Pokemon: Kanto Adventures!

[MothraRocks]

“Where is it?” Yun whispered to herself as she walked along the dark tunnel. “It shouldn’t be THAT hard to find a giant meteorite, pulsating with energy.”

Fortunately for her, it wasn’t. Just as Yuna turned around yet another corner, she saw a huge stone, about fifteen feet long, sitting on a pedestal, surrounded by dozens of small pink Pokémon that she recognized as Clefairy. But wait, what was that blue Pokémon over there?

“Is that… Nidoran?” Yuna asked before taking a step back into the shadows, hiding from the blue light the black stone emitted. Looking around the stone, she saw none other than Jake, Alex and C.C., plus two other trainers. Surely they were here for the Moon Stone as well!

“Well, we can’t let that happen, now can we?” Yuna said with a smirk forming, two eyes behind her opening up.
*****
“It’s amazing…” Kristijan said, the others simply nodding in agreement.

“But what does Team Rocket want it for?” Jake asked.

“Nothing good, that’s for sure.” C.C. said. “Let’s get it out of here.”

Hayes looked at him with disbelief. “Yeah, because we can defiantly just pick it up and walk out with it, right?”

“Well what do you want to do you Know-it-all?”

“Gimmie a second, and maybe I’ll think of something, the keyword being THINK.” Hayes snapped back, returning C.C.’s glare. Both trainers grabbed a Pokéball from their belts, ready to battle.

“Stop!” Alex yelled, getting between the two rivals. “Right now we have to focus on how to keep this rock safe. Team Rocket said something about it having enough energy to create something, so maybe –“

“Sludge Bomb!”

Before anyone could react, a giant purple blob came crashing down from the air between everyone, causing an explosion of fire and smoke to erupt, sending everyone flying. All the Clefairy turned their heads towards the commotion, a confused look on their faces.

“What was THAT?” Kristijan asked, rubbing his head as he sat up.

“Yuna.” Jake said next to him, his bones aching.

“Well, well, well. Seems like someone has finally caught onto my tactics.” Yuna said as she walked out of the smoke, her heels clicking with each step. “Now, don’t mess with me this time, I’m not feeling as merciful as before.”

“Don’t count on it.” Alex said as he stood up. “Go, Squirtle!”

A Pokéball flew through the air before clicking open and unleashing a bright light, which soon took on the form of Squirtle.

“Squirtle, use water gun!” Alex ordered. Taking a big breath, Squirtle shot out a jet of blue water, headed straight for Yuna and Muk.

“Muk, protect.” Yuna said with a bored tone in her voice. Just before the jet of water reached the two, what appeared to be a transparent green shield appeared before the duo, resulting in Squirtle’s attack harmlessly washing over it. Everyone stared in disbelief as Yuna’s eyes snapped open.

“My turn.” She smirked. “Muk, use thunderbolt!”

Muk raised his hand as it began to crackle with electricity, causing everyone to panic. In mere seconds, a bolt of blue electricy shot forth, causing everyone to scatter, and leaving a smoldering crater in the side of the wall. Yuna turned away; Muk would keep them busy for now. Looking at the Moon Stone, Yuna smiled evilly, she only needed one little piece.

Hayes rolled out of the way of yet another Thunderbolt attack, getting quite annoyed. Grabbing a Pokéball, he threw it in the air, prepared to fight.

“Go! Bonehead!” Hayes said as the Pokéball clicked open and revealed his Cubone, who spun its club in its hand effortlessly. “Quick, use Return!”

Bonehead gave a hesitant glance back towards Hayes before turning back to her target, and raising her club. Slowly, a dim pink light came forth from it, before gathering at the end in a pinkish sphere. Suddenly, the ball of energy flew off towards Muk, only leaving a little flicker once it hit its target, leaving Muk unaffected. Hayes gritted his teeth, he thought he had finally bonded with Bonehead…

Across the room, C.C. looked at Hayes and Bonehead; it must have been embarrassing, Bonehead’s Return attack being so weak. C.C. suddenly lost his track of thought as Kristijan pulled out two Pokéballs and walked up.

“Go, Scyther and Pidgeot!” he called out. The two Pokéballs popped open and unleashed a giant bird and a bug with two scythe’s for arms. “Ready? Use Aerial Ace and Fury Cutter!”

Scyther simply turned away and folded his scythes; he wasn’t about to take commands from an amateur trainer. Kristijan hung his head in disappointment, he should’ve seen this coming.

*****
Yuna grunted as she pulled herself up to the top of Moon Stone, wiping sweat from her forehead. She did not hesitate to pull out her mining pick and began to chip away at the stone, all the Clefairy looking up at her in confusion. Finally, a piece, roughly three inches long, broke off. Yuna smiled; it was the perfect size for her plan. Figuring she could take a few more to sell, Yuna decided to break off a few more pieces.

Just as she raised her mining pick, a volley of glowing needles knocked it out of her hands, and sent it tumbling down to the ground. Shocked, Yuna turned around, only to see Nidoran glaring angrily at her, grunting. Yuna returned the glare as she pulled out a folded wooden staff from her bag, which she unfolded and clicked into place.
“You little pest!” She yelled out as she swung the staff in a majestic, yet malevolent way at the tiny blue Pokémon, who just managed to avoid it, taking a step backwards. Again, Yuna swung the staff, with Nidoran forcing the swing back with a tackle.

C.C. was horrified as he took his eyes off of Muk for a moment; Yuna was really trying to hurt Nidoran! Looking once more at Muk, he saw Bulbasaur and Twitch using multiple attacks in vain to subdue to blob. Figuring his friends would look after Bulbasaur, He darted over to where Nidoran was.

Nidoran open her mouth and unleashed a poison sting attack, only for Yuna to block to attack by spinning her staff swiftly, shocking Nidoran. Bringing her staff behind her head, Yuna recklessly swung at the Pokémon, smacking her across the face and sending her plummeting off the rock.

“Go, Zubat!” Nidoran heard C.C. yell out. Not an instant later, she felt something soft under her back. Looking down, she saw it was Zubat, furiously flapping his wings to remain airborne.

“Good job Zubat!” C.C. called out happily from below before holding his arms out. “Nidoran, jump down here!”

Nidoran didn’t hesitate, and jumped into her owners arms happily, enjoying the warmth of his jacket. Looking up at Yuna, C.C. couldn’t help but frown in disgust.

“Zubat, see how well she fairs against a flying Pokémon. Use Supersonic!” he called out, with Nidoran looking up as well.

Zubat opened his mouth and unleashed a high pitched cry, rings of air manipulated as they hit Yuna, who dropped her staff in order to block her ears. Eventually, it proved to be too much for her, and she feel off of the stone, yelping out as she hit the ground.

Muk suddenly whipped around; who had hurt his trainer? Eyeing Zubat, he held up his arm, before unleashing a thunderbolt, striking the poor bat Pokémon and causing his to plummet from the sky unconscious. C.C. recalled him in the nick of time, with Muk slithering up next to Yuna, who did not move.

Running over, everyone eyed Yuna; as much as they hated her…was she all right? Their question was answered when she suddenly sat upright, pure rage in her eyes.
“Muk, Hyper Beam!!” She screeched out. Opening his mouth, Muk unleashed an orange beam, which caused everyone to jump and scatter, resulting in Nidoran rolling out of C.C.’s arms. Behind them, the beam dug away at the walls, until leaving a giant crater, about twenty feet deep.

“That beam is made of pure power!” Alex exclaimed as Muk fired another one, causing everyone to flee, including the Clefairy this time. Nidoran hid behind a small rock as she watched her friends roll about, scratched up and bleeding. Sooner or later they weren’t going to be fast enough…

No, Nidoran wouldn't have any of it. Closing her eyes, she concentrated. She needed to save her friends, now, especially her owner.

C.C. jumped out of the way of yet another Hyper Beam. Eventually, the whole cavern was going to collapse from all the attacks! They had to get out of there, and fast. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, C.C. saw a bright light. Looking over, he saw none other than Nidoran being the source of it!

“Nidoran?” C.C. asked in almost a whisper as she changed shape, growing larger and larger byt the second. Eventually the light died down, revealing a brand new Pokémon! Quickly, C.C. pulled out his Pokédex:

“Nidorina, the Poison Pin Pokémon. When Nidorina are with their friends or family, they keep their barbs tucked away to prevent hurting each other. This Pokémon appears to become nervous if separated from the others.”

“Whoa.” Alex said got up next to C.C. “What happened to your –“

“She evolved.” C.C. said happily as Nidorina ran towards Muk. “Use Iron Tail!”

Her tail glowing a bright white, Nidorina jumped into the air and brought her tail down on Muk, causing him to stop his assault, much to everyone’s surprise. Turning to Nidorina, Muk grumbled; she would pay. However, Nidorina had other plans. Turning to her friends, she roared out before running down a tunnel, the other Pokémon following her as she went. Looking at each other, the trainers had no choice but to follow as well.

Yuna didn’t understand; why had they just run out like that? Her question was answered when all of the Clefairy came out smiling, waving their fingers back and forth…back and forth… back and…

“Uh-oh…” Yuna grimaced as the Clefairy made a final wave with their fingers.

*****
“Out here!” Jake yelled as he turned to an opening in the side of the tunnel, which led to the starry night sky. The trainers all rushed out and began to trip and tumble down the side of the mountain, just before a loud explosion was heard inside, Yuna’s screams following soon after. The five looked back and were shocked to see the top of Mt. Moon smoking, blown off from the explosion.

“What caused that?” Kristijan asked.

“The Clefairy probably used metronome.” Hayes answered. “It’s probably one of the most amusing moves ever.”

The trainers looked on at the mountain as the smoke finally died down and the happy cries of the Clefairy filled the air. Crouching down, C.C. began petting Nidorina on the head.

“Thanks Nidorina, you really saved us, and the Clefairy’s Moon Stone!” He exclaimed. “But…what happened to Team Rocket?”

“Look!” Alex yelled, Pointing downhill. “It’s Cerulean City!”

And sure enough, when everyone turned around, a city of lights, water and ferris wheels greeted them, bringing a smile to their faces.

“Race ya.” Alex said to Kristijan.

“You’re on.” He replied before taking of down the side of the mountain with Alex. Looking at each other, the other three smiled and ran after, ready to continue the road to becoming Pokémon Masters.

[MothraRocks]

Episode 8:
Is that a Mirage?

Jake took in a breath of fresh morning air as he and Charmander walked alongside each other out through the doors of the Pokémon center. He was up bright and early, excited for his gym battle. He wanted to make sure to get in every last bit of training in this morning before his challenge, he didn’t even eat breakfast!

“Hey sleepy head!” a voice called out. Jake looked to his left, and saw Kristijan with his Pidgeot and Scyther out, a determined look on his face. “We were wondering when you’d wake up!”

‘We?’ Jake thought, his heart sinking. ‘Does that mean everyone else is –“

“Squirtle, Water Gun!”

“Bulbasaur, leaf storm!”

Jake and Charmander sighed as the attacks of the two Pokémon sounded throughout the area. Jake really wanted to be the first one up today, just to be the most prepared. Oh well, at least Hayes wasn’t up yet.

“Kristijan, you gonna make your move?” Hayes asked before spotting Jake. “Oh, hey. Thought you’d never wake up.”

*****
Yuna walked through the streets of the colorful city, her clothes giving off a singed smell from those Clefairy! Yuna recoiled at the memory of them waving their fingers…back and forth…back and forth…back and –

“Gah!” Yuna yelled out, getting odd stares from people. She was absolutely sick of those… those… brats! They always somehow managed to ruin her plans. Every. Single. Time. She had had enough of it. But how had they beaten her? Their Pokémon were so… weak.

It was then that it clicked in her mind; safety in numbers. The only reason why those children continued to win was because of their safety in numbers! Of course! With each specific feature from each Pokémon, Yuna had lost because of it; the strong willed Squirtle, the tactical Bulbasaur, and that over powered Charmander.

“Well, if they want to play with lots of Pokémon,” Yuna started, “Then so can I.”

Her smirk suddenly turned into a frown—which Pokémon was she going to catch? And where was she going to get it? It was almost assured that she could find a Grimer or two in the sewers…but what good would that do her? She already had the evolved form of it.

“Excuse me Miss, but you wouldn’t happen to have a Poliwhirl, would you?” asked a voice. Yuna turned around to see an old man staring back at her, a calm look in his eyes. As short tempered as Yuna was, she had been raised to respect her elders.

“No sir, I’m sorry.” She replied with a rather bland facial expression. “Why?”

“Well, you see, I was willing to trade my Jynx for one, but no one seems to have one. I suppose –“

“Wait here.” Yuna said, suddenly alarmed. Turning around, she whipped out her newly obtained Super Rod and headed towards a nearby stream, intent on catching that Poliwhirl.

*****

“Twitch, use double team.” Hayes ordered. Immediately the air around the small Rattata began to blur, until two other identical Rattata’s appeared beside him, leaving Hayes smiling. “Good job.”

“Hayes, hurry up!” C.C. ordered. Looking up, the trainer and his Pokémon ran after the group. “You stop every five minutes to make him do that.”

“I’m just doing last minute preparation, that’s all.” Hayes remarked as Twitch crawled up into his shoulder.

C.C. rolled his eyes before looking down at his own starter Pokémon, who was walking quite confidently, and rightfully so. C.C. had heard that this town’s gym was a water type, easy for him.

“Finally!” Jake yelled out as the gym floated into view. “Let’s go Charmander!”

“Char!” The small orange lizard called out before taking off down the road with his trainer. The rest simply walked, they weren’t in THAT much of a rush to get their gym badge. Looking to his left, Alex saw a large cove, going along a cliff side, and slipping out underneath a magnificent golden bridge before connecting to the vast ocean.

“It’s nice, isn’t it?” Kristijan asked as Pidgeot and Scyther flew overhead towards the gym.

“Yeah it is.” Alex said. “It’s just that…” Something feels weird about it, you know?”

Before Krisitijan could answer, he saw Jake stumble backwards as the gym doors flew open, allowing someone to step out, shocking Alex.

“Chris?!” Alex yelled in disbelief. “How did you – but I – he—“

“Calm down Alex, you’re going to bit your bite your tongue off.” Chris said with a smirk.

“Did you just get the gym badge from here?” Alex asked frantically.

“The gym badge? No, just felt like taking a stroll through a random building.” Chris said sarcastically.

“Why you little…” Alex mumbled as Squirtle folded his arms and frowned.

Just then, another trainer came running out of the gym, pushing past Chris and looking out towards the bridge. Jake stared at her; she had bright orange hair, tied up in a messy ponytail to the side, with a short yellow top and daisy dukes, held up by red suspenders. She was quite pretty…her eyes were so blue, and…

“Those JERKS!” She yelled out angrily. “They leave me in charge of the gym so they can go shopping?!”

“Excuse me…” Jake said uneasily, “But we’re here to challenge you. I mean, you said you were in charge of the gym, so I presume you’re the gym leader.”

“Shut it.” The girl snapped, not taking her eyes off of the bridge. “I know why you’re here. Problem is, I can’t battle anyone right now.”

Jake looked at Alex, both confused looks on their faces. “Why? Did your Pokémon faint or what?”

“No, they’re fine. Let me re-phrase; I REFUSE to battle anyone because of a problem on the bridge, and I can’t leave the gym until my sisters get back to investigate.”

“Well…” Jake said as he blushed, “We could look at it for you.”

The girl suddenly turned to him, beaming bright as day.

“Oh you would? Thank you so much!” she said as she gave Jake a quick hug, getting a snicker from Alec and C.C. “Just walk to the end, and tell me if you see anything
suspicious, ok? Thanks!”

“So, can we…” Kristijan began to ask.

“Yes of course! Come on in!” The girl said, much happier now. “My name’s Misty by the way, so…”

Misty’s voice trailed off as she, Hayes and Kristijan walked into the gym, carrying on the conversation.

“So, why are you still here?” Alex asked rudely, turning to Chris.

“I’ll come with you guys. There might be some Pokémon for me to catch.”

“Oh no you don’t. You are NOT coming with us.” Alex said harshly, before C.C. put his hand on his shoulder, signaling for him to calm down. Sighing, Alex just whipped around and began walking towards the bridge.

*****

Jake walked ahead of everyone by a few meters; he wanted to get back to the gym as soon as possible so he could see Mist—er, get his gym badge.

“Jake, slow down.” C.C. complained. “You’re going way too fast for us to look.”

“Look for what?” Jake asked before screeching to a halt. “We’ve already made it to the end of the bridge, and what did we see? Absolutely nothing.”

“Kid’s got a point.” Chris said before throwing a Pokéball in the air, releasing a small yellow and brown Pokémon with closed eyes and a small curled tail.

“What’s that Pokémon?” Alex asked as Jake pulled out his Pokédex.

“Abra, the psi Pokémon. Abra needs to sleep for eighteen hours a day. If it doesn't, this Pokémon loses its ability to use telekinetic powers. If it is attacked, Abra escapes using Teleport while it is still sleeping. It can sense the presence of others in its sleep.”

“I figured we could just teleport back instead of walking.” Chris said quite proudly.

“No, I’m fine.” Alex said, turning away.

“Alex, just let it go, please?” Jake asked as a Pokéball dropped from his belt.

“You’re coming whether you like it or not you crybaby.” Chris said before turning to Abra. “Abra, use teleport!”

Almost immediately, the air around the four began to distort, becoming waving, shocking Jake, Alex and C.C. Chris simply smiled; he knew Abra was quite an impressive Pokémon. Soon, a tingling feeling ran through their bodies, shocking the three when they saw they had become transparent. Only then did Jake realize he had dropped his Pokéball.

“My Metapod!” he cried out as he jumped for it. But it was too late; in and instant the group vanished, leaving the Pokéball on the bridge.
*****

The group landed with a thud when they reappeared next to the gym. Jake let out a grunt as he reappeared mid jump, landing on his stomach and knocking the wind out of him. Moaning, he pulled himself up and immediately began to limp towards the bridge, Charmander following behind calmly.

“Jake?” Alex asked, “Where are you going?”

“To get Metapod” Jake murmured. “I dropped him just before we teleported, and I don’t need any creeps taking him away.”

“I’ll just get Abra to teleport us again.” Chris said before turning to Abra.

“No, no, it’s fine, really.” Jake said reassuringly. Secretly, he was pretty freaked out from his first experience, it was weird, just vanishing and reappearing.

“Well, I’ll come with you.” Alex said before running and catching up to him.

“By default, I guess I will too.” C.C. said before walking as well. Suddenly, he noticed Chris was following them.

“How come you’re not going back into the gym?” C.C. asked.

“I just poked my head in and saw Hayes in the middle of a battle. I don’t need to walk in and get hit by a Pokémon attack gone astray.” He remarked. Up ahead, Alex groaned.

*****
“Another Magikarp?!” Yuna yelled before kicking the orange fish back into the water. She had been here for about half an hour, and caught some Goldeen, a Psyduck, and a TON of Magikarp. She was on the verge of giving up, when suddenly her rod began to tug. Shocked, Yuna quickly reeled it in, pulling up a bipedal blue Pokémon, with two arms and a black and white swirl on its stomach.

“Perfect.” Yuna said as a smile crossed her face. “Muk! Use Thunderbolt!”

From behind the Poliwhirl, a big purple mass pulled itself out of the water before letting out a cry, frightening the Poliwhirl. Raising an arm, Muk’s ‘palm’ began to crackle with electricity before a blue lightning bolt shot forth from it, knocking the water Pokémon backwards, unconscious.

“Pokéball.” Yuna said effortlessly as she dropped the Pokéball on the knocked out Pokémon, it clicking shut immediately. Picking it up, Yuna smiled before whipping around and heading back into the city.

*****

Jake’s face lit up as he spotted his Pokéball ahead. Ignoring the pain in his leg, he sprinted towards it before picking it up happily. Behind him Alex and C.C. smiled.

“You shouldn’t be so careless with your Pokémon Jake.” Alex teased.

“Shut up, I just – is that an after effect of Abra’s teleport move?” Jake asked, pointing upwards, right above him.

“I don’t think… no, shouldn’t be, it’s never happened before.” Chris said, quite puzzeled.

Suddenly, a bright light flashed, blinding everyone momentarily. A split second later, a high pitched buzzing noise filed the air, causing everyone to block their ears. Then, as quickly as it had started, the sound stopped.

“What was THAT?” C.C. asked as he lowered his hands.

“I have absolutely no idea.” Chris said. “Let’s go, that was weird.”

“What the… is that some kind of Pokémon?” Jake asked, pointing towards the near end of the bridge.

