Chapter 11: Newcomers in the tribe
"I want to see how long you can keep pretending," Ryū thought as he watched the little girl on the ground. He was a little happy inside. After all, it had been a while since things were this lively. For the past month, his life had been a simple cycle of eating, sleeping, and fighting. The constant pressure to get stronger was a necessity for survival. As the boss of the Beedrill family, Ryū also had to consider leading his entire family toward a safer future.
The little girl on the ground twitched her mouth. She felt Ryū's gaze, but nothing happened, which made her feel very uncomfortable. After hesitating for a moment, she cautiously opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him.
Ryū thought for a moment, then speared a Leppa Berry with his stinger and offered it to the girl. When she saw him move, she flinched in fear.
"Th-thank you," she said, surprised. She realized Ryū had no intention of hurting her. Instead, he was offering her a berry. Ryū's behavior was completely new to her. She had never heard of or seen a Pokémon show such kindness to a human before.
The little girl took the berry and ate it quickly. She then looked around with a frightened expression before turning back to Ryū and nodding resolutely.
"Hello! My name is Liz," she said, standing up and bravely walking toward Ryū.
"...Buzz." Ryū didn't know what to say, so he simply made a sound. He knew she wouldn't understand him anyway.
"Are you saying hello to me? You're so enthusiastic! Hahaha, we're friends now!" Liz stretched out her hands and grabbed one of Ryū's stingers, shaking it up and down. She felt a wave of panic holding the thick, hard white stinger, worrying that the Pokémon would suddenly stab her. However, the situation was critical. She knew that a little girl alone in the forest would surely perish. Her only chance for survival was this seemingly friendly and strong Pokémon.
"...Buzz." Ryū found the situation quite amusing and spoke again, curious to see what else the girl would say.
"I'm from the Royal Dragon Tribe outside the forest! I'm the Princess of the Royal Dragon Tribe! My full name is Royal Dragon Liz!" Liz didn't understand what Ryū meant, so she started talking to fill the awkward silence.
Ryū listened quietly and began to understand the era he was in. He was not only in the Monster Era but also in its early, tribal period. Liz was likely an ancestor of the Dragon Tamer Clan from the Johto region, the lineage of the future Kanto and Johto Champion, Lance. The mountain he was on was Mt. Silver, located at the border of the Kanto and Johto regions. Liz's tribe had a conflict with the Silph Tribe from the Kanto side, both fighting for mineral resources within Mt. Silver's mines.
The name "Silph" was also familiar to Ryū. In the future Alliance Era, Silph Co. would become the economic giant of the Kanto region. They pioneered the basic technology for Poké Balls and went on to develop key items like TMs, Potions, Escape Ropes, sprays, Upgrade Data, and various held items. However, because of their technological dominance, Silph Co. was later targeted and taken over by Team Rocket.
"Wonderful, truly wonderful," Ryū shook his head. If his hands weren't stingers, he would have clapped. He was astonished that two forces who would be so important and seemingly unrelated in the future were warring with each other in this ancient era.
Soon, Liz started to feel cold. It wasn't the middle of summer, and the nights in the forest were cold and damp. She was wearing simple cloth clothes, which were typical for humans in this tribal period. As she spoke, her body began to tremble. Seeing this, Ryū poked an Aspear Berry from a nearby pile and handed it to her. The Aspear Berry is known for curing the frozen status and making the body feel warm. It is often used by Pokémon to survive the winter.
"Thank you, I'm not hungry..." Liz took the berry and took a bite, then shook her head. She was no longer panicked or scared, as she could see that Ryū had no ill intentions. Soon, a warm feeling spread through her stomach, and she felt her body heat up. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the Aspear Berry in her hand and quickly ate a few more bites.
"Wow~ this is amazing! If we had this, our warriors wouldn't freeze to death." Liz memorized the appearance of the Aspear Berry. She was determined to tell her tribe about it if she returned, so they wouldn't freeze on future expeditions.
Ryū glanced at the girl, ate a few berries himself, and lay down to sleep.
"Um, can you not sleep? I want some water. Do you understand me?" Liz came closer and gently poked Ryū's body.
Ryū raised his head, slightly annoyed, and pointed to the pile of berries. He was telling her to eat the berries to quench her thirst. He had no intention of leaving the tree at night. Many Pokémon hunted in the dark, and for him, who was used to fighting during the day, the night was not the time to venture out.
"I'm not hungry... Never mind." Liz blinked her eyes, ran over, hugged two berries, and sucked the juice. As she ate, she saw Ryū lying down, preparing to sleep. She looked around the dark forest and heard the strange, eerie calls of other Pokémon. A shiver ran down her spine. She quickly finished her berries and ran to Ryū's side, lying down close to him.
Ryū turned his head to look at her, then closed his eyes, ignoring her.
The next morning, all the Beedrill, Kakuna, and Weedle in the family knew that a newcomer had joined them—a strange, weak, and frail Pokémon.