Chapter Text
A man opened his eyes to snow. The moment he regained consciousness, he could remember three major things:
- His name was Ingo.
- He was just in Nimbasa City.
- It didn’t snow this time of year in Nimbasa City.
Where here was wasn’t clear yet. Neither was what a Nimbasa was or why he was so sure it shouldn’t be snowing there.
The cold air nipped at Ingo’s face as he groggily tried to make sense of anything. His head was pounding -
It felt like everything behind his skull was desperately trying to break out.
Ingo shuffled in the snow, trying to escape his fuzzy mind enough to get up and look for help. As he tried to stand, pain shot up his arm like fire. It’s broken, or at least sprained. He rolled onto his back, groaning at the feeling of whatever was wrong with his arm. He was starting to wish he hadn’t skipped first aid day at the subway for a train convention.
Beside him, a pair of tiny creatures wrestled in the snow. They both looked the same, small and purple with vicious claws. When the pair noticed him moving, they scurried off down the snow-covered hill, fading out of sight before Ingo could get a good look at them.
Pokémon, his mind supplied.
His coat billowed in the wind as he took a proper look ahead. An endless sky looks back, not a building in sight. Ingo wasn’t used to such a sight with so many skyscrapers in Nimbasa City.
He wasn’t given much time to wonder what a skyscraper was before a quiet chime came from behind.
Yet another Pokémon stood behind him, a yellow orb with orange and white strings dangling from its sides. Unlike the previous creatures, the name of this one came to his mind right away.
“Hello, little Chingling,” Ingo lightened his frown, “Do you happen to know where I am?”
The Chingling shook from left to right a few times. Its tiny eyes looked at Ingo with something resembling worry.
“I believe I’ve been derailed, but I will be back on track in no time. Do not worry.”
Chingling bobbed closer, chiming once again. It floated off swiftly through the snow, stopping after a moment and expectantly looking back to Ingo.
“You would like me to switch to your track?” Ingo asked, watching as the Chingling happily spun in response. “Of course! Allow me to perform some maintenance first.”
The man tore off a piece of his shirt and looped it around his injured arm. He tied the ends around his neck, creating a makeshift sling. It wasn’t ideal, but it would do the job until proper help.
Once his arm was set well enough, Ingo stepped ahead to follow the Chingling. It chimed once more before going ahead again.
Ingo smiled.
“ALL ABOARD!”
Chingling had led Ingo down the mountainside and along a steep hill. He was able to see from their new spot that it wasn’t snowing all the way down- not too far down the mountain, the snow seemed to stop. Although he wanted to stop and look out for some people, Chingling was persistent about moving quickly.
“Apologies for derailing! Let us get back on track.”
Chingling tilted to the side, looking confused, but continued forward anyways. It sped ahead, stopping above a lump of snow.
As Ingo got closer, it became much clearer what Chingling was not bringing attention to the snow but what was beneath it. The small Pokémon brushed against the pile, trying to remove as much snow as it could with its small size. Ingo ran forward, doing his best to ignore the pounding in his skull, and knelt down. He brushed away the snow to reveal what Chingling was so worried about.
A child.
A small, shivering child. Her clothes weren’t fit for the current weather, but she’d been down long enough for snow to blanket her completely. Her breath was shaky, but was breath , and Ingo was suddenly very thankful for Chingling’s assistance.
The girl was pulled into a tight ball, her knees pressed into her face. Even without a proper look, Ingo could tell she wasn’t any older than ten. The man removed his coat, shivering as he was suddenly hit by the cold air, and he wrapped the child up as best he could despite his injured arm.
She didn’t weigh much, so Ingo was able to safely hold her with one arm. The issue now was his lack of defense against any wild Pokémon.
Chingling chimed as he pulled the child up. She wasn’t completely awake, but her shivering quieted and she rested her head on Ingo’s shoulder.
“We must get help. It is my priority to keep passengers safe, and this little one is not in working condition.”
Chingling nodded, chiming as it led Ingo forward once more. He only hoped it was leading him away from the snowy area this time.
The Pokémon, luckily, seemed to be leading him down the mountain. It wasn’t long before the snowy terrain was behind, and the mountains ahead became the next obstacle.
“Are there any people nearby? Or perhaps Pokémon that could help the child?” Ingo muttered as he walked behind Chingling.
Chingling turned back to Ingo, trilling quietly. Its wide smile quickly faded.
“Is something wrong? What—”
A powerful force rammed into Ingo from behind. He sputtered, keeping a tight grip on the child while still trying to maintain balance. He looked behind to find his attacker— a Gabite, much larger than he’d ever seen. Its eyes glowed red with rage as it growled at Ingo.
The Pokémon charged again, running with full force at the man, but he slid to the left and managed to avoid any damage to the girl. The force of the attack left Ingo’s arm even more injured, the makeshift sling now in tatters.
Ingo turned to look for Chingling, but it was gone. It must have escaped when the Pokémon was distracted by trying to kill Ingo. He really couldn’t blame Chingling for self-preservation.
Gabite roared, raising its head and gnashing its teeth as it prepared for another attack. Ingo couldn’t dodge for long, and both of them knew it.
The Pokémon ran forward, smashing its body into Ingo’s before he could avoid it. He fell-face first into the snow, the child now out of his grasp.
His head was pounding.
All he heard before blacking out was a distant “SNAWWWR!”