Everyone turned to look what he meant, and were shocked. Floating about four feet off the ground, was a small, pink creature. It had what appeared to be two small, pointed ears on each side of its head, and a long, pink tail behind it, getting a little fatter on the tip. It looked at the group curiously, tilting its head and showing off it’s blue eyes.

“I don’t know.” C.C. whispered, careful not to move an inch. “Pokémon always say their names. See if you can get it to speak.”

“Uh…hi?” Jake said. The creature didn’t reply, but simply stared innocently at him, like a child. “I’m Jake. Are you a Pokémon?”
Jake and the others waited a few seconds before the creature let out a small, simple word slip out of it’s mouth:

“Mew.”

[MothraRocks]

The group stared at the creature wide eyed. No one dared to move, and only took mosquito sized breaths. The small creature stared back, bobbing up and down, its little tail occasionally flicking. Finally, Chris broke the silence.

“No way…” he said, full of disbelief, “That can’t be Mew.”

“Mew?” Jake asked, not taking his eyes off of what he presumed to be a Pokémon.

“Mew is supposed to be one of the, if not, the original Pokémon. It is said he created all Pokémon, and can learn any move known to man, he’s full of unbelievable power.” Chris whispered back.

Suddenly, the small pink creature flew up towards Jake, staring him right in the eye, only inches from his face. Jake held his breath and stared back nervously. For about a minute, neither blinked nor moved, until Jake decided it was too much and cried out, rubbing his stinging eye. The pink Pokémon brought his hands up to his mouth and let out a giggle.

“It’s not that funny.” Jake said, rubbing the tears away from his stinging eyes. Still, the Pokémon laughed, and began to fly around the group, calling out its name a few more times before flying down in front of Charmander, frightening it for a moment.

Giving a reassuring look to Charmander, the little orange lizard took a step forward and said something, before running past his new friend, who seemed to be playing tag with him; chasing Charmander around in circles.

“This is amazing.” Chris said as he reached into his pocket, only to find it empty. “Crud, I must have left my camera back at the Pokémon Center!”

Chris turned around and began running down the bridge, so fast no one had enough time to suggest he just use his Abra to teleport him there. Turning around, the others faced this new Pokémon again.

“So this thing created all Pokémon?” Jake asked.

“Apparently. But I feel like I’ve heard about this before…” C.C. said before a regaining his memories. “Of course! Remember the stories we were always told before nap time in preschool that would make us go to sleep?”

“Not really.” Alex said, watching Mew do a somersault in the air. “Then again, Jake and I never napped.”

“Well, the story –“

“Mew!” The little pink Pokémon cried as it flew up to Jake and tugged on his red jacket, much to his surprise.

“What?” Jake asked. “You want me to do something?”

“Mew, Mew!” Mew said happily before grabbing Jake’s red and white hat and flying down the bridge with it in his mouth.

“Hey, give that back!” Jake shouted, running after the legendary Pokémon. Alex and C.C. looked at each other, shocked. Without hesitation, they chased after the two.

Turning around the corner, Jake realized Mew was getting farther and farther away, worrying him. He had been given that hat years ago, and swore only to wear it the day his journey began. It was handmade just for him, one of a kind.

“Mew!” Jake called out. “Stop! Please!”

Much to the trainer’s surprise, Mew actually stopped and flew towards him, dropping the hat on the ground. Keeping an eye on the Pokémon, Jake bent over and picked his hat up, noticing Charmander looking at Mew with curiosity as well.

“Char, char!” Charmander said to Mew, getting a series of cries back from him.

Flying up to Jake, Mew began to push Jake, then pull, puzzling him. Eventually Mew flew over to the base of a tree and picked up a rock, tossing it at Jake. Holding his arms out, Jake effortlessly caught the stone and looked at it.

“Jake!” Alex called out. “Where’s Mew?”

“Right here.” Jake said. “He keeps acting weird… he threw this stone at me, but I don’t see anything special about it.”

Looking in Jake’s hands, C.C. examined the stone. It was gray…oval shaped…and that was about it, nothing out of the ordinary that he could see.

“Well, if it’s the creator of all Pokémon, it must be something important.” Alex remarked.

Looking back up, Jake saw Mew flying again in circles before realizing it had gotten Jake’s attention gain. Placing itself in a vertical position, Mew held its hands out, clapping them together. Not knowing what else to make of it, Jake threw the stone towards Mew, who flew towards it and caught it easily. Smiling, Mew tossed the stone back at Jake once more.

“I think it just wants to play.” Jake said, smiling.

“Play?” Alex asked in disbelief. “The creator of all Pokémon wants to PLAY?”

“Of course. Doesn’t everyone want to just relax once in a while?” C.C. asked as Jake threw the stone back at Mew, getting another happy look from him. “This is so cool!”
Catching the stone again, Mew dropped it on the ground before flying over to Jake again. Smiling, Jake began to reach out to the Pokémon, a little nervous. Finally placing his hand on Mew’s head, he brought it down along his head, and began to pet him a little faster.

“His coat is so smooth…” Jake said. “Like, thousands of tiny hairs.”

Suddenly, Mew pulled away and looked at Jake funny way before giggling like crazy, causing the group to chuckle as well; Mew was more playful and relaxed than they could have imagined! Without warning, a blue light began to illuminate from Jake, shocking everyone. In under second, he vanished!

“Jake?!” C.C. yelled, quite alarmed, taking his attention off of Mew and looking around frantically with Alex.

“Char?” Charmander said curiously, looking around. Letting out a small laugh, Mew took off into the sky, ready to play some more.

Hundreds of feet above, Jake suddenly reappeared, and nearly peed himself when he looked down.

“Oh my God!” He screamed at the top of his lungs as he began to fall. Pulling out a Pokéball, he tossed it away, only for it to go straight up past him due to how fast he was falling.

“Pidgey! Help!!” He yelled at the top of his lungs.

A click was heard, followed by the cry of Pidgey. On his back, Jake could feel Pidgey’s grip, the small bird Pokémon desperately trying to keep its master airborne. Opening his eyes, Jake saw Pidgey didn’t help at all, and the space between him and the ground was getting smaller and smaller! Jake could literally taste his heart in his mouth, and only felt worse once he felt Pidgey’s grip break loose. Shutting his eyes, he prayed for a miracle.

He got one.

Suddenly, he felt his body slam into something – not the ground, but something much more…not soft, but bouncy. Nervously, Jake opened his eyes and looked down; only to discover everything looked…pink. Confused, Jake tried to move, but found it was like laying in a bean bag jar; as much as you moved, the bag would shift and not let you get up.

Suddenly, Mew popped up in front of him, still laughing. Jake stared at Mew in disbelief; he caused all this? As much as Jake wanted to be, he couldn’t bring himself to be angry at Mew; Mew was innocent, like a small child.

“Mew, did you make this bubble?” Jake said, still trying to get comfortable. On his shoulder, he felt Pidgey land, breathing heavily from its tedious exercise of trying to lift his trainer. Next, he felt Pidgey’s Pokéball, on his head to be more specific.

Mew looked at Jake and nodded before flying up to Pidgey and began ‘talking’ to him, both Pokémon seemingly enjoying the conversation, until Jake interrupted.

“Uh, Pidgey, would you mind flying down and telling the others where I am?”

“Gey, gey!” Pidgey chirped happily before taking off and soaring downwards, leaving Jake and Mew alone. Mew didn’t stop for a moment to rest; almost immdediatly he began to fly around Jake’s head, twisting and turning in awkward positions before finally landing on the giant pink bubble he had created.

Before Jake could say anything, the Pokémon was active again! Eyeing Jake’s belt, Mew grabbed a Pokéball, resulting in it clicking open and realizing Metapod, who simply stared at Mew, making no sounds.

“Metapod, this is Mew.” Jake said nervously as he looked around; how much weight could this bubble take before popping?

Reaching out with his small hand, Mew touched Metapod gently. Then, much to Jake’s surprise, Metapod began to glow! Jake watched in awe as Metapod’s crescent shape began to shift and change until the light finally died down, revealing a completely new Pokémon.

“Butterfree…” Jake whispered as the purple bug spread its large white wings and took flight into the blue sky, enjoying its new freedom. Jake smiled at his new Pokémon, before feeling a tugging at his shoulder. He turned to see Mew staring back at him.

“Well, it’s official; you’re the most amazing Pokémon.” Jake smiled. “But do you think you could get me down from here?”

Mew let out a giggle as he plunged through pink bubble, popping it. Adrenaline rushed through Jake’s body as he began to plunge towards the Earth again, the figure of C.C. and Alex growing bigger and bigger with each second.

*****
“Is it a Pokémon?” C.C. asked as Pidgey let out more chirps and performed more actions before finally giving up. He prayed these humans would never play ‘Mime-it-out’.

“AHHHH!!!”

Alex and C.C. jumped back in shock as a giant pink blob appeared out of nowhere, with Jake falling right on it seconds afterwards. Grumbling, the trainer tried to push himself up, but again to no avail. Slowly, Mew floated down next to him before popping the bubble again with his tail, resulting in Jake landing face-first on the ground.

“He’s so adorable!” C.C. cried out as Mew performed more acrobatics. Suddenly, the small pink Pokémon’s head looked up, alarmed. Turning the other way, Mew suddenly took off into the woods, frightened by something, leaving the others puzzled. Turning around, they soon saw why.

“I certainly hope,” Yuna said in a dark tone as she walked around a corner, “That this is a good time for a battle.”

[MothraRocks]

“Yuna!” The three cried out in unison as Butterfree lowered itself next to Jake.

“Oh goody, you know how to speak.” Yuna said smugly. “Let’s see if you know how to beg for mercy while we’re at it.”

Grabbing a Pokéball from her black jacket, Yuna threw the sphere through the air before clicking open, realesing a bright light that soon took on the form of Muk.

“Muukkkk…” The blob grumbled as it pulled itself upwards and stared at the trio.

“Muk, use poison gas!” Yuna ordered, smiling. Opening his mouth, Muk let out a low groan as dark purple gas began to pour out, alarming everyone else.

“Butterfree! Pidgey! Use gust!” Jake ordered. Flying up in front of the group, the two Pokémon began to furiously flap their wings, blowing the gas backwards, saving the three humans.

Yuna covered her face with her arm as the poisonous fog blew by her. Looking back up, she smiled, shocking the amateur trainers. Why in the world would she smile after a foiled attempt?

“Wow, you got a new bug.” Yuna said sarcastically. “I have a new Pokémon too, let me show you! Jynx, annihilate these pests!”

From her belt, a bright light shot forth, eventually taking on a humanoid shape. Once the light died down, what appeared to be a woman took its place. Upon further inspection, the group found out that it was not a woman; at least not a human one. Pulling out his Pokédex, C.C. inspected the creature:

“Jynx, the humanshape Pokémon. JYNX walks rhythmically, swaying and shaking its hips as if it were dancing. Its motions are so bouncingly alluring, people seeing it are compelled to shake their hips without giving any thought to what they are doing.”

“Interesting, isn’t it?” Yuna asked, showing confidence. “Enough chit chat. Jynx, use powder snow!”

Holding her hands out, Jynx let loose dozens of small ice shards, pellets of snow and a blast of cold air, striking the group and causing them to yell out in pain; it was so cold, it actually hurt! The cries of Butterfree and Pidgey were heard as they were struck by the ice attack, knocking them to the ground, unconscious.

“Return!” Jake yelled out as he held out their Pokéballs just as the attack died down.

“It took a while, but catching that Poliwhirl was worth it.” Yuna said. “Jynx, use psybeam!”

“Ynx!” The woman-like Pokémon cried out as a jagged ray shot forth from its forehead, flashing multiple colors. Jake cried out as the beam struck him full force, slamming him against a tree. Alarmed, Charmander rushed over to his owner, finding him barely conscious.

“Hey!” Alex yelled angered. “You can’t attack the trainers! You could’ve killed him!”

“I know, it’s a shame I didn’t.” Yuna said, still smiling.

“Go! Squirtle, Spearow!” Alex called out as he tossed his Pokéballs into the air, releasing his two Pokémon. “Squirtle, water gun! Spearow, wing attack!”

Taking a deep breath, Squirtle’s cheeks inflated for a moment before he opened his mouth and fired a jet of pressurized water at Jynx, hitting her right in the face. A second after, Spearow sped towards Jynx, his wings out stretched and glowing. Speeding up, he slammed his left wing against Jynx’s face, sending a shower of sparks, and causing her to momentarily cover her face. Turning around, Spearow landed next to Squirtle, smiling.

Until Jynx lowered her arms.

It was obvious Jynx hadn’t been injured at all during the attack. In fact, Jynx seemed to only have become angrier! Fury in her eyes, Jynx didn’t need to be told to attack; raising her arms, she unleashed another blast of snow and cold wind, knocking Spearow down and out for the count, and leaving the small turtle grasping to Alex’s pant leg as to not be blown away by the gale.

“Nidorina, help us out!” C.C. yelled out as he threw a Pokéball on the ground, clicking open to unleash a large blue Pokémon. Behind him, he heard Jake mumble something, like a warning.

“Use poison sting!” C.C. ordered, ignoring Jake. Opening her mouth, Nidorina fired dozens upon dozens of white needles, headed straight towards Jynx.

“Reflect.” Yuna said calmly as Jynx raised her hands and moved them in a square shape in the air. Just before the pin needles reached her, what appeared to be a pink tinted window appeared before her. Much to C.C. and Alex’s shock, every single one of the needles bounced off of the barrier, flying right back towards them.

Shocked, both jumped out of the way without saying a word. Unfortunately, Charmander, who had been tending to his dazed trainer, had not noticed much of anything.

“Charmander, look out!” Alex yelled. But it was too late; just as Charmander began to turn, about six needles wedged themselves into his side, petrifying the small creature, afraid to move.

“This is pathetic!” Yuna yelled at the top of her lungs, laughing her head off. “I could finish you three off right now, and never have to deal with you again!”

Alex and C.C. gritted their teeth as Yuna continued to laugh. Out of the corner of his eye, C.C. saw Bulbasaur and Squirtle hiding behind a tree, pulling needles out of Charmander’s backside and nervously looking a Jynx occasionally. Looking over at his master, Bulbasaur watched as he mouthed the word ‘Yuna’. Understanding, he nodded before he stepped out from behind the tree, shaking.

Finally being able to concentrate, Yuna saw Bulbasaur staring at her, raising two vines that shot towards her and Jynx. Laughing, Yuna ordered another Reflect attack, the pink window forming in seconds. However, she was in for quite a shock when Bulbasaur’s vines went around the barrier and went after her.

Yuna yelled out in pain as the two vines slapped her across the face, leaving the areas feeling like someone had taken a hot frying pan and placed it on her face. Bulbasaur and C.C. both cheered as his vines retracted, not noticing Yuna developing an odd little twitch.

“How…DARE YOU!” Yuna yelled, frightening Bulbasaur. “I swear, today will be your last day on Earth alive – scratch that, I’ll make sure your corpse is so dismembered they won’t know what to bury! Jynx, Muk, hyper beam!”

Pulling himself forward, Muk opened his mouth, a small orange ball of energy forming. Next to him, Jynx held her hands close together, palms facing each other, a similar ball of energy forming in between them, charging and getting bigger by every second.

“What happen – oh my God, what did you guys do to her?!” Jake called out from behind just as he spotted the enraged Yuna and her Pokémon charging their attacks.
“See ya.” Yuna mumbled angrily as the two beams fired from her Pokémon, headed straight for the group. Shutting their eyes, each grabbed their Pokémon in a hug and waited for the end.

It never arrived.

Opening his eye just the tiniest bit, Alex saw the hyper beams not an inch from his face. He was about to scream, until he noticed their outline was a bright blue color, not to mention they weren’t moving at all.

“Guys…what’s this?” he asked. Behind, he heard Jake and C.C. gasp at the sight.

“What?!” Yuna yelled, alarmed. “What’s going on? Which one of you brats are doing this?!”

The only answer Yuna got was a light giggle that seemed to echo throughout the air. Almost immediately after, everything went silent, even the breeze stop glowing.

“What…” Yuna whispered as a small whizzing noise was heard. Suddenly, the two orange masses that her Pokémon had composed whipped around and flew towards her, scaring the living day lights out of Yuna.

“Reflect! Reflect!” Yuina cried out frantically as Jynx quickly made a barrier, obviously panicked. Luckily for her and Yuna, the barrier worked, and the beam dispersed, leaving them unharmed. The same couldn’t be said for Muk; the Pokémon took the beam full force, and was knocked not only into the water, but also out.

“Muk!” Yuna cried out as another giggle was heard. She was seriously confused now.

Suddenly, a pink blur raced in front of her, creating a breeze that whipped her hair to the side, shocking her. Again, the blur did this, even closer to her face. Finally, the blur raced right at her, causing her to throw herself to the ground to avoid the object. Looking up, Yuna’s heart nearly stopped; she could not believe what was floating in front of the brats.

“Mew!” Jake called out. “You saved us!”

“Mew!” the little pink Pokémon said in a kind tone as it flew down and picked up Alex’s backpack before thoughtfully handing it to him.

“Mew?!” Yuna said in disbelief. “You little imps have Mew helping you?!”

“Well, actually –“ C.C. started, but was cut off by Yuna.

“Jynx, Shadow Ball!” Yuna ordered. In a second, Jynx fired a dark, purple sphere from her palms, with what seemed to be black fog trailing behind it, headed straight for Mew. Letting out a laugh, Mew flew towards the sphere and actually danced around it before moving in on Jynx.

Suddenly, Mew’s eyes had a hint of mischievous, just as the outline of Jynx began to glow blue. Much to Yuna’s shock, Jynx was swiftly lifted off the ground, panicking for its new master to get it back on the ground. Its wish was granted when it was slammed face first into the ground. Jynx cried out as it was raised once again, and once again slammed into the hard Earth.

Causing Jynx to float up one last time in front of him, Mew willed for her to be thrown into the cliff side, resulting in numerous rocks falling on top of her, finally knocking the Pokémon out. Turning to Yuna, Mew stared at her. She didn’t want to play, and Mew decided he didn’t want to play with her either. In the middle of his chest, a crackling ball of electricity formed, scaring Yuna as it fired, creating a big cloud of smoke before she was sent flying into the forest, the sound of cracking twigs and other things following.

Mew let out a laugh before turning around and seeing his new friends get up, cuddling up to each of them happy to see them safe.

“Thanks Mew.” Alex said as the Pokémon pushed up against him affectionately. “You really saved us back there.”

“We owe you big time.” C.C. said smiling as Mew nuzzled up to him.

“Thank You.” Jake said softly as Mew floated over to him and rested on his head, getting a laugh from everyone.

Picking up his backpack, Jake, C.C., Alex and their Pokémon, plus Mew walked back towards the bridge, all in silence, smiling. They were so happy they had gotten to meet Mew, he was so nice! He had only just made friends with them, and already was loyal and protective of them. Jake felt Mew lift off his head as the got closer to the bridge, and watched him fly over to the nearest wooden post.

The friends smiled at Mew as they crossed onto the bridge, ready to finally get their gym badge, but suddenly noticed Mew wasn’t following. Turning around, Jake looked at him oddly.

“Mew? Aren’t you coming?” Jake asked.

Mew silently jumped off the wooden post before flying over to Jake, rubbing his head against his face before pulling back and looking Jake straight in the eye. Jake felt a sinking feeling as Mew did a little swirl before backing away from the group, not taking his eyes off of the sad trainers.

“Mew!” the tiny Pokémon called out before turning around and flying upwards, heading towards a chain of mountains in the distance at an incredible speed. The group watched until Mew became nothing more than a dot, until finally vanishing.

“Mew…” C.C. whispered, heavy hearted.

“I’m gonna miss him.” Alex whispered. “Why’d he have to say Goodbye?”

Turning around, Jake rubbed his eyes, wiping away some tears.

“He’s not gone.” He said, a small smile on his lips. “Mew didn’t say ‘Goodbye’. He just said… see you later. Mew wouldn’t leave for good without a proper goodbye, trust me.”

“So…you think we’ll see him again?” Alex asked, looking towards the mountains.

“No.” Jake answered. “I’m positive. Now, let’s go get that Gym Badge!”

And with that, Jake pushed past his friends along with Charmander, racing down the bridge, determined to win his next gym battle from Misty.

[MothraRocks]

Episode 9:
This battle should go Swimmingly!

The three friends sprinted across the end of the golden bridge before making a left and headed towards the blue painted building with the word “GYM” plastered on in big white letters. As they got closer, the friends began to push each other, trying to get ahead of one another.

“Me first!” Alex yelled as he elbowed Jake in the stomach, stunning him momentarily.

“I’m older!” C.C. yelled as he pushed passed the dazed Jake.

“Liar!”

“Nuh-uh!”

