. "I tell ya, few things as good just relaxing on the waves, nothing but you and your thoughts. You youngin's are all about speed, get as much done as you can," he gave me a smile. Kind of a soft one. "When you get to Honolulu, enjoy yourself. Take your time. These islands man," Kalini looked around. "You need to take them in, bit by bit. Slowly take every little place you can. This old Kalini you see, he's seen many a tourist make that mistake," Kalini patted his belly with a smile. "They don't learn to really
enjoy themselves. But when you do? Hawaii rewards you with her beauty. With her spirit."
That was… a lot more contemplative than I thought it would be.
"You left your parents at the volcano because you were bored. Headed right to Honolulu…" Kalini chuckled. "And now you might miss out on the greatness of the Big Island! On the incredible views and sights… and the women," he winked at me, laughing. "Take your time, Mackmon. And stop paying too much for five hour boat trips."
To my surprise, he took some bills out of his pocket and passed them to me. When I looked them over, it was three hundred dollars. When I looked at him, Kalini chuckled. "Maybe do some research on that sort of thing, eh?"
...Still a sleazebag. But better than I thought he was. I folded away the money and left the cabin, moving to look at the water.
Mudkip popped his head out of the water, giving me a smile. He was still chugging along at high speed, apparently uncaring of how fast the boat was going. "Mudkip!"
"What was that?" Kalini asked me in the background.
"Nothing," I said, watching Mudkip dive back into the ocean. "Just thinking of taking you up on your offer of fishing."
Mudkip would need a break at some point after all.
"Great! We'll stop in a couple of hours! If all goes well, we might catch some humuhumunukunukuāpuaʻa."
"...Whut?"
------
After a quick break to fish a couple of hours later, (Mudkip did not put fish on the hook for me by the way, I'm just a supernaturally good fisherman), we eventually made our way past Kahanamoku Lagoon.
"We can't stop there?" I asked Kalini as we passed the ultra large yacht's there.
"Not unless you want to deal with a bunch of rich assholes," Kalini spat off the side off the boat. "Nah, I've got a better spot."
We went towards a local dock, pulling in to port. Kalini pulled up, or boated up, maybe? Whatever the name for the maneuver, he brought us in. "Well kid, it's been fun," he looked over at me with a grin as he started tying his boat to the dock. "You sure you don't want to hang around? Fisherman as good as you, I'd make a killing with ya."
"I don't think that's my path man," I said with a grin, shaking my head.
"Ah, leave your options open, kid, I… Fuck."
I looked over at him. He was staring out at the shore, holding onto one of the ropes he'd been tying to the dock. Sweat beaded his brow and he was twisting the ropes in his hand very carefully, his knuckles white. I looked in the same direction he was staring at.
A group of five guys were coming over to us. The four in the back were scowling, while the lead guy was smiling just a bit too much to be real.
"Kid," I looked at Kalini. He gave me a serious look. "Get in the cabin. No matter what happens, don't leave it."
"...I-"
"Do it!" he barked.
I slowly rose to my feet and followed his direction. As I did, I looked at the water. Mudkip was there, watching as I walked in there. I nodded slowly. He ducked under the water.
Once I was in the cabin, I ducked down and grabbed my bag, opening it to reveal a mask. I stared at it for a moment. At some point, Mimikyu must have gotten her hands on the hockey mask we'd stolen from those gangsters we'd stopped weeks ago. Now the formerly white mask was dark red on it's left side, with a black circle in the center and a line down the middle. It looked like a Pokeball.
She really had a way with costumes.
I hesitated with the mask in my hands. Then I looked out the door carefully. The five guys had gotten to Kalini, and were speaking to him.
"You've got a lot of nerve, Kalini," the lead guy was saying. "Coming here after stealing from us."
"I didn't steal from anyone!" Kalini said. "You all refused to pay me for my work!"
"You got what you deserved," the lead guy said with a wave of his hand. "No more, no-"
"You cheated me!" Kalini said. Right then, I realized what a big man he was. He stepped forward, thick arms raising up. The five men across from him narrowed their eyes.
"...Come with us," the lead guy said angrily. "You owe the Silicon Dragons, Kalini."
...That name is terrible.
"You want me?" Kalini slapped his chest, growling. "Then take me."
Three of the guys stepped forward. I found myself in the middle of a decision.
I should let them take him. Kalini wasn't really a friend, or any kind of person I knew well. He was a scammer, a sleazy big guy who had overcharged me for my trip and kept acting like he'd done me a favor, while staring at my money like it was food before a dog…
But we'd fished together. And honestly, at the heart of it, even if he hadn't shown the genuine human under the con artist… I still didn't want to let him get dragged off by random gang members or whatever those guys were to get assaulted.
Damn it. Of course the one sleazebag I met had to get attacked by gangsters at the end of our trip. And of course, I didn't want to stand by and let some guy get hurt, no matter the possibilities of trouble it would cause.
I grabbed the mask and put it on angrily. I pulled out the gun I'd hidden in my bag. I didn't want to shoot anyone, but it was a precaution.
