#ngl 'strangled...' is a neat sequel tbh

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hi, Clan! I had this Steven (Strangled Red) one-shot idea a few days ago, but I held back on asking mostly because it felt too stupidly self-indulgent. I still feel a bit like it is, so… I hope you don't mind it too badly! ^^' Essentially, Y/N, who has Gardevoir and Scrafty, hears rumors about a supposedly haunted house in Pallet Town, Kanto, and gives a shot at trying to explore it… only to eventually come across a fallen Champion, with Y/N and their Pokémon having to fight back. (admittedly inspired by one of the Strangled Red chronological sequels)

"Oh? The house in the field? Yeah, there's rumors that a previous Champion's ghost is haunting it, but...you didn't hear that from me."

"Okay. You hear that, guys? We didn't hear that from them." You smiled at Gardevoir and Scrafty--your two most loyal Pokémon, who nodded along as you talked to one of the locals.

Rumor has it there was a "haunted house" in Pallet Town, located on the west side beyond a field of unusually tall grass. A stone barrier had been put up about a decade ago to deter anyone from venturing further, leaving many to speculate what was inside that decrepit house.

The oldest residents would tell you that it used to be the home of a Kanto champion until tragedy befell him and he became "cursed", but they claim it's totally abandoned now.

They didn't sound so sure, though, so you wanted to find out for yourself if it's true. You also had a knack for exploring mysterious places--especially if it involved Pokémon who dwelled in ancient ruins and such.

You wouldn't call a former champion's house "ancient", but maybe some powerful ghost or dark types made their home there!

In any case, Gardevoir and Scrafty could counter their attacks easily should you get into any danger.

So you decided to journey over to the west side, where the barrier lied. It was a stone wall covered in moss and cracks. Nothing too remarkable. It was high, but not too high that you couldn't fly over it on a Pokémon, so it made you wonder why people were afraid to see what's beyond it...

There was no one around guarding it, except for a lone wild Gastly whose trill alerted you to its presence.

As it hovered in front of you, your Pokémon took protective stances...and yet it seemed quite passive. Not looking for a fight at all.

"Um, hi?" You tilted your head in confusion, before you saw it float over the wall and disappear on the other side. "....okay, that's just showing off."

Huffing, you turned around in preparation to call out one of your flying-types. But then you felt Scrafty tug on your sleeve, pointing to the wall. "Scraf! Raf!!"

"What's up? Is the Gastly.....huh?"

Upon facing the barrier once more, you were astonished to see that...it was gone.

As if there was nothing there to begin with.

In between the tall patches of grass was the Gastly grinning at you, amused by your baffled expression.

When you stepped closer, there was indeed no barrier blocking the way anymore. Yet nobody in town seemed to notice such an oddity.

'Huh..maybe someone brought a Zoroark to cast this illusion.' You mused. 'But then again...how could they keep it up for so long? And why did they think it was necessary?'

Regardless, you were finally in the "forbidden zone" of Pallet Town, and the Gastly seemed to know exactly where you wanted to go. And thus, the three of you followed it, excited yet nervous as to what you'll discover.

There were no wild Pokémon lurking in the grass, strangely enough. It was completely deserted, but you paid no mind to that.

Soon enough you were in front of the old house. It looked just like all the other ones in town--a simple two story home. Considering it was unlocked, maybe the rumors of it being abandoned were true, though you knocked out of courtesy.

Nobody answered, so you headed inside, although you jumped as the door suddenly slammed shut behind you and left you in nearly total darkness.

'Goddamnit..stupid wind..' You huffed in annoyance, deciding to blame mother nature for that scare.

With Gardevoir generating a small sphere of light to guide the path, you were well on your way to investigating the old home of this "champion". You didn't even think there was one before Red or Blue--just the Elite Four.

Then again, you didn't know the whole story..so maybe this place will give you some clues. You wanted to know more about this forgotten trainer's legacy and what happened to him.

Together you searched high and low, while also trying not to move too many things around out of respect for the original owner. But you did learn some interesting and..concerning things:

For one, the upstairs bedroom held a portrait of two brothers above one of the beds: one kid who looked like Red, except he had hair that was much longer and he wore a proud smile, and a brunette with short and spiky hair donning a violet cap beside him.

You took it off the wall, looking at the picture before turning it over to see it was taken in 19....something, considering the last two digits were smudged. But the tagline on it was clearer:

Steven and Mike: The First Champions of Kanto

'So this was their home, huh? But..the locals never told me about a brother-'

Suddenly there was a rather loud creak, and Gardevoir swiftly turned her light source towards the open doorway, tensing up. Scrafty looked equally as suspicious, glaring at the darkness with raised fists.