Jake sighed as he regained balance; his friends were so immature sometimes, always trying to get ahead of one another. Once in school, Alex and C.C. had actually wanted to get to the front of the lunch line first, they “borrowed” the training Pokémon the school owned, causing major damage.

Just as the two approached the door however, a figure walked out, reveling itself to be Hayes.

“Hayes?” C.C. asked, “Did you already get your gym badge?”

Pulling out his trainer card, Hayes held in front of C.C. confidently, a new rain-drop shaped badge gleaming from the sunlight. Hayes smiled as C.C.’s jaw hit the ground.

“N-no way!” C.C. exclaimed, “I am NOT falling behind you again! Come on Bulbasaur!”

C.C. and his small green Pokémon both rushed past Hayes, causing the doors to slide open, only for another person to walk out, revealing self to be Misty! Her blue eyes quickly glanced around the group of boys before smiling. Further back, Jake blushed.

“Well, what’s going on? Did you find anything?” Misty asked.

“You won’t believe it, we actually found Mew!” Alex exclaimed happily. Misty rolled her eyes and let out a sigh, irritating Alex. “I mean it, we did!”

“We did…” Jake managed to say in a small voice. Why was he so quite all of a sudden?

“I’m not in the mood for these jokes you guys!” Misty yelled. “If you really saw Mew, prove it.”

“Honestly you guys, about six or seven people see Mew per decade.” Hayes said as he slipped his card away. “I don’t think you really saw him.”

“No, look, our Pokédex’s!” C.C. yelled as he whipped his out his Pokédex and began scrolling through the pages and history. Slowly, Alex and Jake watched his determined face form into a frown. Taking a breath, C.C. slowly looked up.

“We forgot to record him!” C.C. yelled. Jake and Alex face palmed themselves as they groaned, Misty and Hayes rolling their eyes. Shaking his head, C.C. refocused on his goals.

“Alright Misty, we challenge you to a gym battle.” C.C. said, in a completely new and confident tone as Bulbasaur looked up, his vines extending and snapping in the air. “Do you accept?”

“It’s not like I have any choice. The gym rules clearly – wait, WE?” Misty asked. “As in, all of you one after another? No, no, no, that’s not how it works. Who told you that?”

“Well, when we faced Brock, he said if we dived up our Pokémon equally then we could –“ Alex started.

“Brock? Don’t listen to him, he’s such a pushover. Other gym leaders aren’t going to bend to fit your needs like him. So get used to it starting now.” Misty said firmly.

“Well then which one of us is battling?” C.C. asked the group as he turned to the group.

“I’ll make this decision.” Misty said as she took a step forward. “How about…”

Suddenly, something down by Alex’s foot caught her attention. Bending over to get a better look, Misty’s eyes went wide as she recognized the bright blue Pokémon as a Squirtle.

“Oh my Gosh, it’s so cute!” Misty exclaimed as she picked up the Pokémon and squeezed it tight, frightening the turtle into blast her in the face with a quick water gun. Misty growled as she plunked Squirtle down and moved onto C.C.’s Bulbasaur. Smiling, she squatted, and began to pet the small green Pokémon. Happily, Bulbasaur extended one of his vines and wrapped it around her arm, grossing her out. Backing away, Misty faced the remaining trainer.

“What about you?” Misty asked Jake. “Do you want to battle?”

“I-uh, yes. Please.” Jake squeaked out. Realizing what was wrong, Alex let out a little laugh.

“You have a Charmander?” she asked, spotting the little orange lizard before cracking a smile. “Perfect.”

*****
Jake stood on his pedestal, staring across at Misty on the other end of the arena, who was also standing on a pedestal, the giant brown arena in front of her.

“What if we make this a bit more interesting?” Misty asked as an idea popped into her head. “If you win, I give you all the badge –“

“Wasn’t it going to be that way anyway?” Alex piped up.

“Hush! But if I win…” Misty continued, “All three of you have to stick around in Cerulean for another month before challenging me again, and you have to attend to duties
around the gym.”

“No way! Jake would never –“ C.C. started, but was cut off.

“Sure!” Jake said, not wanting to displease Misty.

“Jake!” Alex called out, annoyed. “You better not lose!”

“Don’t worry, I’ve been training.” Jake said confidently as Misty turned around to face behind her.

“Can you activate the arena please?” She called out. The door at the end of the gym clicked open, shocking the three, but no one more than Jake. From out of the door walked a boy, Jake’s age, dressed almost exactly like Jake; he wore the same style jacket, hat, and sneakers, not to mention hair cut! The only difference between them was that most of Jake’s clothing was Red, while his was Blue.

“Hey Jake!” Ben called out. “I thought you’d never get here!”

“You mean – you already beat this gym?!” Jake asked in disbelief.

“Yup. Wasn’t so hard for me considering – where is he? Bolt!” Ben called out as a Pikachu came running around the corner, super energetic.

“And he’s so kind! He even offered to clean the pool!” Misty said happily, infuriating Jake.

“C’mon Ben, change to arena, or…wait what?” Jake said confused as Ben walked over to the wall and hit a button, causing the ground in front of Jake to quiver and shake before splitting right down the middle, revealing a giant pool of light blue water. Looking next to him, Jake saw Charmander shiver and gulp before taking a step back. Was he going to get out of this one?

“Don’t fret, there still little stepping stones for your Charmander.” Misty said while signaling with her hand. Looking down, Jake saw that on his side of the pool, there were multiple stones poking up, all quite close together. Grabbing a Pokéball, Misty held it out, allowing it to click open and unleash a bright light, unveiling itself to be a brow star.

“Staryu, the star shape Pokémon. Staryu apparently communicates with the stars in the night sky by flashing the red core at the center of its body. If parts of its body are torn, this Pokémon simply regenerates the missing pieces and limbs” Jake’s Pokédex said.

“Go, Butterfree!” Jake called out as he tossed a Pokéball into the air, clicking open and releasing a ginat purple butterfly Pokémon.

“Caterpie evolved?” Ben asked as he sat next to Alex. “Kinda surprising.”

Ignoring the comment, Jake made the first move; “Butterfree, use gust!”

Flapping it’s wings, Butterfree soon created a strong gale that began to create a current, pushing Staryu backwards into the wall.

“Staryu, use dive!” Misty called out. A second later, Staryu disappeared beneath the water, Jake was unable to make out its shape anywhere.

“How deep does this pool go?” Jake asked, looking around with Butterfree.

“I’d say roughly…fifty feet? Sixty?” Misty said smiling before a determined look crossed her face. “Now Staryu!”

Butterfree had not time to react as the surface of the water exploded, Staryu bursting out and striking Butterfree midair, causing him to crash onto a stone, he wings crinkled.

“Good, now use water gun!” Misty ordered. Pointing its top limb towards Butterfree, a thin, concentrated jet of water shot towards the helpless bug at an amazing rate.

“Butterfree! Use confusion on the water gun!” Jake ordered. Raising his head, Butterfree’s eyes lit up dimly before an un-seeable force caused the water gun to disassemble and desist before striking Staryu and sending it flying against a wall, before sliding down into the water.

“Clever, using an attack not only to get rid of mine, but also attack my Pokémon.” Misty complimented Jake as he blushed. “Unfortunately for you, I have my own little
secret. Staryu, use Hidden Power!”

Jumping out of the water, Staryu let out a cry before glowing a strange green color. Then, much to Jake’s surprise, multiple balls of green energy shot from Staryu, striking Butterfree and knocking it out almost immediately.

“But…what kind of move was that?” Jake asked as he recalled Butterfree into its Pokéball.

“Hidden Power’s type varies with each Pokémon depending on its nature. Would you believe that Staryu’s is fire?” Misty laughed before regaing focus. “One down, two to go.”

[MothraRocks]

Jake’s stomach began to twist and turn as he watched Staryu disappear in the form of a red light as it was recalled back into its Pokéball. Misty was stronger than he had expected; who would have thought she would have a fire type move? Grabbing another Pokéball, Jake readied himself.

“Go, Pidgey!” Jake yelled out as he threw a Pokéball, releasing a small brown bird.

“Gey!” The Pokémon called out as it lowered itself onto a rock, puffing its chest ¬¬.

“Starmie! C’mon out!” Misty called out as she threw another Pokéball, clicking open and releasing what appeared to be a purple star with multiple points, not unlike Staryu.

“Starmie, the mysterious Pokémon and evolved form of Staryu. Starmie swims through water by spinning its star-shaped body as if it were a propeller on a ship. The core at the center of this Pokémon’s body glows in seven colors. Because of this, it has been called “Gem of the Sea”.”

Slipping away his Pokédex, Alex stared at Starmie; if Jake couldn’t defeat the Pokémon’s basic form with a Pokémon that could fly and use psychic abilities, how was he going to defeat the evolved form with a simple bird Pokémon?

“Starmie, use water gun!” Misty ordered. From three of its tips, strong jets of water shot forth, headed straight towards Pidgey.

“Pidgey, use gust!” Jake ordered. Taking to the air, the small bird began to quickly flap its wings, brewing up a gale. The wind became so strong, that the water gun could not maintain its structure and simply turned into harmless water droplets, blown away by the breeze.

“Swift!” Mist yelled, not even fazed by the counter.

Jumping out of the water, Starmie’s gem began to flash before unleashing what appeared to be dozens of glowing yellow stars, headed straight towards Pidgey.

“Gey!” Pidgey cried out in a panic as stars whirled by it, trying to dodge them all. Eventually, a star struck Pidgey, sending him flying into Jake’s arms, moaning.

“Ready to give up?” Misty asked, smirking.

“I…” Jake started, only for Pidgey to jump back up in his arms and cry out, before taking to the air again. Jake smiled at his Pokémon’s enthusiasm. “Nope! Pidgey, Aerial Ace!”

Pidgey flapped its wings and rocketed towards the ceiling before making a 180 degree turn and facing Starmie. Tucking its wings down by its side, Pidgey began to fall towards its foe, mimicking a torpedo, its beak beginning to flash a white light.

WHAM!

Starmie let out an odd noise as it struck the wall before falling back underwater. Pidgey cooed as it flew around in a circle a few times, happy with its victory. However, something left Jake uneasy… why was Misty so calm? In fact, why was she smiling?

His question was answered when the surface of the water erupted, revealing Starmie, who was spinning at an ungodly rate, midair. Jake’s mouth dropped open when Starmie flew through the air and slammed into Pidgey, knocking it back onto a rock, slumped over. But that wasn’t what really what concerned Jake. What concerned him is that Starmie actually managed to fly and hit Pidgey.

It managed to fly.

“But it – I – Pidgey has wings –“ Jake stuttered. He just couldn’t get the words out.

“What, never seen a Starmie fly?” Misty teased. “You shouldn’t be so quick to judge, there’s a few water Pokémon that can replicate flight. In fact, in a southern region there’s a water-flying type Pokémon. What was its name?”

“Pidgey!” Jake yelled, ignoring Misty, “Use quick attack!”

Struggling, Pidgey managed to push itself up and take to the air once more, bruised. Crying out, Pidgey dived towards Starmie at incredible speeds, a trail of light behind it. However, it was in for more than a surprise when Starmie actually jumped out of the water and began to head straight for him! Pidgey let out a cry as he managed to narrowly avoid Starmie, and nearly sighed in relief.

Nearly.

Pidgey felt the wind get knocked out of him as he slammed against the side of the pool wall before sliding slowly down into the water. A second later, Pidgey popped its head out from under as Starmie landed a few meters away. Behind, Misty giggled.

“What’s so funny?” Jake demanded, tense from the battle.

“Nothing, Pidgey’s just cute.” Misty said before winking at Jake. “Just like its owner.”

Alex, C.C. and Ben all doubled over, laughing harder than ever before. Alex began wiping his tears away, she had delivered that line so perfectly. Next to him, Ben began to choke from laughing so much, while C.C. turned a bright red.

Jake felt his cheeks go warm, then really hot. He knew he was blushing, and was quite embarrassed by it. Because of this, he felt himself blush even more! Looking away from Misty, Jake threw daggers at Alex with his glare. It wasn’t funny!

“Starmie, water gun!” Misty suddenly ordered, snapping everyone back to attention. Pidgey cried out as the three jets of water struck him, and pushed him up against the wall, leaving him struggling for air and freedom of movement.

“Pidgey!” Jake cried out as the water gun died down, leaving Pidgey free to go. “Fly around in circles!”

Pidgey tilted his head before taking to the air once more and flying around the pool in a circle, Starmie in the middle. Misty looked at Pidgey in curiosity; what was he up too?

“Starmie, rapid spin!” Misty cried out. Jumping into the air, Starmie began to spin faster and faster until gaining momentum, finally able to take flight. Going up high, it began to chase the small bird, leaving Pidgey crying out in panic.

“Pidgey, focus!” Jake ordered, catching the bird’s attention. “Just keep flying in circles!”

Pidgey nodded before resuming its flight path, Starmie not to far behind it.

“Are you trying to wear us out? Cause Starmie has great stamina, it can last for hours!” Misty called out.

“Pidgey, pull out now!” Jake called, smiling. Pidgey flapped its wings and pulled out of the circle a moment after Jake had told it too. It was quite dizzy.

“Starmie, get him!” Misty yelled. She watched as Starmie continued to go in the same path, over and over again. “Starmie? What happened?”

“Well, while you were busy telling me about how great Starmie was, you failed to notice the combine wind made by both Pidgey and Starmie created a…vortex I think? Point is, now it’s created its own air current, and is trapped in it.” Jake smiled as Pidgey flew in front of him. “Ready? Use whirlwind Pidgey!”

Misty watched in horror as Pidgey flapped it’s wings, making an unnaturally strong wind, striking Starmie. Starmie circled once more before flying of course into the bleachers, causing the three teens to scatter. Once the dust cleared, it was obvious Starmie wasn’t getting back up.

“Return!” Misty called out as Starmie disappeared in a flash of red light. “Good tactics. Ready for the next one? He might be a bit of a challenge.”

“Bring it!” Jake yelled happily as Charmander jumped onto a rock, determined. “Charmander and I can handle –“

Jake’s voice was lost as a large, blue serpent like Pokémon rose out of the water, roaring. Jake and Charmander screamed in terror as it moved in closer to them, quite angry. Crawling up the side of the pool, Charmander ran and hid behind Jake.

“I’m not battling a Gyarados!” Jake yelled out, frightened. “That’s only if you’re in the mood for dying!”

“You refuse to battle it?” Misty asked before snapping her finger, resulting in the Gyarados submerging again. “That means I win.”

“What? No! No, I mean I will! I –“ Jake yelled out as the door slammed behind Misty. He sighed and slumped to his knees as his friends walked over to him.

He had lost.

[MothraRocks]

Hayes walked along the streets with his hands in his pockets, Twitch at his side, looking around. He hadn’t bothered to stay for Jake’s match; he needed to buy supplies before heading out towards Vermillion. Not to mention Pokéballs. He had his eye on quite a few Pokémon he wanted.

“Twitch, there’s a fruit stall up ahead.” Hayes said looking at a map. “Maybe we should get – Twitch?”

Hayes looked around; Twitch had suddenly vanished! Pushing past the other people coming in his direction, Hayes scanned the area carefully; where could he have gotten to so quickly? Then, in the corner of his eye, Hayes noticed a purple blur race around a corner into an alleyway, resulting in Hayes picking up his pace. Coming around the corner, he noticed Twitch crawling up a large brick wall.

“Twitch!” Hayes yelled out. “Come down here right now! I’m talking to you!”

Twitch ignored his owner and continued to scale the wall, determined in his prize. Looking up, Hayes saw what Twitch was after; a pie in a windowsill. It was fresh and steaming, its scent wafting throught air. Hayes suddenly gasped as Twitch climbed on top of a small propane container that was strapped to the wall. Hayes’ knees began to buckle as one of the screws became loose.

“No TIE… no TIE… please no TIE…” Hayes whispered as he grabbed his other two Pokéballs.

*****
“You missed a spot!” Misty called out to the three boys as they scrubbed the side of the pool. “And after that, give Staryu a bath!”

“Does a Pokémon that lives in water really need a bath?” Alex grumbled.

“Thanks for doing this Jake, it really means a lot that you chickened out.” C.C. said sarcastically.

“It was a freakin’ Gyarados!” Jake complained as he scrubbed the pool wall even harder. “Ben, how’d you manage to beat Gyarados?”

“Easy,” he stated as Bolt ran up next to him. “Gyarados is a water and flying type, making him four times as weak to electric types like Bolt.”

“He was so good I one of the Pokémon here even took a liking to him!” Misty chimed in.

Ben pulled out a Pokéball which clicked open, revealing a small orange crab-like Pokémon.

“Is that a Krabby?” Alex asked.

“Yup.” Ben said proudly. “With Krabby and Bolt at my side, I’m pretty much invincible.”

Jake murmured something under his breath. Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite enough so Ben ended up hearing it, offending him at the same time.

“I’m sorry, how many badges do you have again?” Ben snapped back at Jake.

“Doesn’t matter, I’m still a better trainer.” Jake said as he stood up, facing Ben. Everyone in the room stared at the two trainers, the heat from their silent battle cooking the room.

Suddenly, a loud ‘Boom’ was heard, echoing through the gym’s large room, the sound waves bouncing off of its walls. A shaking quickly followed, causing everything to wobble back and forth.

“Is it an earthquake?!” Alex yelled out over the noise. Out of the pool, multiple Pokémon emerged, panicking and pushing past the trainers. The shaking continued for a few more seconds before dying down, leaving the trainers stunned.

“I have to go.” Misty said in a concerned tone as she rushed out the door.

The others looked at each other before rushing out behind her, quite worried what was going on. Jake and Ben would have to hold off on their battle for now, more important matters required tending too.

*****
“Skydive, use Gust!” Hayes yelled to his Spearow. “Bonehead, use Sand Attack!”

The two Pokémon jumped in front of their trainer before executing their attacks. Hayes watched as a strong gale and the cloud of sand struck the blazing fire, having no effect on it. Frightened, he looked up at the high windowsill, where Twitch was pushed up against. He had knocked over a gas tank, resulting in an explosion, catching other gas tanks in the fiery inferno as well. It was spreading all down the block, causing mass panic.

“Skydive, can you get Twitch?” Hayes pleaded. The bird Pokémon nodded before flying off towards his terrified friend, only to be halted as a wave of fire shot up in front of him. Hayes began to bite his nail; how was Twitch gonna get out of this one?

“Hey!” yelled a familiar voice. Hayes turned to see Misty running towards him, grabbing a Pokéball. “Starmie, clean up this kid’s mess!”

The Pokéball clicked open and released the Purple sea star Pokémon, who let out its cry before facing the raging inferno and unleashing its water gun, creating a thick cloud of steam.

“What happened?!” Misty yelled at Hayes, quite alarmed.

“Twitch just – there was a gas tank – and it sorta exploded –“

“SORTA?!” Misty yelled. “You nearly blew up the city!”

Just then the fire roared, scaring Starmie into momentarily stopping its attack. It turned to Misty and made it quite clear its attack wasn’t enough to bring down the fire. Misty frowned until she witnessed four other trainers running in her direction.

“Use water gun!” Alex ordered.

“Squirtle, Squirtle!” The small blue Pokémon yelled before jumping in the air and unleashing a torrent of blue water from its mouth.

“Krabby, follow up with rain dance!” Ben yelled. The small crab Pokémon clicked it’s pincers before emanating a blue glow. In an instant, rain clouds filled the sky, light raindrops hitting the pavement, increasing the power of Squirtle’s water attack.

“Yes!” Misty cried out as the flames began to die from the gust and sand attacks combing with the water attacks. “This is great! Starmie –“

A low creaking noise suddenly cut Misty off from behind. She turned around, shocked to see part of an apartment block crumbling, falling towards her. She tried to move, but couldn’t; she was petrified! Just as the bricks were about to hit her, something else hit her from the side, knocking her out of the way not a second too soon.

Moaning, Misty sat up, only to see Jake slowly stand up rubbing his head and brushing some dust off of his red jacket. Misty simply stared at him; she nearly died!

“You…saved me?” Misty asked.

“Well I wasn’t gonna watch you get mashed to a pulp.” Jake said, smiling as he offered her a hand to help her up. Misty took it and slowly stood up, smiling. They stared at each other for a moment before Jake turned away, a determined look on his face.

“Charmander!” Jake yelled, turning his hat around, “Concentrate and use fire spin!”

“Are you crazy?!” Misty cried out, “We barely have this fire under control! There is no way in –“

“Just watch.” Jake said, smiling confidently.