"Mudkip!" I roared just as one of the gangsters was about to grab Kalini. Kalini froze, his fist pulled back, and stared back at me as I stepped out of the boat, the mask over my face. "Waterfall that one!"
I pointed at the one about to grab Kalini.
The ocean behind me exploded. A tiny blue rocket, surrounded in a blue aura of water, hit the chest of the gangster, who was sent flying back with a scream, landing in the ocean. Mudkip backflipped through the air and landed in front of Kalini.
"Mudkip," the little guys said with a smirk, gazing up at the four gangsters.
"W-What the hell is that!?" one of the gangsters yelled, looking at the guy who'd been punted off the dock.
"Ma-" Kalini was about to say. I rushed forward and leaped out of the boat, handgun lazily held in my hand as Mudkip laughed slowly under his breath at the enemies before us.
"Mudkip. Use Water Gun."
He opened his mouth. As though it had come out of a firehose, a blast of water hit the gangsters, sending them bouncing back along the dock as they screamed, one guy's arm hitting a wooden post with a sound like a stick breaking.
"Ca-" one guy sputtered, spitting out water. "Call the others! Match him! Match him!"
"Oh fuck me," Kalini whispered.
"Come on!" I grabbed Kalini's arm and pulled him along. One of the gangsters, soaked in water, tried to rise and grab me. I stepped on his face, smashing his head back into the dock as we ran, Mudkip following us. One other guy raised something and pointed it at me, but Mudkip hit him with a tackle, sending him into unconsciousness.
"Who the hell are those guys?" I growled at Kalini as we ran from the docks and into the streets, hefting my backpack onto my shoulders.
"Silicon Dragons!" Kalini said, recoiling when Mudkip jumped up to land on my shoulder. "What the hell is that!?"
"A Mudkip, who are the Silicon Dragons?"
"What's a Mudkip!?"
A van came squealing around the corner. I grabbed another Pokeball at my waist and looked around. It was night, so not a lot of people were by the docks. There was one building across the street, a big one, but there were only a few curious bystanders. Still people that needed to be protected…
The van came to a stop a little away from us. I tossed the Pokeball in my hand out. Mimikyu came out of it, looking at the van furiously.
Three guys came out of the van immediately, holding assault rifles. The driver and another guy were still getting ready. The guys with the assault rifles pointed them at us. Mudkip, Mimikyu, and I stared at them, my palm a little sweaty.
"...Are you serious?" one of the assault rifles lowered, it's owner laughing. "This is why those idiots wanted to escalate? A kid, a weird dog, and a… I don't know, an ugly doll?"
"..."
The shadows lengthened. My breath started to frost in the now chill air. Mimikyu stared at the man, eyes slowly widening. I glared at the asshole, knowing tears would be at the edges of her eyes.
"You really shouldn't have said that."
Mimikyu rose slowly in the air. Below her, long shadows lifted her up, shivering and shaking as they did, forming into long appendages. Some rose up, clenching fingers of darkness that ignored the streetlights.
"What in God's name-" one of the assault rifles began to clench.
"MIMIKYU."
A yellow costumed shadow seemed to disappear. The asshole's shadow rose up from behind him, white eyes staring from beneath a Pikachu costume.
"Danny!" one of the guys said when he noticed.
The asshole spun around. Black claws spun out, slicing through the assault rifle, steel shredded before the power of Mimikyu.
"FU-" Claws wrapped around his mouth, pulling him down to the ground. "Oh god, oh god, no!" He screamed around the writhing claws of shadow. He was pulled under the van, screaming as he disappeared. "NO, NO, NOOOO!"
One of the other guys looked under the van, pointing his gun at it and shooting frantically. Then he froze. "D-Danny! ...He's gone."
The other guys looked at me. Mimikyu sat on my shoulder.
That was enough for them. Guns were raised. Kalini stepped back. Mudkip opened his mouth, while Mimikyu stretched a single tendril from under her costume.
"Get moving!" I roared at Kalini. He ran for it, heading to the building. The gangsters ignored him. Off to the side, some people began to point guns at us, ignoring Kalini as he rushed away. "Protect, Mimikyu!"
"BRAT-A-TAT-TAT "
A big forcefield of clear light shone in front of me. The loud as hell sound of bullets bouncing on nothing filled the air. I raised my gun vaguely in the direction of the gangsters, who ducked at the sight of a familiar threat.
"Mudkip, hit them with a Bliz- Icy Wind!" I'd been ready to say something else, but remembered we weren't trying to kill these guys
"Mudkip!" the little guy jumped into the air, opening his mouth. A wave of frosty wind flew from his lips, covering the distance between us in seconds. The asphalt was covered in rime where it passed, and the guys screamed as they hid behind the van. One guy didn't dodge the wave of cold in time.
"Oh shi-" the wind overtook him. He slipped as his limbs got covered in a thin layer of slick ice, slowly trying to run as he shivered in the freezing cold.
"Take them down!" the driver shouted, tossing a grenade at us. Mudkip slapped the grenade out of the air, sending it flying into the ocean to explode harmlessly, and ran forward. Mimikyu jumped off my shoulder and into a shadow.