But nothing was there at all.

"It's okay, guys." You calmly reassured them, smiling as you hung the picture back up on the wall. "Probably just a ghost-type playing tricks on us."

"Hrg..Scraf...." The dark/fighting type grumbled, but otherwise listened to you as they both calmed down.

Resuming your search, you noticed that another smaller picture sat on the nightstand, so you picked it up to examine it.

This one featured a Charizard proudly holding up a ribbon, and in the corner of the photo was a simple caption: "My Beautiful Miki" -Steven

'So this must be his ace..' you smiled fondly, seeing that Steven must've had a special connection with this Charizard to give her a name.

However, as you set the photo down, you felt an overwhelming chill run down your spine. Not one that made you feel cold, but rather the kind that told you..

"You're not alone."

Then you all heard a raspy male voice groaning from the shadows. It didn't sound like any sort of Pokémon.

But human.

Confused, Gardevoir pushed the glowing orb further out of the room. But it didn't reveal anybody in sight. Even Scrafty peeked out into the hallway, yet they didn't see anyone lingering out there. You checked the closet, only to find it completely empty.

With an annoyed huff, you closed it, deciding to leave the room and search the upper floor for the source--to no avail.

Either this person was a prankster or a legit ghost...but regardless, you didn't like the way this was heading.

This was how horror movies usually started.

"Alright." You called out. "Whoever you are, please stop. We'll leave quietly."

The voice made an unexpected demand, although he spoke slowly as if to stress the importance of each word:

"Give...her...back..."

He sounded further away this time, coming from downstairs. So that's exactly where the three of you headed, with Gardevoir bravely leading the way and Scrafty sticking behind you.

But even as you entered the living room area, you still didn't see a single soul.

This was weird.

Very, very weird..

"I want her back.."

"We didn't take anyone from you, I promise!" You tried to reason with the mysterious voice as you approached the front door. "Gardevoir, turn the brightness up to maximum, please."

Nodding, she illuminated the entire room with an even stronger glow, bathing it in light.

Yet it revealed nothing.

But Scrafty swore they saw a black mass retreating into the shadows. Their heart began racing as they stuck closer to you.

"Listen, if you mean Gardevoir..she's mine-"

"No. Not her...but my Miki."

"...I'm sorry?"

"GIVE ME BACK MY MIKI!"

Freezing, you blinked in bewilderment as the voice screamed that name, your eyes widening with great alarm. 'That's..Steven's Charizard, isn't it?'

"L-Listen, there's been a misunderstanding. So we're just gonna...!" But when you tried leaving this place for good..

The door suddenly refused to open.

"Huh?" Taking your hand off the knob, you wondered why it wasn't turning. It seemed stuck, almost. Scrafty tried their hand at it, even using Brick Break in an attempt to punch through the old door.

Surely it would've knocked it down or at least put a hole in it...

Yet it remained sturdy.

"What the hell?!" You whispered in disbelief, although you tensed upon hearing footsteps and turned around..

And he emerged from the darkness.

The fallen champion..Steven himself.

But he looked a lot worse than he did in those photos, with his black hair now being a long, wild and untangled mess; a dark shadow was cast over his sorrowful face, yet it held such rage and anguish. All you could see were his seemingly glowing red eyes, and a single pokeball in his shaking hand.

'Was he...living here this whole time? All alone?'

"Steven..?"

For a moment, he blinked and lifted his head to stare at you, as if he recognized that name. But then his expression shifted into a malicious grin, pearly-white teeth spreading from ear to ear. "My Miki...I want her back. GIVE HER BACK!!" He snarled, throwing his pokeball out in front of him.

And while it did struggle for a moment, eventually the Pokémon encased inside revealed itself to be something....quite horrific and tragic:

A Charizard who looked very much undead, with a wound resembling a noose or cable around her neck. The muscles were still visible, bleeding as though it never healed at all.

Her roar was strained, showing that she was in a great deal of agony, especially as she coughed blood all over the floor. But she seemed ready to attack you if her trainer commanded her to, so you gulped nervously and stood your ground.

There's nowhere for you to run, but surely...two Pokémon against one shouldn't be a problem, right?

Unfortunately, you'll come to find out how wrong you were...

"Gardevoir, use Fairy Wind!" You ordered.

"......."