Misty turned around and watched the raging fire burn brighter than ever. Suddenly, the wall of flames contorted before gathering together in the middle on its own accord. Misty watched, amazed as the flames began to spin faster and faster, creating the illusion of a tornado, one that eventually lifted into the air, revealing Charmander beneath, the flames forming in his mouth.

“Awesome!” Jake called out. “Now, shoot it at the rain clouds!”

“Charmander!” The small orange lizard yelled out as the flames shot into the sky like a torpedo, reduced to steam on contact with the rain clouds. Exhausted, Charmander waddled over to its trainer before leaning on his leg, his eyes heavy.

“Thank You!” Misty yelled, hugging Jake. “Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

“No problem.” Jake said. “We were all concerned about the loud noise so we decided to follow.”

“That reminds me!” Misty said before reaching into her pocket as Alex and C.C. walked over. Holding out her hand, she revealed three blue raindrop shaped badges.

“You mean…” Jake asked.

“Yup. You all earned them.” Misty said proudly as the three trainers took them.

“Awesome!” C.C. yelled.

“We got our second badge!” Alex exclaimed.

“You’ll probably want to visit Vermillion City next.” Misty said kindly to the trio before whipping around and facing Hayes, who had Twitch in his arms. “And you may want to start heading there now before I tear your head off.”

*****
“Goodbye!” Misty said to the three trainers. “Go down this way, and once you get to the pine tree, go off the trail to the left. It should only take you about a day to reach
Vermillion then!”

“Thanks, we’ll keep that in mind.” C.C. said kindly as he and Bulbasaur began to head down the path, the morning sun turning the sky a bright orange and pink.

“And thanks for teaching Squirtle that new move Water Pulse.” Alex said happily before quickly turning around and following C.C. with his own starter Pokémon.

“Um…thanks for the gym badges Misty.” Jake said, slightly nervous.

“Well, thanks for saving me.” She said. Before Jake could say anything, she quickly leaned in and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, shocking him. “Oh, and for being so cute!”

Misty giggled before turning away, smiling and waving goodbye to the group. Once she headed inside the gym doors, the sound of Alex and C.C.’s laughs could be heard loud and clear, causing Jake to blush.

“Charmander,” Jake said to the small orange lizard by his side, “Let’s practice that Fire Spin attack, shall we?”

*****

Yuna placed the Moon Stone in the center of the circle she had drawn, outlined with various twigs and berries she had gather in the forest. Stepping away, she pulled out two Pokéballs, which clicked open, releasing two streams of white light, both taking on the forms of her two Pokémon. Looking at Jynx, she nodded. Understanding what her owner meant, Jynx faced the Moon Stone and held out her hands, causing the stone levitate in the air. Next, Muk fired its Thunderbolt attack upon the stone, which was seemingly absorbed.

“Demon of impure hearts and betrayal,” Yuna stated as she got on one knee, “I request your services. Come forth, show this world true fear!”

The Moon Stone suddenly began to shake violently and began to glow a bright purple as the twigs and forest debris began to shiver and quake all around it. A second later, Jynx and Muk were blown backwards, unconscious from a shock wave created by the stone.

“Why didn’t it work?” Yuna questioned in disbelief. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small, leather covered book. It was quite old, with dust and dirt all over, and torn around the edges. Opening the book, Yuna flipped through the pages furiously; she had done everything!

“Wait, what’s this?” Yuna said, staring at a page she had nearly skipped. The title read out ‘The Elements of Discord’.

“Long ago, this demon conquered the skies, and set cities ablaze with its amazing powers, instilling fear into all the inhabited the Earth. It was not until six pure hearted trainers banded together to banish it, using each a characteristic of Harmony. However, the demon was too strong and could not be killed, but simply locked away. In order to ensure its imprisonment, its dark soul was split into six different pieces; Lying, Crying, Greed, Rudeness, Disloyalty and finally Hate, forming ‘The Elements of Discord. Should The Elements of Discord be reunited, all Hell shall break loose, and the world shall be at an end.”

Yuna stared at the paragraph once more before shutting the book and recalling her two Pokémon, clipping their Pokéballs away into her pocket. Yuna turned and stared at the rising sun before a small smile appeared on her lips.

Looks like there was work to be done.

[MothraRocks]

Episode 10:
Poke-Poachers!

“I’m… not gonna make it…go on without me!” Jake managed to stammer out as he lay against the hard, rocky ground.

“Jake, we’re hungry too. Deal with it.” C.C. said, not taking his eyes off the map. They had passed the pine tree…now where too?

“Food…” Jake mumbled, over dramatizing his hunger.

“I’ll go see if I can find any berries.” Alex sighed before turning around and heading off into the woods.

“Kay, just don’t get lost.” C.C. said as he traced his finger over the map, trying to find a direct path to Vermillion. “If you can, be back in fifteen. I wanna try and get there ASAP.”

Alex headed off into the woods without saying anything. He was kind of annoyed with Jake’s constant appetite for…well, anything. Maybe it he picked some leafs off a tree that would suffice his hunger.

“I mean, it’s not that much different from a salad.” Alex said to himself before shaking off the idea. Reaching for his belt, Alex unclipped two Pokéballs before chucking them in the air, clicking open and releasing two streams of bright lights.

The light ‘landed’ on the ground and shimmered for a moment before taking on the forms of Spearow and Squirtle, who both stretched happily before looking up at their master.

“Hey, could you guys find some berries for me?” Alex asked as he squatted to meet his Pokémon’s height. “Oran berries, Pecha berries, anything.”

Spearow nodded before flying into the trees and scourging around, shaking leaves out. Squirtle and Alex stared up where Spearow had disappeared to, waiting for results of some kind. A few seconds later, Spearow stuck his head out, a disappointed look on his face, with a few tiny berries in his beak.

“That’s weird; there should be more berries in a forest like this.” Alex stated as Squirtle emerged from a nearby bush with the same results. “These berries aren’t even matured yet!”

“Rino!” called out a voice. Alex turned around, noticing a dark light purple Pokémon staring at him, scrapping its foot against the dirt, as though it was getting ready to charge. Curious, he pulled out his Pokédex.

“Nidorino, the poison pin Pokémon. Nidorino has a horn that is harder than a diamond. If it senses a hostile presence, all the barbs on its back bristle up at once, and it challenges the foe with all its might. The horn also secretes a dangerous poison.”

Alex looked up at Nidorino, sending a chill down his spin once he noticed that all the bristles on its back were standing up. Again, Nidorino let out an angry cry, glaring at Alex with hate.

“Um, hi.” Alex said gently, careful not to raise his voice. “We just came looking for some berries. Do you know where we could find any?”

“Rino!” Nidorino cried out before shooting a barrage of white needles at the group. Surprised, everyone ducked, feeling the wind of the attack whizz past them.

“That’s a poison sting attack!” Alex exclaimed. “Just like C.C.’s Nidorina…oh, duh.”

Alex jumped to the ground as another volley of poison needles came hurdling at him again. Standing up, he smirked; this was gonna be perfect for training.

“All right, go Squirtle!” Alex called as the tiny blue Pokémon jumped out in front of him. “Use Water Gun!”

Squirtle took in a deep breath before unleashing a gushing water current, striking Nidorino and pushing him backwards a few meters. Nidorino’s eye snapped open before he opened his mouth and unleashed another poison sting attack, traveling right up the water current and striking Squirtle in the face.

“Rino!” Nidorino cried before using a sand attack on Alex, stinging his eyes. Turning around, Nidorino fled, disappearing into some bushes.

“Hey, come back here!” Alex called out angrily before chasing after the Pokémon, his on teammates close behind. “You can’t just flee from a battle!”

Alex continued to push through all the bushes and shrubs in his way until finally coming to a clearing. He stopped for a second before noticing bushes on the other side of the small meadow beginning to shuffle and move. Alex smirked; he was going to catch that Nidorino! Grabbing a Pokéball, Alex readied himself.

However, he was quite shocked when he realized emerging from the bushes wasn’t a Nidorino, but a man dressed in black, with white gloves on. Alex nearly gasped when he saw the big red “R” on the man’s shirt. Ducking down Alex’s thoughts began racing; should he go get his friends? What was Team Rocket doing here? Were they going to harm the Pokémon? Peeking through the bushes, Alex was shocked to see the man carrying a sack over his bag, containing what he recognized as baby Nidorans, both blue and pink ones, squealing and crying as they were dropped into a large crate.

“Shut up!” The man yelled, “You’re giving me a headache!”

The baby Pokémon squealed even more, causing the man to shut the lid. He grumbled to himself before picking up the sack, ready to head back into the woods and grab
more Pokémon. It was then Alex took action.

“Hey!” Alex yelled angrily as he and his Pokémon jumped out of the bushes, shocking the man. “Let them go!”

“Make me.” The man replied with a cocky smirk.

“Go, Squirtle and Spearow!” Alex yelled as his two Pokémon jumped in front of him. “Squirtle , Bubblebeam! Spearow, use Peck!”

An endless stream of bubbles shot towards the man, striking him in the chest and exploding on contact, blowing him backwards. He had no time to recuperate as Spearow flew down and struck him on the head with its sharp beak, getting a low cry of pain and annoyance from him.

Spearow landed in front of Alex and next to Squirtle, happy. Looking at each other, Spearow and Squirtle nodded in approval to each other, satisfied with their team work. This satisfying feeling quickly withered when the man stood back up, a devious smile on his face.

“That’s how you wanna play, huh?” He said as he grabbed a Pokéball, “Teach this kid a lesson Golem!”

The Pokéball clicked open, releasing what appeared to be a giant rock with arms and legs. On top, a small head sprouted, with red eyes glaring at Alex and his Pokémon.

“Rock blast!” The man ordered. Holding its hands close together, Golem made a small large rock appear, floating in the air before launching itself at Squirtle, knocking the Pokémon into a tree.

“Squirtle!” Alex yelled in shock before turning to his Spearow, only to witness his bird Pokémon suffer the same fate.

“Now, aim for the kid!” The Rocket yelled. The last thing Alex saw was the face of Nidorino peering out from some bushes before being knocked out by a flying rock.

[MothraRocks]

Alex groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. Where was he? Everything was out of focus. Alex suddenly snapped to attention when he heard the cries of his two Pokémon fill the air. He sat up, his head throbbing, and looked to his right, noticing Squirtle and Spearow squished together in a small cage…wait he was in a cage!

“Lemme out!” Alex called out to no one in particular. It wasn’t long before the Golem from Earlier came marching around the corner, carrying more Nidorans in a bag, dumping them into the same crate, cries still filling the air. Golem looked over at Alex and gave a laugh. Soon after, its trainer came around the corner.

“Let me out of here!” Alex ordered. The man simply grinned before waving Alex of with his hand.

“Let me think about it...no” The man said before jumping on the back of his truck and sitting down. “Team Rocket’s got some business to do here.”

“Team Rocket?” Alex asked curiously. “Didn’t you, like, get blown up at Mt. Moon?”

Suddenly, the man’s eyes popped wide open, shocked. “How did you know about that?”

“Considering I helped defeat them and all, I think it would be natural –“

“You’re part of the group that destroyed our base at Mt. Moon?! That set our plan back months ahead of time! We can’t even find the Moon Stone now because of an avalanche occurrence!”

“What plan?” Alex asked, intrigued.

“We need the Moon Stone’s energy – none of your business! Shut up!”

Alex smiled to himself. It was quite amusing to see this man loose his cool so quickly. But there were more important matters to attend too. He had to find a way to save the Nidorans.

“So…” Alex started as he scanned the area, “What’s your name?”

“Klaus.” The man said. Alex waited for him to say more, but apparently he didn’t feel like talking anymore.

“So you’re part of Team Rocket. What do you do? You a grunt?”

“Please.” Klaus said, letting out a laugh, “I’m third in command. I’m an exceptional trainer.”

“Yeah. Sure. That’s why you only have one Pokémon.”

“The others are at the Gym!” Klaus yelled angrily before a look of regret came over his face.

“Gym? Like, a Pokémon Gym?” Alex asked, curious.

“No. Now shut up.” Klaus said as he jumped down and walked back into the woods with another net. Alex looked over at his two Pokémon, cramped together in their tiny cage.

“I don’t suppose either of you could help me out here?” Alex asked. Squirtle and Spearow looked at him sadly. Alex sighed and rattled the cage; it was not gonna break. Sighing, he slumped to the ground.

“Rino!” called out a voice. Alex cried out as his cage suddenly shook violently. A second later, it shook again. Alex looked behind him, shocked to see Nidorino charging at his cage. Before Alex could say anymore, Nidorino roared out before charging once more at the cage, his horn glowing. Alex shielded his eyes as the metal bars shattered, sending debris flying everywhere. When he looked again, there was a giant gap where the bars should have been, with Nidorino staring at him.

Alex didn’t think twice before jumping out of his prison. He looked at Nidorino, who simply glared at the inexperienced trainer. Alex looked back, not wanting to show any signs of weakness. Luckily, Nidorino wasn’t here to fight. Well, him at least.

Turning to the cages, Nidorino prepared to open fire poison sting on them, just as Klaus’ voice was heard from around the corner. Looking at each other, Alex and Nidorino jumped into the nearby bushes and peered through small openings as Klaus walked around the truck, again with baby Nidorans in a net, singing away.

“Hey I just met you, and this is crazy, but here’s my number, so call me maybe!” Klaus sang at the top of his lungs. “It’s hard to look – WHAT THE HELL?!” Klaus stared in shock at where Alex was supposed to have been. It wasn’t so much the fact the Alex was missing than it was that the metal bars had been utterly destroyed. “That brat probably ran off to get help…” Klaus said to himself before loading the Nidorans into the back of his truck, followed by Spearow and Squirtle. “I still have you two though…I hear Squirtle meat sells quite high on the market!”

Squirtle felt the blood drain from his face as he squirmed and panicked, causing great discomfort to his cell mate. Spearow squawked for Squirtle to relax as the small turtle Pokémon began to thrash about even more. Klaus laughed before turning around and recalling Golem to his Pokéball before jumping into the driver’s seat and speeding off down the nature trail. At that moment Alex jumped out of the bush and began sprinting towards the truck desperately, Nidorino right behind him. Soon, the truck was out of sight, leaving Alex exhausted.

Collapsing to the ground, Alex punched the Earth in frustration. There had to be a way to get his Pokémon back! He couldn’t let Squirtle become sushi! Should he go back and get Jake and C.C.? No, that’d take too long. But what other choice did he have? Suddenly, Alex felt someone touch his shoulder. He whipped around and saw it to be a red haired man, in his early twenties wearing a black t-shirt and jeans. Brown gloves on his hands matched his boots.

“Don’t worry, we’ll get them.” He said looking where the truck had gone.

“Um…who are you?” Alex asked.

“My name’s Tim. I’m usually on the hunt for Team Rocket, and just so happened to see what was going on around here. Including your Pokémon being stolen.” The man said. “You?”

“I’m Alex, I’m from Pallet Town.”
“Pallet huh? That’s quite a ways you’ve come. Not as far as me coming from Unova and all, but still.” Time said as he whipped out a Pokéball and released the Pokémon inside, revealing a tall yellow and brown Pokémon.

“Alakazam, the psi Pokémon. Alakazam's brain continually grows, infinitely multiplying brain cells. This amazing brain gives this Pokémon an astoundingly high IQ of 5,000. It has a thorough memory of everything that has occurred in the world.” Alex’s Pokédex said before he put it away.

“So can it learn more than four moves at a time?” Alex asked.

“Alakazam, try to teleport us to where the truck is.” Tim said, ignoring Alex’s question. Raising his two spoons, Alakazam caused itself and its owner, along with Nidorino and Alex, to levitate in the air for a moment before vanishing, intent on tracking down the poacher.

[MothraRocks]

Butterfree soared over the tree tops, keeping an eye out for Alex. Where had he gone? It had been almost an hour since he headed into the forest, and everyone was beginning to worry. Behind him, Pidgey began to ascend, flapping his wings quickly, with Zubat not far behind. The three looked at each other with a worried look before splitting up and covering the area once more.

Down on the ground, the two trainers pushed past all the branches and bushes that were in their way. The two were covered in sweat from the humidity, and the fact that one of their friends had mysteriously vanished in the forest didn’t help their attitude. Sighing, Jake slumped to the ground, exhausted.

“C’mon, he can’t be that far from here.” C.C. said to Jake.

“No, he’s really far.” Jake said, slumped against a tree. He HATED when it was humid; it felt like he had just jumped in for a swim!

“Look, we just have to walk a little more and we’ll find him. He probably just got side tracked.”

“C.C., if he was close by we would have found him by now. We’re searching by land and air for him, and had no luck.”

“Well maybe he’s hurt. Like, a tree branch fell on his leg or something –“

“No, something worse happened. Think about it; if something had hurt him he would have sent Spearow to tell us.”

C.C. contemplated the thought for a moment; what Jake said had made sense, Alex would have sent Spearow by now. But what could have possibly happened? Suddenly, a
bright light in the corner of his eye caught his attention. C.C. turned around and pushed through the dense foliage, and gasped at what he saw.

“Uh, Jake? You might want to look at this.” He said, beckoning his friend over. Jake got up and walked over to where C.C. was. He gasped at the sight of what he saw; a gigantic metallic cage, the bars dented, just…laying there.

“What do you think happened here?” C.C. asked, walking around the destroyed cage, observing every little detail.

“Judging from the condition of the bars, I’d have to say… actually, I have no idea.”

“Do you think Alex was here?” C.C. asked.

“Maybe…but how’d he break out of the cage?” Jake asked before spotting something on the ground. “C.C., are these tire tracks?”

“Looks like it.” C.C. said as he kneeled down to get a better look. “And it looks like whoever was driving was in quite a rush to get out of here.”

“We have to catch up to them, somehow.” Jake said as Charmander studied the cage. An idea suddenly popped in his head, and he ran over to C.C., tugging at his pant leg.

“Char, Char!” Charmander called out. C.C. turned to watch the small lizard as he ran back to the cage. Opening his mouth, Charmander shot forth a large ball of fire, heating up the metal so much it began melt and bend. Letting up his assault, Charmander let C.C. and Jake get a good look at the result. Instantly, C.C. understood and grabbed a Pokéball from his belt.

“Nidorina, I choose you!” he called. The Pokéball clicked open, releasing the blue Pokémon. “Nidorina, use Iron Tail near the top of the cage!”
Nidorina jumped into the air as her tail lit up a bright metallic color. As she approached the cage, she spun around and slammed her tail near the top of the cage, breaking the roof off. Once the slate of metal hit the ground, Charmander unleashed his ember attack once more, leaving it red hot. Following up his attack, Nidorina slammed down near the edge, causing the front to jut upwards in a curve. Looking at the piece of metal, Jake released that it had been shaped to look like a snow sled.

“Jump on,” C.C. said. “The forest ends pretty soon, and leaves a giant plain. We just need a way to for our Pokémon to be able to pull us along…”

“Here,” Jake said as he reached into his backpack and pulled out a roll of fishing line, “it may be a bit uncomfortable, but it’s kinda hard to snap fishing line. Pidgey, Butterfree, come here!”

*****
Alex grunted as he hit the ground, with Nidorino falling on top of him shortly after. Behind him, Alakazam and Tim slowly floated to the ground, landing softly on their feet.

“I didn’t like it when Abra did it, and I don’t like it when Alakazam did.” He grumbled as he pulled himself up. Tim stepped past him and surveyed the area; in the distance, he could see the truck speeding along towards them.

“Ok, listen up. Alakazam and I will stop them and create a diversion. While we’re doing that, you sneak around to the back and release all of the Pokémon and get yours back.”

“And after that?” Alex asked.

“Improvise. Ok, here it comes!” Tim shouted as he pushed Alex down the hill by accident. “Oops. Well, just stay hidden down there, kay?”

Suddenly, the truck began to slow down, coming to a halt in front of Tim. He wasted no time in ordering Alakazam to cast a Psybeam on the two front tires, destroying them.

“Alright, come out with your hands up, and I’ll make sure to spare you!” Tim ordered. No one responded. Time tried looking through the windshield, but found he couldn’t because it was tinted black. Walking to the side, he found the window was down and looked inside; no one was there. He lifted his head up and checked the back of the truck; again, nothing.

“Something isn’t right…” Tim said just before noticing a small red clock on the dashboard, ticking down to zero. It was at five seconds…four seconds…three seconds…

“Crap.” Tim murmured as the clock hit zero.

Alex covered his ears as a loud explosion filled the air. He looked at the top of the hill and saw a burst of fire and smoke billowing from where Tim had been. Alex gasped at the sight as Nidorino began to rapidly burrow its way into the side of the hill, disappearing a few seconds afterwards. Alex continued to stare at the cloud of smoke in disbelief before hearing a chuckle. Looking along the hill, he spotted Klaus walking along the path, carrying the cage with both Spearow and Squirtle in it. Behind him was

Golem, holding all three nets filled with baby Nidorans.