Then something hit me in the back, just below my backpack. I staggered forward. It felt like a heavy stick had stabbed me in the back, before pain erupted from the spot I'd been hit. I turned around.
One of the guys from the dock was pointing a pistol at me. I raised my own gun. He fired, and I felt another hard smashing blow hit me across my right pectoral. I fired in the air, the guy running into cover, then looked at myself.
I had a hole in my shirt. I stared at my chest, my eyes widening. I raised a hand and patted at my shirt.
I fell to my knees, biting back a scream of pain as the sensation of liquid filled my body from my chest and back. I ripped the hole in my shirt bigger, staring at where the pain came from.
A bullet was stuck in my chest, having pierced my skin and lodged into the muscles, blood spattered around the small copper object. I reflexively pulled it out, then shouted in agony. The bullet landed on the ground, and blood began seeping out of my wound.
"Goddamn," I hissed, trying to figure out what happened. Then the thought struck me.
"He shot me…" I stared up.
The guy I'd been facing popped out of cover, then ducked back when I snapped to my feet and shot at him, screaming. "YOU SHOT ME!" I ran at the guy, tossing my backpack to the ground. His eyes widened, and he backpedaled while raising his gun. I jumped, knees slamming into his chest in a move I'd perfected in another world, and brought him to the ground. "YOU ASSHOLE!"
He punched me in the face. I ignored the ineffectual blow to my hockey mask and headbutted him. His eyes crossed. Then I punched him in the chest. He tried to block another blow, so I got him in the chin. "YOU SHOT ME!"
"G-Get off-"
I cut him off by grabbing him by his shirt and rising, lifting him up with me. I screamed wordlessly, red filling my vision as I spun, twisting him over my back and hefting him. He let out a shriek of noise as he landed in the harbor with a loud splash. I'd tossed him several feet, so his friends we'd left on the dock were able to see it.
"Well!" I yelled, my ripped shirt falling to the ground, blood dripping from the hole in my chest, my mask distorting my face. "WHO ELSE WANTS SOME!?"
They spun and ran. I looked at the van.
Mudkip hit one of the guys there with a pawfull of earth in a mud-slap, the innocuous move sending the guy tumbling unconscious across the ground to land with filth across his face. Mimikyu dropped a pale-faced man on the ground. The final guy stared at us as I prowled over, my fists clenching and unclenching, blood slowly leaking down my chest. Mimikyu looked at him. Then Mudkip.
"...Screw this."
The guy jumped into his van.
"Mimikyu, Phantom Force that van."
"Mimikyu!" she stood still for a moment. The van started. Then shadows rose from beneath the van, like a venus fly trap snapping its teeth together, and smashed into it, crumpling steel and shattering glass. The guy in the car screamed, raising his gun and aiming at Mimikyu. A hail of bullets flew. A couple hit her. And her Pikachu costume fell limp as the neck was damaged.
The guy was surrounded in darkness. When it faded, he was passed out, covered in sweat and pale as a sheet.
I looked around. People were staring at us, cameras pointed our way. Well… shit.
"Come on!" I picked up Mimikyu, holding her to my chest, while Mudkip hopped onto my shoulder and grabbed my backpack from where I'd tossed it on the ground. As police sirens began to ring in the distance, I ran towards the ocean.
"Wait, hold on!" a woman asked as I ran for the docks. "Who are you!?"
"Pick a name!?" I yelled back at her, jumping into the ocean, cold water covering me and Mimikyu. Mudkip popped his head up, grabbed my arm, and pulled me through the water, Mimikyu pulling her costume along as she swam alongside us. People with smartphones ran over, but Mudkip was already pulling me under the water, rushing us further down the docks until we were a few hundred feet away, where he brought me back up. I looked back at the docks to see around ten people staring at the spot we'd dived in while yelling and talking to each other.
So much for being inconspicuous. All to save a guy who had scammed me. And now knew what I looked like. Damn it.
"Well… that went well."
"Mudkip," the little guy shook his head, chuckling just a bit. "Kip."
"Mimikyu," she said sadly, holding her soaked costume. Mudkip patted her head softly, and I gave her a hug as we bobbed in the water.
"Come on," I said softly to Mimikyu. "Lets get it fixed. Good work guys."
Mudkip stared at my chest, where I felt the salt of the ocean stinging the bullet hole there. The same stinging came from the one in my back. I shook my head and he nodded. Not right now.
"Let's go."
With my Pokemon coming along, I got out of there, heading down the shore.
------
Author's Note: Couldn't go too crazy in this fight. Despite the dangers, Mimikyu and Mudkip can cause a LOT of damage to the people and property of Hawaii. They aren't quite Superman level, but they can legit kill people.
As for the MC's durability, I'm keeping it relatively low-key. So he's durable and strong, enough to tank low calibur bullets and toss grown men, but he's still on the lower end of things in terms of superhuman.
Also, this chapter was a lot of fun to write man. I loved every moment of it.
Please consider supporting me on the
Patreon guys! Thus far, it's been helping me and my family from starving, so every dollar has been a huge boon. Next chapter of Dial should be up there soon. Later guys!