"...Gardevoir?" Worried, you looked to the Embrace Pokémon, your heart breaking upon seeing the tears in her eyes as she stared at Miki. Her hands shook in a feeble attempt to generate some Fairy Wind.

But it failed. She gave up completely, appearing far too distraught at the sight as she refused to fight or even move.

Even Scrafty, who usually had nerves of steel, seemed extremely uncomfortable with fighting Miki at all. They opted to stay closer to you for safety.

What could you do, though?

There had to be some way to protect yourself-

'Wait..that's it!' You suddenly remembered, looking down at Scrafty. "Scraft, try shielding us with Protect!"

However, they seemed just as paralyzed with fear, though after you insisted once again..they mustered up the courage to use Protect. It formed a magic barrier in front of all three of you.

Now it was Steven's turn to make his move.

And he pointed a single finger at Gardevoir, his demonic grin never wavering for a moment as he whispered a single command:

"Strangle."

Immediately, Miki lunged forth with a horrific shriek, tearing through Protect with no issues before she tackled Gardevoir to the ground. With her pinned down, the grotesque Charizard wrapped her clawed hands around her throat and squeezed.

You stood there in horror, unable to believe what you were seeing. 'What is THAT move?! I've heard of Constrict but...nothing like this!!"

Gardevoir gasped, trying to free herself, but she could feel the rotten claws of the undead fire-type digging into her neck, blood oozing down as she was rapidly losing air. She struggled to pry them off of her, though to no avail..

It's like all of her psychic energy was sapped away.

Likewise, Miki seemed to be struggling for oxygen herself, seeing as her wheezing grew more persistent. You noticed the exposed muscles in her throat contracting and gushing blood with every breath.

'I gotta hit her where it hurts the most.' You looked at Scrafty, who continued to stare at the scene in fear.

"Scrafty, help Gardevoir and use Throat Chop on that Charizard!"

"...s-scraf..." Tears filled their eyes as they shook their head, forcing themselves to look away from the two. They felt so helpless, yet so scared as to what to do.

How could you trust them to use Throat Chop if Protect proved to be a failure?

"Please." You begged them, your voice trembling with anxiety. "I-I know you're scared, but...but Gar's gonna die if we don't do something!! We can overcome this together. We can't let him win! Please...at least try Throat Chop! If she looks at you, just close your eyes."

Finally, Scrafty looked up at you, and then at their struggling partner as she stared back at them with pleading eyes. She was quickly losing her will to fight back.

You were right.

No matter how scared either of them are, it can't end like this.

Huffing, they pulled their skin up. "Scraf..! SCRAFTY!!" With a shout, they charged at Miki, their fist glowing with dark energy. She made the mistake of turning her head and leaving her wounded neck completely exposed.

As commanded, they squeezed their eyes shut and swung blindly--

Successfully landing a Throat Chop on her.

She tried to shriek in pain, but no sound came out. Instead, she was forced to let Gardevoir go, staggering backwards as she wheezed and gagged. Her own claws became stained with her blood as she eventually collapsed to the ground, gagging and sputtering .

Immediately Steven ran past you, while Gardevoir teleported to your side, struggling to catch her breath. As she kneeled to the floor and Scrafty comforted her, you looked on to see the fallen champion's evil expression change to one of anguish.

He fell to his knees, holding Miki's head. "N-No..Miki. It's okay, girl..it's okay..."

For once, he was acting like a completely normal trainer who was worried for his precious Pokémon.

But now you knew the truth:

This guy was a champion whose ace, this Charizard, died tragically...only to brought back as a monster. Something she didn't ask to become. And it drove him mad enough to attempt actual murder on your Pokémon, hoping to give them a death similar to hers.

You didn't know how he did it, but you didn't care anymore.

You considered this battle won and refused to stick around long enough for a rematch. So you recalled your Pokémon and sprinted out of the room, finding a backdoor in the kitchen area.

Thankfully, you were able to escape that house of horrors. But even as you ran all the way out into the tall grass and hid behind the nearest tree...Steven never chased after you; nor did you hear the haunting cries of Miki.

The Gastly who guided you here eventually found you, and you could only stare at it in distraught, still trying to make sense of what happened in that place.

"D-Did...Did you know about him?" You stammered. "Was that really Steven...?"

It didn't have any answers for you, instead quietly taking you back into town, where the stone wall suddenly remanifested itself. You paid no mind to that and just rushed to the Pokémon Center, desperate to heal your companions.

Minutes later, the nurse called you back and informed you that while they were both okay...

They couldn't help but notice the bruises wrung around your Gardevoir's neck.