“Oldest trick in the book Tim. At least now you’ll finally stop chasing me; it became annoying after a while.” Klaus said. “Looks like I’ll have continue on foot…right kid?”

Alex felt his blood go cold as Klaus’ head turned towards him, a devilish grin crossing his face. Alex took a deep breath before climbing up the hill side, staring Klaus right in the eye.

“Give me my Pokémon. Now.” Alex demanded.

“Or what? You’ll catch me in a Pokéball? Tell your mommy? Boo-hoo, I’m so scared.” Klaus said sarcastically. “Tell you what; I’ll give you back your Pokémon on one simple condition.”

“I’m listening.”

“Beat me in a Pokémon battle. Then you and your two Pokémon are free to go.”

“But I don’t…do you even hear yourself? I mean seriously, are you normally this stupid? Or are you putting in extra effort today just for me?”

Klaus’ smile suddenly twisted into a frown as Golem dropped the nets he was carrying and stepped in front of him. Golem snarled at Alex, who took a step back in fear. Just a Golem took a step forward, he noticed a spot in the ground in front of him begin to move and bulge. Curiously, the giant boulder Pokémon stared at the spot for a moment before the small purple head of Nidorino popped out and roared at him. Before Golem could do anything, Nidorino disappeared back into his hole.

“That’s it? That’s your reinforcement?” Klaus asked, letting out a small laugh. “Golem, squash this kid. Make sure it’s painful.”

Before Golem could move, the ground next to him began to bulge, revealing it to be Nidorino again. Once more, Nidorino disappeared back into the hole and reappeared
near Golem. Nidorino kept this up until there were at least a dozen holes around him. Finally, Nidorino reappeared in the first hole he had created and stared at the puzzled Golem for a moment before opening his mouth and letting out a barrage of poisonous needles in his face. Golem grunted and blocked his face before glaring at the small
Pokémon.

Being part Ground type and part Rock type, this didn’t actually hurt Golem much, but it certainly annoyed him more than he wanted it too. Roaring out, Golem raised his fist and brought them down on Nidorino. Just before they made contact with Nidorino though, the Poison Pin Pokémon disappeared back underground and popped out next to Golem, firing off more Poisonous needles. Annoyed, Golem tried again to swat the pest, but to no avail. Alex smiled; Nidorino was trying game of “Whack-a-Drilbur”.
There was no way Golem would be able to keep up with it.

“Golem! Forget the Nidorino, get the kid!” Klaus yelled out, but it was no use; Golem was entranced in this new game, and not in the good way. Eventually, Golem’s eye began to twitch out of anger, and his hands began to shake as well. There was only one way to get this pest, and he would make sure he got it. Curling himself up into a ball, Golem began to glow a mysterious light, heating up the air around him.

“Oh crud!” Klaus said as he ran for cover behind the remains of the truck. Nidorino disappeared underground for the final time and ran out of the side of the hill where he had come from. Alex yelled as Golem activated his Self-Destruct attack….only to have a barrier appear in front of him. Alex recognized the barrier as the move Protect and spun around to see Alakazam and Tim behind him, smiling.

“Thanks for providing cover.” Tim said winking. Alex smiled as the smoke cleared, revealing the fainted Golem…wait, why was he standing up?!

“Impossible!” Alex yelled, “Self-Destruct drains the user of all its HP!”

“You’d be right,” Klaus said as he came out from behind the truck, “Had Golem not been wearing a Focus Band, leaving him with 1 HP left.”

Reaching into his yellow backpack, Klaus pulled out a Super Potion and sprayed Golem with it, restoring a bit of its health. Alex stared in disbelief as small helicopter rotor extended out of his bag and began to spin, picking him up off the ground.

“You gotta be kidding me. Seriously?” Alex asked before Klaus grabbed the cage containing Squirtle and Spearow and took off.

“Hey!” Alex yelled as he ran after Klaus, jumping up and grabbing his foot just before he was out of reach. “Let them go!”

“Let go kid! You’re weighing us down!” Klaus yelled as he tried to kick Alex off. “Golem! Rock Blast!”

Behind, Golem began to fire multiple rocks, only to be cut off by a Vine Whip attack. He turned to see Tim with a giant Venusaur in front of him. The Pokémon’s blue skin glistened in the sunlight, and the giant pink flower stood strong in the breeze.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you…” Tim warned. Golem answered with a roar and began to charge at Venusaur, baring his fangs. “Venusaur, Solarbeam.” Tim said calmly.

“Venu!” Venusaur roared as the flower on his back began to absorb sunlight. Just as Golem approached, Venusaur bucked himself forward, sending a gigantic white beam of energy hurdling towards Golem. Golem gasped a second before impact, and was thrown hundreds of meters back, finally defeated.

“Awesome job Venusaur.” Tim said as he began to pat his friend on the head. He turned around, expecting to see Alex and Klaus fighting in mid-air, but was shocked to see they had drifted forwards.

Right over the side of the cliff.

“Alex! Hang on! That drop is hundreds of feet high!” Tim said as he returned Venusaur to his Pokéball and ran over to the edge of the cliff. The two were fighting and thrashing about, slowly sinking lower and lower.

“Give me back my Pokémon!” Alex screeched aggressively. Klaus grunted and kicked him again, holding Squirtle and Spearow even further away from him.

“Squirtle…” Squirtle said nervously and the two looked below them; that was a LONG drop.

“Why don’t you make me you bra—OW!” Klaus yelled out in pain as Alex bit down into his arm. “You want your Pokémon? GO GET THEM!”

With those last three words, Klaus dropped the cage, letting the two Pokémon fall to their doom.

“NO!” Alex yelled, letting go of Klaus and pin dropping towards the cage.

“Alex! No!” Tim yelled as he fumbled to get a Pokéball out.

Falling, Alex stretched his arms out and grabbed the cage. He saw his Pokémon, tears running from their face from pure fear. Grabbing the small knob, Alex opened the door and pulled his two Pokémon out and looked at them carefully.

“Spearow, you should be able to carry Squirtle back to the cliff top.” Alex said sadly, “Don’t let Klaus get away; pumble him.”

With that, Alex threw his two small, lightweight Pokémon upwards and shut his eyes as he fell closer to the water. He knew when he hit it, it would feel like concrete.

Up above, Squirtle and Spearow called to their master desperately, they didn’t want him to go, not now, not like this!

“SPEAROW!” Spearow called out as he stretched his wings outwards. The cry seemed to silence everything for miles. Suddenly, Spearow began to emanate a white glow, and soon his entire body was engulfed in it. Squirtle watched in awe as the figure began to grow; the small wings began to expand, the short neck grew long, and the ruffled feathers took on a ridged and defined shape. The light seemed as though it had been shaken off when it disappeared, revealing the newly evolved Fearow!

“Fearow!” The giant bird screeched before diving downwards at incredible speeds, catching Squirtle on its back.

“Squirtle Squirtle!” Squirtle cried happily as Fearow took another dive, headed straight for Alex. As they got closer, the two Pokémon saw Alex had his eyes closed with a panicked look on his face. He obviously had no idea what events had just occurred.

Alex suddenly felt something large grab his shoulders. He looked up and saw the face of a Fearow looking down at him happily. He looked on in disbelief for a moment before cracking a huge grin.

“Fearow! Your awesome!” Alex said excitedly. Fearow let a squawk before effortlessly flying back up and over the cliff side, setting his master down gently. A second after, Squirtle jumped off the bird Pokémon’s back and hugged his owner gratefully.

“Thanks Squirtle, I’m glad you’re safe and sound too.” Alex said before standing up. “Now let’s go get—oh, look, Tim got him.”

Squirtle and Fearow turned to see Tim with Alakazam out, causing Klaus to levitate and bend and twist in painful ways. Alex winced at what he heard; it sounded like Alakazam was making his blood twist and churn inside him. Klaus yelled out in pain, nearly blacking out from the pain. Below him, Tim frowned angrily.

“I’m going to make sure to extract every last morsel of strength you have while torturing you.” Time said, making a fist. “I’ll make sure to snap your neck with my bare hands.”

“Tim! I’m over here!” Alex called.

*****
“Well, you’re lucky your Pokémon have such determination and love for you.” Tim chimed as Alakazam effortlessly kept Klaus afloat, no longer torturing him. “I suppose we
better get back now – what is THAT?”

Alex turned around to see two teenage boys on what appeared to be a slate of metal being pulled by three flying Pokémon and two terrestrial ones, with a small bi pedal one sitting in one’s lap.

“Oh my God…” Alex mumbled as the ‘sled’ came to a skidding stop.

“Get away from him!” C.C. yelled as he jumped up.

“We’ll make you regret kidnapping him!” Jake yelled at Tim. Charmander jumped in front of him, his fire raging on the tip of his tail.

“I suppose these are your friends?” Tim asked casually. Alex blushed and nodded.

“Guys I’m fine.” Alex said, not looking them in the eye.

“Don’t worry Alex, we got this!” C.C. said, “Zubat, Nidorina, use –“

“Where’s Nidorino?!” Alex yelled frantically, jumping up and looking around, confusing Jake and C.C. profoundly.

“Who?” C.C. asked.

“Nidorino, he –“Alex stared but was cut off by a tugging by his pants. Alex looked down to see the Poison Pin Pokémon pushing against his pant legs happily, almost purring. Smiling, Alex pulled out a Pokéball and held it at Nidorino. “Nidorino, would you like to come with me?”
Nidorino smiled and jumped at the Pokéball without thinking twice, pushing the button which made the ball click open, sucking him into it. The Pokéball snapped shut and showed no signs of resistance, ending with a low ‘beep’.

“I’m confused…what’s going on? Who’s this guy? Who’s the one floating in the air? What happened? Who’s Fearow is that?” Jake asked, looking around wildly and Charmander massaged his head, trying to stop the oncoming headache from confusion.

“You guys can catch up later; Alakazam could you take these three,” Tim started before shooting a dirty glance at Klaus, “these FOUR to Vermillion City? I’ll take the baby Nidorans to the Day Care up the road from here and catch up later.”

“Alakazam!” The Psi Pokémon cried out as the teleportation progress began.

“What’s been happening all afternoon?” Jake inquired as the trio and their Pokémon began to float off the ground.

“Nothing. Just looking for berries.” Alex said, laughing.

[MothraRocks]

The Lightning American!

The group walked through the city of Vermillion, marveling at the huge buildings and beautiful coast. Not far from the small city was a dock with the world famous S.S. Anne at it, passengers climbing on and off board. The dock stretched on along the front of the city’s coast, leading down towards the beach, with its white sands emphasizing how bright it was.

“Man, I wouldn’t mind staying here for a few extra days.” Alex commented as they strode closer to the water’s edge. “It’s beautiful.”

“Yeah, well, we kinda need to keep moving.” C.C. said, “After this we need to go Celadon City, followed by Fuchsia City. Maybe the roadblock to Saffron will be gone by then.”

“That’s why we didn’t go straight through Saffron?” Jake asked as he glanced into the water. “Hey Charmander, look at the – Charmander?” Jake looked behind him and saw Charmander keeping a good distance away from the water, a slightly nervous look on his face.

“Oh yeah, forgot…” Jake said before grabbing his other two Pokéballs and tossing them into the air, releasing his Pidgey and Butterfree before turning to his two friends.

“Why don’t you let yours out as well?”

Alex and C.C. smiled as they pulled out all of their Pokéballs, clicking open and letting out all of them. Squirtle and Magikarp were let out in the water, and immediately began to play with the other wild Pokémon around.

“Man, I love the sea.” Jake said. “I used to like going to the beach back in Pallet Town.”

“We had a beach?” Alex and C.C. asked in unison.

“Well, not really a beach…more like a tiny patch of sand that was surrounded by water. And Tentacool…lots and lots of Tentacool.”

“Well, if you like swimming so much…” Alex said as a devilish grin crossed his face before steeping towards Jake, “Why don’t you take a dip?”
Jake yelled out in surprise as Alex suddenly pushed him backwards, and felt himself falling a second later, quickly followed by be submerged in water. Jake popped his head back up a snarled at Alex.

“At least pass me my mask.” Jake mumbled. A second later, his mask bounced off his head and into the water. Grabbing it, Jake pulled the hair out of his forehead and put it on.

“Magikarp and Squirtle will stay with you until you get to the beach. Alex and I are headed straight for the gym. Meet up with ya later.” C.C. said. Before Jake could say anything else, the two took off, laughing. Jake sighed before diving under, looking around.

Being virtually in the harbor, the visibility wasn’t terrific, but it wasn’t horrible either. The only coral around was some sponge and something that looked like moss growing on the walls underwater. He looked around and saw Squirtle swimming quite casually at the surface, with Magikarp right below him, wearing his infamous blank expression.

Turning his head again, Jake was quite surprised to see a school of Horsea swimming past him, paying him no mind whatsoever. Jake normally liked Horsea, it was one of his favorite Water type Pokémon. However, there was one of them that seemed…off. It was a bit smaller than the rest, and was struggling to keep up. Jake then noticed a little nick in its fin as well. However, what intrigued him the most was its color; unlike the others, who were a light sky blue, this one was darker, and looked to be almost green colored, giving off a certain sparkle to it.

‘That’s odd; I’ve never seen a Horsea like that.’ Jake thought as he began to catch up to it. Suddenly, Jake felt pain in his chest; he forgot he had to breathe! Turning to the surface, Jake swam, faster and faster, his lungs feeling like they were going to pop. Finally, feeling he couldn’t take it any longer, Jake burst through the surface, gasping for air.

He didn’t stay long though, he immediately called out to Butterfree, who came down and looked at him intently.

“Butterfree, over there is a school of Horsea, and one’s kinda of lagging behind.” He started, “Do you think you could use Sleep Powder on it?”

“Free!” Butterfree cried as it flew over to wear Jake had pointed. Staying a few centimeters from the surface, Butterfree began flapping its wings, releasing a bright green powder. Jake dove back underwater and swam to wear the Horsea was; the powder had taken affect, Horsea was simply floating there in the water, open for taking. Reaching to his belt, Jake pulled out a Pokéball and pressed it against the sleeping Horsea. The ball clicked in and absorbed Horsea, showing no signs of struggling. Jake smiled; now he just needed a way to get back on land…

*****
Yuna fumbled around in the dark of Diglett’s Cave, looking all around for a jewel of some sort. After some research, Yuna found that one of the Elements of Discord were hidden in Diglett’s cave. If only she had a fire Pokémon to light the way.

“Ow!” Yuna yelled as she kicked another rock in the pitch blackness. Grumbling to herself, she whipped around and stomped back outside angrily. She had searched in that cave for about an hour, with no results.

Angrily, she whipped around to head back to Vermillion, only to see a man run right past her, knocking her shoulder as he went. Not far behind, Officer Jenny and an Alakazam ran after him, the latter firing multiple Psybeam attacks at the man, all of them barley missing. Just as the man turner around the corner of the cave, Yuna spotted a small “R” located on his vest. Her hands curling into fists, Yuna sprinted around the other side of the cave, running after the man.

Klaus gasped for breath as he took a sudden turn into a small crevasse, with Officer Jenny and Tim’s Alakazam running right past him. He breathed a sigh of relief as they ran out of sight before emerging. A cocky smile crossed his face. No jail cell was able to hold him! Just as he took a step forward, a woman in a black coat landed in front of him. She had long blonde hair, with a few purple highlights in it. Her gray eyes were cold and emotionless.

“Team Rocket I assume?” Yuna questioned. The man slowly nodded. “Well then, today’s my lucky day.”

Klaus wasn’t able to say a word before Yuna swung her fist, knocking him out cold. Klaus’ unconscious body slumped against the rock wall as Yuna turned away. She hated scum like Team Rocket, more or less because the always got in her way. Walking back to Vermillion, Yuna continued to plot how she would find the Element buried in the cave.

*****
C.C. and Alex walked into the gym, looking around curiously. There was a giant empty field, with blue bleachers on either side. At the back of the gym sat a man with blonde spiked hair, sitting in a camouflage army wife beater. The man leaned back in a chair an adjusted his sunglasses as he spotted C.C. and Alex before grinning and jumping out of his chair.

“Yo! You two challengers?” He asked energetically.

“Uh, yeah.” C.C. said, surprised by the man’s energy. “I’m C.C. and this is Alex. We’re here to challenge you for the gym badge.”

“Course you are! Now, which one of you will be facing Lt. Surge?” The man said playfully as he got into place and grabbed a Pokéball. Alex and C.C. were surprised at how eager this man was to battle.

“I think I should Alex, Bulbasaur is more resistant to Electric types than your Pokémon.” C.C. whispered.

“Ok, no problem, I’ll tell him.” Alex whispered back before turning to Lt. Surge. “I AM!”

“Awesome little dude! Step up into position!” Lt. Surge yelled happily. His energy levels were quite fitting for the type of Pokémon he trained with. “Go! Magnemite!”
*****
Jake picked up Horsea and looked at it carefully; it WAS a different color from the usual, and certainly seemed to shine almost. He continued to examine his new Pokémon as Horsea’s face lit up in happiness. Jake wished he could have done the same, but the sand from the beach was sticking to his wet pants.

“Hey!” yelled a familiar female voice. Jake turned and felt his heart stop for a split second when he realized who it was.

“Oh God, why are YOU here?” Jake demanded from Yuna as she approached him.

“Why aren’t you dying in a hole?” she snapped back. Jake saw her eyes drift to Horsea, who was tucked safely in his arms. A sudden look of alarm filled Yuna’s eyes before she looked back at Jake.

“Give it to me.” She demanded as she approached Jake, and aggressive tone in her voice. “Now.”

“What? Are you crazy? Oh, that’s right, you are.” Jake said, squeezing Horsea tighter and taking a step backwards.

“I’m not messing around, give it to me.” Yuna said as she grabbed a Pokéball from her belt. At this point Horsea began to show signs of discomfort.

“Alex and C.C. are gonna be right back! They’ve just gone to get Hot Dogs!” Jake fibbed. “They’ll kick your butt!”

At this point, Yuna threw the Pokéball, releasing the purple blob known as Muk. The giant sludge Pokémon roared at Jake angrily as it fired a lightning bolt at Jake, narrowly missing him. Not taking his chances, Jake turned around and sprinted away from Yuna, trying to protect his Horsea.
*****
“Nidorino, use Dig again!” Alex called out. Magnemite looked panicked for a moment as Nidorino disappeared back underground for the third time in a row. Feeling the
ground rumble below him, the small Steel and Electric Pokémon was sent flying as Nidorino popped out of the ground, knocking him out.

“Round one goes to Alex from Pallet Town!” The referee called out as Lt. Surge recalled his Pokémon and whipped out another Pokéball.

“You’re good kid, I’ll give you that. But not many people have managed to stand up to this one,” Lt. Surge said as he threw the Pokéball, “Go Raichu!”

“Raichu, the mouse Pokémon. This Pokémon exudes a weak electrical charge from all over its body that makes it take on a slight glow in darkness. Raichu searches for electricity by planting its tail in the ground.” C.C.’s Pokédex said as he put it away. He had been rather impressed with Alex so far, but feared his luck was out now.

“Nidorino, use Dig!” Alex called again, unfazed by the new opponent. Nidorino diapered underground just as Lt. Surge ordered a Thunderbolt attack, leaving a scorch mark were the attack hit. Alex gulped; maybe Raichu was stronger than he though. His worries withered though once the ground beneath Raichu began to bulge, soon showing Nidorino as the Poison Pin Pokémon burst forth, knocking Raichu away and doing considerable damage.

“Alright! Now use Venosho—“

“Discharge!” Lt. Surge ordered, angrier than before. Jumping up, Raichu ran over to the hole Nidorino had recently dug and stuck his tail in it.

“Uh-oh…” C.C. said as he recalled the Pokédex’s entry on Raichu. Everyone watched as Raichu glowed faintly for a few seconds before becoming completely submerged in light, sending multiple lightning bolts flying across the room, two of them striking Nidorino, knocking him out instantly. The attack quickly subsided, showing a happy Raichu, electricity crackling from its cheeks.

“Nidorino is unable to battle, the Winner of Round two is Lt. Surge!” The referee announced.

Alex stared in utter disbelief at his unconscious Nidorino; he had never witnessed an attack with that much power in a single turn. It KO’d Nidorino in one hit while he was at full health! Pulling out his Pokéball, Alex recalled Nidorino. Looking down at his side, Squirtle looked at Raichu in the eyes, determined not to show weakness.

“Squirtle, you’re up.” Alex said. Courageously, Squirtle jumped forward, reading to face his opponent.

“Kid, this battle is as good as over.” Lt. Surge said. “Raichu, Discharge!”
Raichu suddenly cried out as it stuck its tail in the hole again and began sending lightning bolts flying everywhere. Squirtle began dancing around, desperately trying to avoid the electric attacks.

“Squirtle, use Withdraw!” Alex called out before ducking to avoid a lightning bolt. Without hesitation, Squirtle tucked all of his limbs inside his shell, and just in time too; a lightning bolt flew forward and struck the shell, sending it flying backwards into a wall.

“Ok, use rapid spin!” Alex called out. The shell in the wall suddenly began to shake wildly before shooting out towards Raichu at astounding speeds. Tensing his muscles, Raichu braced for the attack before Lt. Surge called out another order.

“Raichu, use Shock Wave!”

Raichu suddenly crackled with electricity before letting loose a ring of electricity, crackling with yellow and purple lightning. Inside his shell, Squirtle cried out in pain before slamming into Raichu. Raichu cried out as it rolled away before flipping back over and growling, much like his owner.

“Raichu, Iron Tail!” Lt. Surge yelled, not wanting to let up. The Lightning bolt sign on Raichu’s tail suddenly flashed a gray color before the Mouse Pokémon jumped into the air, flipping as it did, and slam down on Squirtle, getting another cry from inside the shell.

“Squirtle!” Alex called out desperately; he had no idea what to do. “Try…uh…”

“For God’s sake Alex, try ANYTHING at this point!” C.C. called out.

“Uh, Water Gun!” Alex yelled. A stream of water suddenly shot out from inside the shell, soaking the entire gym floor. Eventually, the attack hit Raichu, but did very little damage to it, if not any.

“Face it kid, nothing can match Raichu’s power!” Lt. Surge laughed, having the situation under control. “Electric Type Pokémon saved my life in the war; I know how to utilize their full potential!”

Alex gritted his teeth; there seemed to be nothing he could do to stop Raichu. Lt. Surge was right, nothing could match Raichu’s power…wait that was it! Nothing could match its power, so what if he used it against him? Alex observed the ground again; it was absolutely soaked, and so was Raichu.

“Ok Squirtle, I need you to use all your power for this!” Alex called as Squirtle stood back up, “Use Water Gun on Raichu, don’t let up!”

“Squirtle!” Squirtle cried as he took a breath and let loose a torrent of water.

“Raichu, Discharge!” Lt. Surge called out. Raichu cried out as it let loose its own power, just as the Water Gun made contact with him. What happened next ‘shocked’ everybody.

Due to the entire field being covered in water, as well as the Pokémon, the entire battle field suddenly burst into a sphere of electricity, engulfing both Pokémon. Squirtle’s Water Gun had also become nothing more than a conductor, shocking both him and Raichu severely.

“Raichu, stop!” Lt. Surge yelled out worried. Immediately, the electricity died down, showing both opponents scorched from the attack. A tense moment passed as Squirtle and Raichu stared each other down before finally giving into the wounds and pain. Sighing, they both collapsed.

“Return!” both trainers called out, their Pokémon caught by the Pokéballs laser.

“Awesome! I still have a Pokémon left! I won!” Alex yelled as he threw his fist in the air.

“Not so fast!” Lt. Surge called out as he grabbed his last Pokéball. “I still have one Pokémon left…and you ain’t gonna like it. I got this little guy just a few weeks ago when I was away, travelling.”

“Go, Emolga!”

[MothraRocks]

Both trainers stared in awe as the small white, black and yellow squirrel Pokémon gently floated to the ground gracefully, smiling as it went. Intrigued, both pulled out their Pokédex’s, only to get the same response:

“Unlisted species. No current information available.”

“What? Then that means he’s not from here...” C.C. said as he tucked his Pokédex away.

“You’re right; he’s all the way from the Unova region.” Lt. Surge said, “It’s quite a ways from Kanto.”

“Whatever, I can handle this thing. Go, Fearow!” Alex yelled as he threw another Pokéball out, clicking open and revealing his newly evolved Pokémon. “Use Drill Peck!”

“Fearow!” The giant bird cried as it suddenly lunged for the attack at amazing speeds. Slowly, his beak began to glow, and then whirl around crazily.

“Volt Switch!” Lt. Surge ordered . Emolga suddenly became covered in a ball of electricity and charged Fearow, moving at even greater speeds. Fearow cried out as the attack struck him in the chest, causing him to falter and fall to the ground, gagging from being hit in the chest so hard. Behind him, Emolga floated down to the ground once more, giggling.
*****

“Give me the Horsea!” Yuna screeched as she chased Jake around another city block, Muk right behind her.

“What is your problem woman? Get a life…or at least a pass to a mental institution!” Jake yelled back, picking up the pace a bit. The last bit set Yuna off though.

“Muk! Hyper Beam!” She screamed. Muk charged up his weapon, firing an orange ray of pure energy right at Jake. Panicking, Jake dropped to the ground as the beam soared inches from his head, slamming into a building up ahead, resulting in an explosion. Jumping up, Jake continued running from Yuna as Horsea began to squirm and panic.

“Muk, Hyper Beam again!” Yuna ordered. When nothing happened, she turned to see Muk panting, trying to rest so he could recharge his energy. Groaning, Yuna recalled the blob before running after Jake, who at this point had taken a turn and headed again for the coast. Jake felt a sudden vibration in his pocket, and reached down, pulling out his cell phone.

“Hello?” He asked as he continued to run, eventually making it onto the sand.

“Jake? Hi sweetie! It’s Mom!” a female voice said the phone, “How are you? I haven’t heard from you in months!”

“Uh, good Mom. Look, I’m kinda wrapped up in something…” Jake said before hearing Yuna yell out a curse behind him. Taking another turn, Jake began to head towards a giant boulder that ran from the beach out into the water.

“Oh, I know sweetie! Trying to become a Pokémon Master and all.” Jake’s Mom said again over the phone sweetly, “Am I interrupting a battle?”

“Kind of…” Jake said as he took a glance at Yuna, “The thing is a bit aggressive.”

“Well then, I’ll hang up now, call me later. I just wanted to tell you that I bought you three tickets to travel to –“ Jake’s mother said, but was abruptly cut off as Yuna tackled the teenager to the ground, winding him and sending both Horsea and his phone tumbling along the sand.

“Look you brat, I’ve been chasing you all around Vermillion, and let me just say, you are the biggest pain I have EVER had to deal with!” Yuna said as she pinned him down.

“I swear to Arceus, I’m going to destroy you right here and now!”

“You seem to make that promise an awful lot Yuna.” Jake said as he spotted something in the sky. “But I guess that I shou – CONFUSION ATTACK!”

The sudden outburst made Yuna jump, but also confused her. What was the kid talking about? Her question was answered when she was suddenly thrown forwards through the air, landing on her stomach. Groaning, Yuna looked up and saw Butterfree gently lowering itself as Jake scooped up Horsea, who was shaking with fear.

“Yuna, look what you’ve done! The poor thing’s petrified!” Jake yelled angrily. Yuna showed no sympathy. “Why do you even want my Horsea so bad?!”

“It’s a Shiny Pokémon you idiot!” Yuna yelled aggressively, throwing her arms up in the air, “There’s approximately a 1 in 10,000 chance that you’ll encounter one!”

“Fine…” Jake said. “Yuna, would you like a Shiny Pokémon?”

“Yes!” She said in disbelief as she took a step forward.

“Then you better go catch one!” Jake said before ordering Horsea to use a Smokescreen attack. From its long mouth shot a black gooey liquid, splatting against Yuna’s face, getting her to cry out in disgust as she tried to wipe it off. Pulling out Horsea’s Pokéball, Jake recalled the baby Pokémon before handing it to Butterfree.

“Take this to the Pokémon Center, or somewhere Yuna won’t get it. Go!” Jake ordered. Butterfree nodded as it grabbed the Pokéball and flew off, a bit hesitant to leave its master behind. Turning around, Jake began to high tale out of there, only to suddenly be lifted off the ground by some unseen force. Jake cried out in pain as his body began to twist in awkward directions, uncontrolled by him. From behind, he could hear Yuna giving commands.

“Yes, good…see if you can snap his spine in half Jynx…” Yuna said, a dark yet playful tone in her voice. Jake let out a blood curdling scream as he began to bend. Finally, people walking by began to notice what was going on. Alarmed, multiple people began to rush towards Yuna, only for her to call out Muk. Ordering a thunderbolt attack, she forced the bystanders to stay back, and watch the sick events unfold.

“What’s the matter Jake? Can’t handle a little bending and twisting? Jynx, his arms, now.” Yuna mused. Jake suddenly couldn’t breath as his left arm wrenched backwards in a unnatural position. He felt the muscles in his body burn; he knew Yuna had sprained his arm at the very least. Slowly, everything began to black out as his body continued to shift, the cries of people below filling the air.

Yuna cried out as Muk was suddenly thrown against both her and Jynx, stopping the Psychic in its tracks. Jake suddenly slumped to the ground and moaned as his vision slowly returned. Groaning, he sat up and rubbed his head. He turned to see what had happened, and was quite surprised to see Tim standing in a battle stance with his Alakazam in front of him, and angry look on his face.

“I honestly haven’t the slightest idea what’s going on here,” he said, “but I’m gonna tell you this one time and one time only; back off.”

The crowd behind him began to whisper and stare on in awe as Yuna stood back up alongside her two Pokémon, wiping sand off of her, a small grin coming to her face.

“Giving me orders? You obviously haven’t met me.” She said before looking at Jake with great detest. “Why don’t you run along now? I’m sure we’ll meet again. Unfortunately.”

Jake didn’t need to be told twice; with no Pokémon he was virtually helpless. Getting up, he managed to limp away, looking at Tim, giving him a silent warning. Turning away, Tim refocused on Yuna.

“You realize you could have killed him, right?” he said, very little emotion in his voice.

“Really? I would have never guessed!” Yuna said sarcastically. “You’d be wise not to tick me off.”

“Or what?” Tim responded, a challenge in his voice.

“Jynx, Psybeam!” Yuna ordered suddenly. The Pokémon behind her suddenly fired a flashing multicolored ray, dancing all over the place and nearly striking the crowd.
Alakazam reeled back in pain as the beam suddenly shifted to him. Tim watched in shock as his Pokémon was slowly pushed backwards by the attack.

“Alakazam, Psycho Cut!” Tim called out. Bringing his arms up, Alakazam pushed back the ray, virtually breaking it. Yuna watched, unimpressed as his arms began to glow an odd pink color, with two ‘blades’ made of energy hurled at Jynx, knocking her backwards.

“That’s no way to treat a lady.” Yuna said with a devilish look on her face. “Let’s show our manners Jynx; give this lovely man and his Pokémon a Sweet Kiss.”

“Jy-nx!” Jynx called out as she whirled around before blowing as kiss at Alakazam and Tim. From her lips came an odd heart shape, cloaked in mystical blue energy. The duo had no time to react before the attack struck them both, causing them to lose their balance and fall to the ground. Tim grabbed his head as a splitting migraine suddenly washed over him.

Yuna walked over to the man, looking down on both him and the helpless Pokémon. “Consider yourselves lucky. If I didn’t have such important matters to attend to, then I would end your lives in a heartbeat.” Tim knew she was serious, but didn’t have time to think as the pain in his head got even worse. He doubled over, not able to even pull a single Pokéball from his belt. Yuna smirked before turning away and headed back to Diglett’s cave. She had something else to check up on.
*****

“Fearow! Behind you!” Alex called out, but it was too late; Emolga performed another Volt Switch attack, striking the bird in the back.

“Row!” The massive bird Pokémon cried out as he slammed into the ground for the umpteenth time. Alex gritted his teeth. So far he hadn’t landed a single hit in the
stupid flying squirrel! “Fearow, try Fury Attack!”

Fearow flapped its huge wings and was once again airborne, headed straight for Emolga. He began to jab the air rapidly with his long beak, trying to hit Emolga. The small electric Pokémon laughed as he nimbly avoided every attack before being ordered another Volt Switch. Glowing with electricity again, Emolga flew at Fearow, hitting him square in the face. Fearow cried in pain as it struggled to keep its balance.

“Can you stop that?!” Alex called out across the room, “it’s annoying!”

“Fine, fine.” Lt. Surge said before giving Emolga another order, “Emolga, Electro Ball!”

“Molga!” the tiny Pokémon cried as a sphere appeared on the end of its tail, firing it at Fearow. Alex watched in horror as the electrical sphere struck Fearow and threw him into the wall, smoke going everywhere. Slowly, a smile stretched across his face.

“Haha! Sorry sir, but your luck just ran out! Fearow, use Mirror Move!” Alex called out. From inside the smoke, Fearow’s cry could be heard as a yellow light began to illuminate inside if the dust cloud. Suddenly, a sphere identical to Emolga’s shot out, striking the tiny Pokémon mid-air, creating a small explosion. Fearow emerged from the smoke, following up his attack by firing three more spheres, just to reassure his victory.

“Great job Fearow, we –“Alex said before spotting Emolga emerging from the smoke, seemingly unharmed. In fact, it seemed almost…energized.

“Kid, did you even bother thinking what Emolga’s ability is?” Lt. Surge asked. “It’s Motor Drive. Any idea what that does?”

“It increases the user’s speed every time it’s hit by an electrical attack, right?” C.C. asked, slightly alarmed.

“Mm hmm.” Lt. Surge said. “And do you know about Electro Ball’s secondary effect?”

“Yeah it…oh crap, Alex get Fearow to move!” C.C. called out to his puzzled friend. “Electro Ball becomes more powerful the faster the user is than the opponent! And since you just used four Electro Balls on a Motor Drive Emolga…”

Alex gulped as Emolga charged up and fired one last giant Electro Ball, slamming into Fearow. The attack did crushing damage; the bird Pokémon fell, unconscious, to the ground.

“Fearow is unable to battle; the winner is Lt. Surge, the score being 2-3!” The referee announced as Alex rushed out to the field to greet his wounded friend.

“Hey, it’s alright Fearow, you did great. I don’t know any other Bird Pokémon that could last that long against an Electric type like Emolga.” Alex said before returning the Pokémon to its ball. Looking up, he saw Lt. Surge looking down at him, smiling.

“Kid, that was a good battle. And I mean good. No one’s ever shown tactics like that before. Which is why I’m willing to make you a proposition for the badge.”

Before Alex could say anything, the gym doors swung open, revealing a sandy, worn out and bruised Jake. The sight startled everyone, even Lt. Surge. The teen huffed and puffed before shooting a terrifying look.

“Where the hell is Charmander?!”
*****
“Ok, so if we do Lt. Surge a favor, he promised that he would give us the Thunder Badge in return.” C.C. told Jake as the three walked along the dock once more.
After explaining what had happened all afternoon, Jake had C.C. and Alex help him find Charmander. It wasn’t until Lt. Surge had sent his Emolga to help as well did they find him; ironically, he had ended up down at the local pool, sitting next to the Jacuzzi, enjoying its heat.

“What exactly is the favor?” Jake asked.

“He needs us to check out the Power Plant. Something there is making everything act up, and occasionally causing surges or shortages. He just needs us to report what it is.” Alex said.

“Hey, after what Yuna did to me today, I’m not heading anywhere in her direction.” Jake said coming to a halt.

“But you have for the last,” C.C. said as he looked at his watch, “Nine minutes.”

“I don’t care. That woman needs to be put in a mental institution. I don’t want to encounter her again for a while.” Jake said stubbornly.

“My thoughts exactly.” Said a voice from behind. The three turned around to see Tim walking up behind them, nearly cleared of his headache. “That was pretty out there, what she did to you. So, in order to throw her off your trail for a while, I bought three tickets for the SS. Anne.”

“What?!” The three yelled out in unison. Tim waved his hand dismissively at their reaction.

“It’s nothing really, very low costs, I have some connections, pulled a few strings and presto! You guys are going on a ship for two weeks!” Tim said. “I’m coming too, I couldn’t resist.”

“Awesome! Thanks Tim!” Alex said excitedly. “When do we leave?”

Tim smiled calmly as he looked at his watch, only for a panicked look to suddenly take its place.

“In three minutes.”

Spinning around on their heels, all three took off towards the terminal, both excited and anxious about boarding the ship, and what new adventures it may hold.

[MothraRocks]

Battle on Board!

“Run faster!” Tim yelled as the four ran up the ships ramp, desperately trying to board it. “It’s starting to move!”

Everyone made it into the ship’s doorway just as it began to leave the dock. Exhausted, all three suddenly collapsed onto the floor, gasping for air. Eventually catching their breath, the four got up and looked around; they had gotten in on a lower deck, so they had ended up in a hallway with nothing but cabins.

“Look around; there should be an elevator around here somewhere.” Tim said, “We want to get to Deck Nine, that’s where the buffet and pool is.”

After a few minutes of looking, the four eventually found an elevator made of glass sitting at the end of the hallway. It was a tight squeeze, but everyone managed to get in. The only concern was Charmander’s tail flame in such an enclosed area.

As the elevator went up, everyone gasped; they could see the entire atrium below, with everyone walking around, sitting and talking, drinking coffee and more. They all stared at the attractions the cruise ship held before going up reaching the very top, followed by a ‘ding!, signifying they had arrived.

“Here we are!” Tim said as he stepped out. The three teenagers looked in awe at the deck; there were two pools, filled with people messing around, with another two Jacuzzis next to them, steam rising up off of them. Further down, there were two long lines, moving along quickly, of people picking up food from the buffet.


“Whoa.” Alex said, pointing behind the group. The others turned around and saw a massive water slide overhead, people screaming as they went down.

“I like this already.” C.C. smiled. “Let’s go grab some food.”

The four began walking towards the buffet, walking down a couple of stairs as they went. Out of the corner of his eye, Jake spotted something on the wall they had just gone past. Turning around, Jake saw that it was a poster with pictures of Pokémon all over it.

“SS Anne Pokémon Tournament!” it read out, “Starts today at Twelve! Want to test you and your Pokémon? Then this is the competition for you. Sign up down in the main lobby at reception. Pick three Pokémon to enter, don’t be late!”

“Huh.” Jake said as he stepped back, intrigued. “What do you think Charmander?”

“Char!” his starter Pokémon said happily.

“Jake!” Alex called, “What are you looking at?”

*****

Yuna stepped calmly into Pewter City, a sickly green jewel clutched in her hand. She was quite pleased with the results after searching for hours on end. Looking at it once more, Yuna could practically feel the dark aura the jewel emanated.

“Now, according to my book, you’re the Element of… Greed.” She smirked before tossing it into her inside pocket in her jacket. “Now just one more thing to pick up.”

Yuna began walking through Pewter City, recognizing various landmarks from her last visit. Turning left after passing the Pokémon center, Yuna finally found herself outside of the museum. She stared at it for a moment before heading in and turning to the front desk.

“I’m Yuna.” She said bluntly to the man. “I made a request a few months ago.”

“For… ah, that’s right! One moment ma’am.” The man said before turning around and heading into the back. Yuna heard him rummage around for a few moments before he came back out and handed her a Pokéball.

“That’ll cost you –“ The man started, but was quickly cut off by Yuna.

“Absolutely nothing.” Yuna said before whipping around, her hair hitting the man’s face and heading out the door.

“Let’s see exactly what you can do…” she muttered to the Pokéball.

*****

“Welcome ladies and Gentlemen to the SS. Anne’s weekly battle competition!” the announcer yelled into the microphone. “We are pleased to announce over three dozen participants have entered!”

The crowd cheered. His arms folded, Tim looked around the giant lounge; it was on the very top floor with an awesome view. In the middle was a giant vacant area for battling, with comfortable seats littered around it. In the back of the room was a bar.

Time had decided against entering; it would be quite unfair if he entered. He could have battled with only one Pokémon and probably come out on top, and he saw no fun in that. However, he did come to watch Jake, Alex and C.C. battle; the whole thing had been far too tempting to skip. Tim guessed that they would be battling completely random trainers with not even an inkling of what types of Pokémon they would be up against would also be exciting.

“Alright, for the first battle, please welcome our two competitors!” The announcer yelled as two boys entered the room from opposite sides, “Youngster Joey and Hayes!”
Back in the other room where the trainers were waiting, C.C. chocked on his drink. “What did he just say?!”

“You’re not getting past me!” Joey said as he grabbed one of his Pokéballs, “My Rattata is top percent!”

“I’m sure he is.” Hayes said as he drew his own Pokéball, “Go, Bonehead!”

The ball clicked open, revealing a female Cubone, staring down the tiny Rattata in front of her. Joey began to order a Quick Attack, but was cut off by Hayes in an unimpressed voice.

“Use Frustration.” He said. Bonehead raised her club as a large red sphere suddenly emerged on the tip, crackling with energy. Before Joey’s Rattata could do anything, the
sphere was launched, knocking him out for good. Joey stared in disbelief at his fallen friend before turning back to Hayes.

“It’s fine, I have two more Rattatas!” he said as he drew another Pokéball.

“Good luck with that.” Hayes said as he prepared another attack.

*****

“Hayes is here? HAYES?!” C.C. asked alarmed. Alex and Jake stared at him in confusion.

“Yeah…is that really so bad?” Alex asked.

“He’s my rival! Of course it’s bad! I can’t lose to him!” C.C. exclaimed.

“Well, what if he doesn’t make it to the finals?” Jake asked kindly. C.C. looked up at him with disbelief.

“It’s Hayes. He’s gonna make it.” C.C. stated. “And from the sounds of it, he’s managed to use his Cubone’s attitude towards him for his advantage.”

“And the Winner is Hayes!” The announcer called out. “Next up…C.C. and Philip!”

“Good luck.” Alex and Jake called out as their friend began walking through the doorway. Once in the room, C.C. looked around and saw about seventy people looking at the center of the room, clapping politely. On the other side he spotted a boy with short brown hair, about a year younger than him.

“Challengers, begin!” The announcer called.

“Go, Sandslash!” The boy called out as he threw a Pokéball. Out of the Pokéball popped a yellow and white bipedal Pokémon, with large brown spikes sticking from his back. To long claws on either hand glistened in the light. Wanting to get a one up on his opponent, C.C. pulled out his Pokédex.

“Sandslash, the mouse Pokémon. Sandslash can roll up its body as if it were a ball covered with large spikes. In battle, this Pokémon will try to make the foe flinch by jabbing it with its spines. It then leaps at the stunned foe to tear wildly with its sharp claws.”

“Whoa, aggressive.” C.C. said as he slipped his Pokédex away. “But it’s a ground type, so go Bulbasaur!”

His Pokéball clicked open, releasing his small grass Pokémon. It cried out in anger at the Sandslash, but also in excitement; it hadn’t battled for quite some time now. The bell rang, signifying for the battle to begin.

“Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!” C.C. called out. Two long vines suddenly shot out of the Pokémon’s bulb and headed for Sandslash quickly. Just as they approached him however,

Sandslash bent forward, exposing his sharp spikes just as the vines lashed out. Bulbasaur cried out in pain as he tried to retract his vines, only to be held in place by Sandslash.

“Sandslash, use Swift Attack!” The boy yelled out. Sandslash opened his mouth, spraying dozens of glowing stars that slammed into Bulbasaur’s head just as Sandslash let go, sending him flying across the room.

“Bulbasaur, are you ok?” C.C. called out, only to see his starter jump out angrily and snarl at Sandslash. Bulbasaur was way ahead of his owner, and quickly fired a Leech Seed attack at his opponent. He watched as the seeds latched onto the Pokémon and root themselves, slowly taking his energy and giving it to Bulbasaur. “Awesome Bulbasaur, try a Tackle now!”

“Push past the pain Sandslash! Use Double Team!” The other trainer called out as Bulbasaur approached, but C.C. was ready.

“Flail your Vine Whip around and find the real one!” he called. Before Bulbasaur even came to a halt, its vines where already in the air, swinging around wildly. It was only a matter of seconds before the true Sandslash was exposed; he was knocked backwards while crying out in pain.

“Alright, now try out that new move we’ve been working on!” C.C. called out. Bulbasaur opened his mouth and charged up a green sphere of energy, crackling with blue electricity. He let it charge until his master gave the order; “Use Energy Ball!”

Bulbasaur launched the attack, sending it flying at his opponent so quickly it looked like a blur to the audience. The attack resulted in an explosion, resulting in Sandslash crying out for the last time. The crowd cheered as the other trainer recalled his Pokémon. In the audience, Tim smiled. He was impressed that Bulbasaur had managed to pull off an Energy Ball despite its small size.

“Well?” C.C. asked the boy. “Send out your next Pokémon.”

“I, uh, only brought Sandslash with me.” The boy murmured quietly. “He’s normally my sweeper, so I figured I only needed him for the competition.”

“That settles it then; C.C. wins!” The announcer called out, sending the crowd nuts. C.C. did a quick bow before recalling Bulbasaur and heading back into the other room. He was about to tell his friends, but saw them talking to a familiar face.

“I can’t believe you're actually here Zach!” Jake called out happily, “I haven’t seen you in forever!”

“I know, fancy seeing you here.” The man said before turning to face C.C., “C.C.! That was a great battle you did out there. Hopefully I can do as good.”

Zach, like the three, was also from Pallet Town. While he was a few year older than them, he had become quick friends with the three. One day though, he left Pallet Town to go on a journey of his own, leaving his friends behind as well. So it was no surprise he was happy to see them.

“Thanks, I’m sure you will. Who do you have?” C.C. asked before the next match was suddenly announced.

“Zach vs Mike!”

“That’s me. Why don’t you guys come out and watch? I’m sure you’ll like my strategy.” Zach said before revealing he only had two Pokémon with him and heading out. Looking at each other, the three walked outside and sat next to Tim to watch the battle unfold.

“Go, Doduo!” Mike called out as he threw his Pokéball, which clicked open and released a two headed bird Pokémon, the heads looking around wildly.

“That’s gonna give me nightmares.” Jake said as he pulled out his Pokédex.

“Doduo, the twin head Pokémon. Doduo's two heads contain completely identical brains. A scientific study reported that on rare occasions, there will be examples of this Pokémon possessing different sets of brains. When threatened, it flees at over 60 miles per hour.”

“Yeesh, that thing gets some exercise.” Alex commented as Tim smiled.

“But a major downfall of Doduo is that it can’t fly like most bird types.” Tim said as Zach threw his own Pokéball onto the field, showing it to be a Clefairy. “So, to make up for its lack of flight, it is able to run at extreme speeds.”

“Doduo, use quick attack!” The boy called out. Doduo suddenly disappeared in a brown blur and headed straight for Zach’s Clefairy. However, Zach simply smiled as his Clefairy was struck by the bird. Turning around, Doduo stood right before its owner.

“Alright Doduo, finish it off with – Doduo?” Mike asked. Doduo simply stared at Clefairy, blushing as it swayed side to side, fixated on it. “What’s happening?”

“Uh-oh, looks like he fell for Zach’s trap.” Tim said. “Clefairy’s ability is Cute Charm, meaning once it is attacked, there is a chance the opponent will fall in love with it.”

“Perfect. Now, use Sing Clefairy!” Zach called out. Clefairy opened its mouth and let out a beautiful, slow melody, making everyone in the room drowsy. A few people actually fell asleep, but Clefairy stopped once Doduo was asleep. “Now, use Wake up Slap!”

Clefairy jumped in the air and raised its arm. Slowly, its fist began to glow a bright orange color. The glow started out faint, but quickly became bright and blinding. Bringing its hand down, Clefairy smacked to Doduo, knocking it out in one hit thanks to its current sleeping condition.

“Doduo is unable to battle, Clefairy is the winner!” The announcer yelled. Clefairy did a little dance before Mike sent out his next Pokémon angrily. Apparently he was a sore loser.

“Go, Pinsir!” he yelled out as the Pokéball clicked open. In front of him stood a brown, bipedal bug, with two large horns on its head. On its front were to beady eyes with an odd looking mouth. Alex whipped out his Pokédex a second later.

“Pinsir, the Stag beetle Pokémon. Pinsir has a pair of massive horns. Protruding from the surface of these horns are thorns. These thorns are driven deeply into the foe's body when the pincer closes, making it tough for the foe to escape. This Pokémon’s movements turn sluggish in cold places.”

“Alright, Pinsir use Swords Dance!” Mike called out. The air around Pinsir suddenly began to warp as holographic swords began to slowly spin around him, building up his attack power. “Now use Toxic!”

The second attack caught Zach completely off guard; he watch as the ground below his Clefairy began to turn purple and bubble, poisoning the small pink Pokémon. A troubled look suddenly crossed Clefairy’s face as it felt the poison begin to take effect, lowering its health. Across the room, Mike smiled.

“Pinsir, keep using Swords Dance. Don’t attack unless it comes straight at you.” Mike said, smirking before calling out to Zach, “Where’s your Clefairy’s lovey dovey ability now?”

“Right here; Clefairy, use Attract!” he called out. Still woozy, Clefairy jumped up and spun in the air, sending dozens of pink sparkling hearts at Pinsir. The hearts spun around him for a moment before squeezing in past the swords and passing through him. Suddenly, Pinsir stopped the Swords Dance he was performing and starred at Clefairy, hearts in his eyes.

“No! Pinsir, snap out of it!” Mike called, but it was no use; Clefairy simply walked over to Pinsir and gave a slight push, knocking him over and down for the count.
“Clefairy wins again!” The announcer yelled. The audience stirred, obviously impressed by Clefairy’s two win streak. Finally, Mike sent out his last Pokémon, seething with rage.

“Go, Tangela!” Mike called out as he threw the ball and released what appeared to be a jumbled mess of vines with red shoes on the bottom. From behind the vines, two eyes peeked out from behind. “Vine Whip!”

Clefairy had not time to react as the four vines came speeding towards her, slamming her against the side of the wall and KO’d her as well. Zach stared in mild shock as he re-called his Pokémon. Taking a breath, he pulled out his last Pokémon.

“Go, Paras!” he yelled. The Pokéball clicked open to reveal a tiny bug Pokémon; bright orange in color, with two glassy eyes. On his back stood two small mushrooms.

“Paras!” It hissed out.

“That’s your last line of defense?” Mike chuckled before ordering another Vine Whip attack. Again, four more vines shot out and slammed themselves down on the tiny Pokémon. However, Zach smiled. Mike was confused at first, but soon saw he had activated Paras’ ability: Effect Spore. Mike gasped as yellow dust was suddenly shot from the mushrooms on Paras’ back, covering Tangela. A second later, a panicked look came of Tangela and Mike’s faces as the vines became limp due to his paralysis.

“Good job Paras!” Zach called out before shooting Mike a glance. “Now, finish it off with X-Scissor!”

“Paras!” the small bug Pokémon cried before it charged its opponent with glowing claws. Just as it reached Tangela, it brought its claws down in opposite directions at diagonal angles, creating a green ‘X’ where it had struck. Tangela cried out before toppling over, fainted.

“And the winner is Zach!” the announcer called out, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Zach smiled as he returned his Paras to his Pokéball before heading up to sit with his friends, just as Alex’s name was called.

While everyone on the ship was having fun, especially at the Pokémon tournament, no one knew that the SS Anne was about to get a very, very unexpected visitor.

[MothraRocks]

“Squirtle, finish this off with Aqua Jet!” Alex called out to his Pokémon. Squirtle cried out before the water at his feet suddenly enveloped him like a blanket. In a blink of an eye, Squirtle raced across the room, striking the Vulpix across from him and sending it flying across the room. The water dispersed as Squirtle came to a halt. The crowd cheered as he round ended.

“That’s it ladies and gentlemen! After several rounds, we are now coming up to the semifinals!” The announcer called excitedly. “The remaining four contestants are Hayes, Alex, Jake and C.C.!” Again, the crown roared with excitement; the four had managed to get by several rounds without much difficulty, impressing the audience. Unlike the four, most of the trainers participating weren’t striving for the annual Championships, and so weren’t as used to battles as difficult as these.

“There shall be a fifteen minute interval for Trainers and Pokémon to recuperate.” The announcer said before walking off stage, followed by most of the audience getting up and talking to each other, running to the bathroom or getting drinks.

“Wow, good job you three.” Tim beamed. “Though I must say, some of the competition wasn’t all that hard at the beginning.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Alex commented, “But hey, it’s fun.”

“You bet.” Said a familiar voice. The four turned around to see Hayes, smiling. “I wonder which one of you I’ll be facing next. I hope it’s not you C.C.” C.C. simply nodded, almost uneasily. Noticing this, Hayes tried to make light of the situation. “C’mon man, it’s not a real competition. Relax, have fun. I won’t think badly of you when I kick your butt.” Hayes teased.

“We’ll see about that.” C.C. murmured before Hayes let out a little laugh and headed to the bathroom. Taking a breath, C.C. turned to face his friends. “Oh God, there’s so many people here…”

“Wait, THAT’S what you’re afraid of?” Jake asked, “C.C., we used to battle in school all the time with the school’s Pokémon in front of our classmates.”

“I know, but…this is different. I don’t know why, it just is.” He said uneasily.

“Well, c’mon. Everything will be fine, ok?” Jake said in an assuring tone. C.C. gave a small smile before leaning back in the chair, trying to relax. After a while, a low ‘beep’ filled the room, signifying the beginning of the Semifinals.

“Alright everyone, ready?” the announcer called. He was met by enthusiastic cheers and claps. “For the first round of the Semi Finals… Alex vs C.C.!”

Alex and C.C. whipped around and faced each other, wide eyed. They had known that there was a large chance they would possibly be facing each other, but still, they were shocked. Still trying to wrap their heads around the idea, the two headed down to the stage, everyone cheering.

“Ready? Begin!” the announcer called before jumping off the stage.

“Go, Nidorino!” Alex called out as he threw his Pokéball onto the field, clicking open the reveal his purple poison Pokémon. Nidorino cried out as it scratched its foot against the ground. Grabbing his own Pokéball, C.C. called out his Pokémon.

“Go, Bulbasaur!” C.C. called out nervously.

“What’s he doing?” Tim asked quietly.

“What do you mean?” Jake asked.

“Nidorino is a Poison type, which is super effective to Grass types. While Bulbasaur is a mixture of Grass and Poison, his Grass Type moves will not have much effect on Nidorino.” Tim said. Jake nodded before turning back to the battle.

“Bulbasaur, Razor Leaf!” C.C. called out. Bulbasaur cried out before a shower of leafs shot out from his bulb. Then, as if taking a life of their own, the leafs suddenly shot right at Nidorino.

“Nidorino, hold your ground!” Alex called out. Nidorino obeyed its master and endured the attack. He didn’t have to put in much effort; the attack did barley any damage to him. Alex wasted no time in ordering a poison sting attack from Nidorino. Opening his mouth, the purple Pokémon fired a barrage of white glowing needles at Bulbasaur, sending him skidding backwards a few feet.

“Crap…Bulbasaur, Vine Whip! Try to pick him up!” C.C. cried.

“Bulbasaur!” Bulbasaur yelled out before sending two longs vines from its bulb at Nidorino. However, just as they began to make contact, a very irritated look came into Nidorino’s eyes. Just as the vines began to wrap around his back, the spikes on the back shot upwards, scratching the vines severely, leaving big red marks. Bulbasaur cried out as it retracted its vines.

“Bulbasaur, return!” C.C. called, a plot forming in his mind. “Go, Nidorina!”

The second Pokéball clicked open the reveal a blue Pokémon, not too unlike Nidorino. Ignoring the switch, Alex called for Nidorino to use a Horn Attack…only to see him cuddling up to Nidorina, who was giving him seductive looks.

“C.C., no fair!” Alex whined across the stage.

“All’s fair in love and war.” C.C. grinned. “And last time I checked, we’re at war, and they’re in love. Nidorina, Double Kick in his stomach!”
Nidorina fluttered her eyelids once more before turning around and kicking the other Pokémon in the stomach, winding him and sending him flying backwards, unconscious.

“Not only has Nidorina friend zoned Nidorino, but she has also won C.C. the round!” the announcer called. Alex angrily called back Nidorino before a smile crossed his lips.

“Go, Fearow!” Alex called out. C.C. wasn’t sure what Alex was so happy about, but he didn’t like it. “We want to show you a new strategy C.C., don’t we Fearow? Use Double Team!”

C.C. gasped as Nidorina was suddenly surrounded by six Fearows, each one flapping its wings in perfect unison with the others. C.C. was just about to order Nidorina to get out, but Alex got first word in.

“Spam Aerial Ace!” Alex yelled. The giant birds dove down one after another, each one striking Nidorina with its beak. C.C. looked on in dismay; he knew that Aerial Ace never missed its target, and there were too many targets to actually strike back. It was only seconds before Nidorina collapsed, getting cheers for Alex.

“Round two goes to Alex!” the announcer called. C.C. sighed as he pulled out Zubat’s Pokéball.

*****
Yuna walked down the staircase, deeper into the ship’s cargo section. She had been…’dropped off’ onto the ship, and knew there had to be some valuables down there, maybe even an Element of Discord.

“Excuse me, no passengers are allowed down here.” Said a male voice from behind.

“Well, that’s too bad. Take it up with my friend. Muk, deal with this pest.” Yuna said as she chucked a Pokéball at the man. The ball popped open and released her Muk, who grumbled angrily at the man, who was slowly backing away at this point.

“I-I don’t want any trouble ma’am…” he said nervously.

“Well I do.” Yuna smirked. “Muk, Thunderbolt.”

The man cried out in pain as a blue lightning bold struck him and threw him backwards, slamming him into the wall. He fell to the ground face first, moaning in pain. Yuna simply turned around and headed further down the stairs.

Once at the bottom, she found large crates stacked amongst each other. Yuna grinned; there had to be some good stuff in here. Ordering another attack from Muk, Yuna began to search the crates, unaware of the consequences she was about to cause…

*****

“C’mon Fearow, snap out of it!” Alex called out to his confused Pokémon. After a long aerial battle between Zubat and Fearow, the latter had managed to take one too many Supersonic attacks. However, things weren’t looking that great for Zubat either.

“Zubat, just stay up for a few more moments, until Fearow falls!” C.C. called out to his own Pokémon. Zubat flapped his wings tiredly, panting as well. Fearow’s attacks had proved too much for his frail little body. Looking at his opponent; both came to an understanding and nodded. Having dealt too much pain to each other; both simply gave up and hit the floor in defeat.

“Both Pokémon are unable to battle, the next battle will determine the winner of this match!” The ref announced as the two locked eyes and threw out their last Pokémon.

“Bulbasaur, hang in there!”

“Squirtle, show them who’s boss!”

The two Pokémon landed not far from each other. Bulbasaur sent out two of his vines and whipped them around to intimidate Squirtle. Squirtle wanted to also intimidate his foe, so foamed his mouth with bubbles. Unfortunately, he only ended up looking like a rabid turtle.

“Begin!” the announcer yelled.

“Ten bucks Bulbasaur will knock out Squirtle with one Energy Ball.” Tim whispered to Jake/

“Deal. Squirtle isn’t to be underestimated, Alex has trained him to –“Jake said, but was cut off as Tim grabbed him and threw themselves to the ground. Looking at the ceiling, Jake watched as Squirtle soared into the wall from an Energy Ball, knocked unconscious almost immediately.

“Pay up.”

*****
Zach sat at his table, munching happily. The thing he loved about cruises the most was the 24 hour, all you can eat buffets. Of course, after a while, people tend to stare at you for taking all the food, but he didn’t care that much. He chuckled as Paras and Clefairy ran along his table and took some of his food.

“Go ahead you two, eat up.” Zach smiled. “You did pretty good in the competition, but Hayes’ Pokémon were…tactical.”

Just then, a loud clatter of china and glass came from down below. No one really noticed it, but Zach knew something was off. Getting up from his seat, he headed down a flight of stairs that had a sign saying “Crew Only” with Paras and Clefairy scuttling after him.

As he came to the final floor, Zach could not comprehend what he saw; numerous crew members sprawled across the floor. Multiple moans filled the air, disturbing Zach. Up ahead, he saw a blonde woman, chuckling to herself. Next to her was a Muk and a Jynx. Summoning his courage, Zach spoke up.

“What’s your problem?” he shouted, gaining her attention.

“Oh, fresh meat huh?” Yuna chuckled. Raising her hand, she snapped her fingers. Zach and his Pokémon gasped as a large scaly and winged Pokémon pulled itself over the crates behind her. Flicking its tail behind it, the Pokémon bared its giant fangs at Zach.

“Areodactyl, fetch.”
*****

“Charmander, use –“

“Finish it off with Quick Attack Twitch!” Hayes ordered. The small purple Pokémon zipped from side to side, before striking Charmander and sending him flying into Jake’s arms. Jake smiled at his Pokémon as the announcer yelled out the results.

“And the winner is Hayes!” he yelled. The crowd cheered, absolutely hyped for the finals. Carrying Charmander, Jake sat back next to Tim and Alex, the latter still pouting over his loss to C.C., constantly mumbling.

“Don’t worry, you put up a good fight.” Tim said as Jake sat down. “You both came down to one Pokémon; it was Twitch’s speed that got the best of you.”

“I’m not too upset, it’s only for fun. But if this happens during the Championships, I don’t think I’ll be able to say the same.”

“And now, ladies and gentlemen, what we’ve all been waiting for all day; the finals!” The announcer yelled as C.C. and Hayes both stepped up to the stage. “Contestants, I congratulate you for getting this far. The rules are the same as before, but no substitutes. Now, begin!”

“Go, Bonehead!”

“Zubat, you’re up!”

Both Pokéballs clicked open, revealing their respective Pokémon. The two glared at each other before the announcer called for the round to start. C.C. quickly ordered a Supersonic attack a second before Hayes ordered a Round attack. Both sound attacks collided and cancelled each other out, annoying the Pokémon.

“Zubat, use Gust!” C.C. ordered. Zubat began to flap its wings wildly, creating a strong gale, sending Bonehead rolling backwards. Pushing herself up, Bonehead cried out before letting loose a Frustration attack, knocking Zubat out.

“Return!” C.C. called as Zubat fell from the air, the red laser catching him just before he hit the ground. Looking up, C.C. noticed Hayes’ face had a sullen look to it; distraught almost. Shaking off his thoughts, C.C. sent out Bulbasaur.

“Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!” he called out. Bulbasaur sent two vines flying from his bulb, striking Bonehead in the face. Cubone reeled back in pain as Hayes stood with his arms crossed. He stared as Bulbasaur continued its assault, knocking Bonehead all around.

“Bonehead, use Revenge!” Hayes ordered. Bonehead suddenly looked up, a red cloud suddenly forming around her. Grabbing the two vines, the angry Cubone used all her strength to hurl Bulbasaur up into the roof, getting a shocked reaction from the crowd.

“Hey, no need to be so ruff!” C.C. called out to Hayes before looking at his dazed Bulbasaur, who had hit the ground by now. “Bulbasaur, use Energy Ball!”

“That’s not gonna do too much.” Hayes smirked, “Even if you have the type advantage.”

“You’re forgetting Bulbasaur’s ability!” C.C. said confidently, getting a confused look from Hayes. “His ability is Overgrow, meaning when his health is low, all Grass type moves are powered up! Now Bulbasaur!”

“No! Bonehead, u—“ Hayes started, but was caught off guard as the ball of green energy slammed into Bonehead, sending her flying backwards into Hayes, knocking him to the ground. The crowd began to cheer, but quickly stopped – something was wrong.

The entire ship began to shake, a loud noise, almost like metal being scratched, echoing throughout the vessel. Soon, the shaking became more violent, sending furniture flying around, and people stumbling. By now, most passengers were beginning to scream and panic, pushing past others, creating more mob mentality. Hayes and C.C. looked at each other, confused, before returning their respective Pokémon and running over to where Tim and the others were.

“C’mon, we have to get to our lifeboat stations!” he yelled over the screaming passengers.

“Tim, we got on late, we never saw our life boat stations!” Jake yelled back as someone pushed by him. Jake suddenly felt his blood run cold as he felt his belt get slightly lighter. He whipped around and saw Butterfree’s Pokéball bouncing away from him, being kicked by running people.

“No!” Jake screamed in a distressed manner before sprinting after the Pokéball.

“Jake, come back!” Alex yelled; but it was no use, Jake was gone.

“Let’s go!” Tim ordered before pushing past everyone, trying to catch up to Jake, who had by now almost gotten the Pokéball, running down a staircase.

“Jake, come on! It’s unsafe!” Tim yelled as he and the others scurried down the staircase after him.

Without any warning, the ship suddenly tilted, surprising everybody. Just as Jake grasped the Pokéball, the ship lurched again, causing him to bang his head on a nearby railing. Falling to the ground, Jake tried to look up, seeing his friends trying to desperately keep their balance, but it was no use, he hit his head pretty hard…

Then, darkness.

[MothraRocks]

Under Pressure!

Jake watched as C.C. floated by in space, surrounded by darkness. He was cross legged, reading a book. He didn’t seem to acknowledge the fact that he was defying the laws of physics.

“C.C. how are you doing that?” Jake asked amazed. C.C. either ignored him or didn’t answer. “C.C.?” Jake asked as he walked closer. Still, C.C. did not answer. Reaching out, Jake poked C.C., only to get a glare from his friend.

“What?” he hissed.

“You’re flying!” How are you doing that?!” Jake exclaimed. C.C. chuckled to himself, making Jake uneasy. It wasn’t a usual laugh; it was actually very…sinister. Jake gasped and took a step back as C.C.’s shoulders began to bulge, emitting to serpent heads. C.C. continued to laugh as his own face turned into that of an Ekans. Landing, he began to walk towards Jake, flexing new claws on his hands.

“Jake…Jake…Jake…” The three heads whispered in unison. “C’mon Jake…c’mon…”

Jake screamed and suddenly sat up right, covered in sweat. Around him were Tim, Zach and C.C. At the sight of C.C., Jake screamed again and threw himself backwards.

“Calm down!” Zach yelled. “You took a pretty nasty smack to the head.”

“You’re lucky you didn’t have a concussion.” Tim stated as Jake slowly stood up, rubbing his head.

“What happened? Where are we?” Jake asked. “Where are Alex and Hayes?”

“They’re looking for a way out.” Zach said.

“Huh? A way out from…oh crap…” Jake murmured.

“Yup. Look out the window.” C.C. said. Jake slowly turned around and saw a porthole nearby. Nervously he walked over to it…and saw nothing but a dark blue.

“We sank.” Tim said casually. Jake suddenly noticed a weird twitch beginning to develop in his eye. Trying to desperately stay calm, he turned back to the group. “How?”

“Well, apparently Zach here had a little run in with Yuna and…” Tim started, only for Jake to whip around and stomp down the hallway, furious.

*****

“Squirtle, did you find anything?” Alex asked as Squirtle emerged from the body of water in front of him. Squirtle shook his head, disappointing Alex. What had previously been stairs was now a body of salt water; the ship had a hole, and was beginning to flood.

“Any luck?” Hayes asked as he walked around the corner. Alex shook his head. “Neither has Billford.” Hayes gestured towards the Psyduck standing next to him, cradling its head.

“Muk can’t find a thing.” Yuna said quietly as she also walked up towards the two. Hayes and Alex sighed. They had all been searching for a good hour, and the only thing they had found was rising water levels. Just then, a fuming Jake came stomping around the corner, shocked from the sight of Yuna. His shock quickly turned to anger
though.

“You!” Jake yelled furiously, marching right up to her. “You did this, didn’t you? Out of all things, this is the worst. Honestly, you’re nothing but a self-centered, psychotic, piece of –“

“And you’re a whiner. Grow up.” Yuna said bluntly. “We have bigger problems right now.”

“Like what? Oh that’s right, you sunk the freaking ship.” Jake said, folding his arms.

“Well, that and the fact that the ship is on a slope.” Yuna said. She watched as the color drained from Jake’s face. She didn’t hide the joy she felt when she saw it. “Not to mention, the way the currents are at the surface, they’ve managed to form a whirlpool at the bottom of the canyon.”

“So for the last hour we’ve been trying to find a way out,” Hayes stated, “but the only thing we can find are holes that face downwards, or ones that we can’t fit through.”

“Squirtle and Billford have been looking everywhere, but they can’t find anything.” Alex said.

“So we’re trapped?!” Jake exclaimed.

“It appears so.” Hayes said.

“No, there has to be another way out…wait, Alex! Remember in fifth grade when you and I made that model of the SS Anne for Social Studies?”

“Yeah…” Alex said, not sure where Jake was going with this.

“Well remember at one part of the report we did, we had to point out a flaw?”

“Yeah, we couldn’t find any except…” Alex said before his mind finally clicked, “…how the Stern’s Port side was its thinnest point!”

“Exactly, remember what happened then?”

“We got a D.” Alex stated, clearly lost again.

“No, we explained how easy it was to puncture that side of the hull. All we have to do is get to the Stern’s Port, and pierce the hull! Then we’re home free!”

“Assuming we’re not crushed to death by the pressure.” Yuna said, still no tone in her voice. “We’re pretty deep down.”

“Because of you!” Jake snapped suddenly whipping around to Yuna and grabbing a Pokéball.

“Can it you brat!” Yuna yelled, grabbing her own Pokéball.

“Can the two of you stop for just a second?!” Hayes yelled, getting both of their attention. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but we could die down here. Now both of you shut the hell up and co-operate, or I swear, I’ll leave you both down here to drown. Get it? Got it? Good.”

Jake and Yuna starred at Hayes for a moment, unsure of how to respond. It didn’t take too long for them to turn back and glare at each other. They nodded silently, signifying a temporary truce.

“Good.” Alex said before turning to another staircase, filled with water. “Squirtle, see if you can find anything down there.”

“Squirtle!” The small blue Pokémon said before disappearing under the water, leaving only bubbles behind. The group waited a few minutes before Squirtle re-appeared, smiling and clearly excited.

“Alright, that must mean there’s a way over towards the stern.” Hayes guessed before turning to his Psyduck. “Billford, jump in the water and get ready to pull me along.”

“Wait!” Jake said. “Where’s Charmander?”
Not a split second later did his starter Pokémon come running around the corner, screaming its head off. Behind him was C.C., Zach and Tim, all chasing after him. Spotting Jake, Charmander quickly changed its course and collided with its trainer, clinging to his leg.

“Finally.” Tim said, huffing and panting, “That Pokémon is fast.”

“What’s wrong Charmander?” Jake asked as he pried the shaking Pokémon from his leg and held it up. Charmander’s eye didn’t exactly focus, he was simply looking around everywhere, a paranoid look on his face.

“Char Charmander, Char Char!” The Pokémon cried as it flailed about before pointing to the windows, the body of water, and pretty much everywhere else.

“Oh yeah…water.” Jake muttered as he unclipped a Pokéball from his belt. “Charmander, you’re gonna have to stay in your Pokéball for this one, ok?”

“Char, char!” The Pokémon cried out as it struggled even more. Jake sighed before holding up the Pokéball and returning Charmander. Pulling out another Pokéball, he threw it into the air, the light it released taking on the form of Horsea. Yuna silently glared at the Pokémon before turning away.

“Horsea, could you –“Jake started, but was abruptly cut off from a sudden movement of the ship. Every yelled out as the ship slid down further along the underwater cliff, closer to the never ending abyss and whirlpool. Slowing down, the ship came to a halt, but everyone knew it wouldn’t be long before the ship lurched again. Jake stood up groggily before heading towards the body of water.

“C’mon, we have to get out of here before it’s too late.”

“If the ship falls into the canyon…” C.C. started, “then the underwater pressure is going to be like crushing an empty soda can…”

Knowing the direness of the situation, everyone began pulling out their Pokéballs and headed for the water in front of them. Grabbing Horsea and Squirtle, Jake and Alex looked at each other and nodded before disappearing underwater.

Meanwhile, something very, very large eyed the ship from the abyss.

[MothraRocks]

Horsea sped along underwater with Jake holding on, right behind Alex and Squirtle. Pulling upwards, Jake and Horsea broke through the surface, revealing another hallway. Clambering out, Jake shook off the salty water just as Hayes and his Psyduck emerged. Holding out his arm, Alex pulled Jake and Hayes out. Behind them, Tim emerged with a Lapras, with Yuna, Zach and C.C. holding on as well. The giant water Pokémon just managed to fit into the small pool of water as it rose up.

“Thanks Lapras. Return.” Tim said as they all jumped off.

“Where now?” Yuna asked, a neutral look on her face.

“Uh…Alex? Any idea?” Jake asked. Alex looked just as puzzled though.

“Well, what if we split up –“ Zach started.

“No!” C.C. yelled. “What if half of us find a way out and escape, while the other half is left to die?!”

“Well then, let’s just walk down the hallway.” Alex commented. Jake turned around and returned his Shiny Pokémon before catching up with the rest of the group. It wasn’t long until they came across a door that said “Crew Only. Danger”. So naturally, they went in.

“Whoa…” Alex said as he stepped into the room. Everyone else gasped. The room was gigantic, made of black metal. Across on the other side of the room was a metal door. The only reason they didn’t rush over to it was because the room was flooded. In fact, the group soon realized they were on a platform, one that would have normally stood a good thirty feet in the air, but was nearly touching the water’s surface.

“So we have to swim. Big deal.” Yuna said before diving in and began to swim for the other door. The others looked at each other as the slowly began to get in, one after another. Soon, Jake and C.C. were all the were left on the platform.

Underwater, something eyed Tim’s foot.

“Well, are you going in?” C.C. asked.

It began to move towards its target.

“Yeah…you first.” Jake said nervously.

It began to close in.

“Don’t tell me you’re scared.” C.C. said mockingly.

“What about you? You’re not in either!” Jake accused. Their argument was suddenly stopped short by a scream. The two turned and saw Tim suddenly get pulled under water by something.

“Tim?” Zach asked as he and the others treaded in the water, the tension becoming high. The room fell silent.

Jake was about to jump in after him, but changed his mind as soon as the water surface erupted, revealing a large blue blob with two red sphere’s on either side of its head. It glared at the group before raising a black tentacle, which was wrapped around Tim. Tim thrashed about, trying to break its grip.

“What is that thing?” Jake asked alarmed as he whipped out his Pokédex.

“Tentacruel. The Jellyfish Pokémon. Tentacruel has tentacles that can be freely elongated and shortened at will. It ensnares prey with its tentacles and weakens the prey by dosing it with a harsh toxin. It can catch up to 80 prey at the same time. Tentacruel has large red orbs on its head. The orbs glow before lashing the vicinity with a harsh ultrasonic blast. This Pokémon’s outburst creates rough waves around it.”

“Oh crud.” C.C. said as the color slowly began to drain from Tim’s face. It was obvious the poison was beginning to take effect.

“Hold on Tim!” Go, Skydive!” Hayes yelled out as he tossed a Pokéball. “Use Peck!”

“Row!” The small Spearow crowed out as it dove towards the tentacle laced Pokémon. However, it was quickly stopped in its tracks as Tentacruel raised an arm to batter the small bird away into the water. Hayes couldn’t even recall his Pokémon; the Tentacruel moved too quickly and wrapped it’s arm around the bird, hoisting it up in the air as well.

“Squirtle, Fearow, go!” Alex called. His two Pokémon erupted from their Pokéballs and began speeding towards the giant Pokémon. “Use Bubblebeam and Drill Peck!”

“Squirtle!” the tiny water Pokémon cried as it fired a barrage of explosive bubbles upon Tentacruel, followed up by Fearow slamming his spinning beak into the creature’s hide.

“Cruel!” The Pokémon yelled out angrily. Squirtle and Fearow were both take a back when its tentacles began to flail about before stretching and attacking everyone in the room.

“Let go!” Zach yelled as he was plucked out of the water. Everyone yelled out in surprise and pain as the grip began to tighten on them. They soon began to feel woozy from the poison beginning to seep in through their skin, with everything going out of focus.

Jake thought of Tentacruel. What could defeat it? It seemingly shrugged off attacks…but what? Jake suddenly focused on its typing… Poison and water.

‘No Electric types around…’ Jake though as he began to black out. Suddenly a memory clicked in his head; back in Cerulean when Yuna had just gotten Jynx…it wiped out C.C.’s Pokémon with ease because they were…Poison typed!

“Yuna!” Jake called out. Turning around, Yuna managed to face the teen, but not without difficulty. “Tentacruel is part Poison type! You need to –“

“Jynx!” Yuna called as she tossed a Pokéball, “Use Psychic!”

The humanoid Pokémon landed in the water and wasted no time in sending a wave of Psychic energy at the jellyfish Pokémon. Tentacruel cried out in agony as he released his grip on the trainers, sending them plummeting into the water. Re-emerging, Jake grabbed Butterfree’s Pokéball and released the Bug Pokémon, ordering a Confusion
attack. Tentacruel cried out before finally going limp.

The group quickly pulled themselves up onto the other platform, gasping for breath. After a minute, they all turned to face the unconscious Pokémon.

“How’d it even get in here?” Hayes asked.

“Probably through a hole.” Zach said.

“Well, let’s keep going.” Tim said, ushering everyone to move along. He noticed Zach staring at the Tentacruel. “Zach? C’mon.”

“We can’t just leave it here. Even though it’s a Water Pokémon, it can only withstand so much pressure once this ship finally gives way.”

“Don’t look at me, I already have too many Poison types.” C.C. commented. Zach looked at him and sighed before pulling out a Pokéball and tossing it at the unconscious attacker. It didn’t even wiggle once it was sucked inside. Zach held out his hand as the ball flew back towards him, silently happy with his newest catch.

“That’s all fine and dandy,” Yuna said, “But I’d like to get out of here sometime before I die.”

“Can you relax?” Jake snapped back.

“I am relaxed you brat!” Yuna hissed, venom in her voice.

“Shut up, both of you. We’re almost there.” Hayes said, pushing past the two and opening the door. Behind it was a long hallway, the wall painted yellow and the carpet blue. However, unlike the rest of the ship, the wall here was curved, signifying they were near the bow.

“That’s it.” Alex said as he walked forward. “The thinnest part of the hull.”

“So how do we open it?” C.C. asked. He was answered by Jake releasing Charmander from his Pokéball.

“Charmander, use Fire Spin on the hull!” Jake ordered. Nothing happened. Jake looked down at Charmander and saw him with his arms crossed, a defiant look on his face. Sighing, Jake knelt down next to him. “C’mon, please Charmander?”

“Char.” Charmander said bluntly, turning his head away.

“Charmander, we’ll be stuck here forever!” Jake pleaded.

“Char char char, Charmander!” The small orange Pokémon said in an annoyed tone, turning away from Jake.

“Fine, I’ll do this myself!” Jake yelled as he raised his foot.

“Oh God Jake, don’t!” C.C. yelled, but it was too late; Jake brought his foot down, full force, onto Charmander’s tail. The Pokémon’s eyes went wide for a moment before he opened his mouth, shooting a stream of flames at the hull. It took only seconds before water began to gush into the ship.

“Char!” Charmander yelled at Jake as he grasped his sore tail and growled at him. However, he quickly switched his focus to the oncoming water and began to flee. Jake quickly pulled out his Pokéball and recalled Charmander before pulling out Horsea’s.

“Ready?” Tim asked. Jake turned around and already saw him sitting on his Lapras, along with C.C., Zach and Yuna. “Once we get out you have to head straight for the surface. The ship is gonna begin to slide, and it will suck you down!”

“Alright, ready!” Alex called, the water already up to his waist.

“See you at the surface!” Tim called before Lapras disappeared underwater and headed outside the hole Charmander had created. Nervous, Jake turned to face Alex and Hayes.

“R-ready?” He asked.

“Me and Billford are.” Hayes said as he grabbed his Psyduck. Taking a breath, he went underwater, leaving just Jake and Alex.

“Just head straight up.” Alex said reassuringly, nodding at Jake. Jake nodded back before Alex went under.

Jake felt absolutely sick to the stomach. He had to travel outside, into the dark ocean. The ship was gonna slide soon. He didn’t know what else was out there. Taking a breath, he shook the feeling from himself a released Horsea. The Pokémon sparkled as it came out, facing its owner.

“Ok Horsea…” Jake gulped as the water reached his chest, “Let’s go!”

Jake grabbed his Water Pokémon and submerged himself underwater. He felt Horsea pull him along, fighting the current of the gushing water. Jake began to kick his legs, trying to help. He continued to kick until his legs burned.

Jake suddenly felt the force of the rushing water ease off of him. He opened his eyes and felt the saltwater burn them, but shrugged off the pain and looked around. Behind him he saw the ship on a large rocky slope. A shiver ran through Jake’s spine as the ship suddenly began to slide, having taken on too much water. Desperate, he and Horsea began to make their way to the surface, but it was no use; the ship finally gave way and fell off the slope, its suction dragging Horsea and Jake downwards.

Not a second later did Jake feel his path change; he was now being pulled sideways instead of downwards. Alarmed, Jake turned around to see what was causing. He screamed, resulting in bubbles shooting to the surface. Behind him was the raging whirlpool. At the speeds it was going, it would literally rip Jake and Horsea apart. Panicking, the two began to try and escape the pull, but to no avail.

Jake’s vision began to blur. He was running out of air. He could see Horsea desperately trying to pull him along in vain, saddening him. Just as his muscles began to slacken, something in the corner of his eye caught Jake’s attention; he turned once more and starred in complete fear.

A large creature was swimming towards him. It was quite long and streamline, and swam up and down to propel itself. Jake could barely make out any other features; everything was coated in gray from the lack of light. The only thing Jake could make out were its ice blue eyes, piercing the darkness with their glow.

Jake once again felt his adrenaline pump, but had no energy to expel it properly. He was so exhausted that he simply went limp. Just as Jake began to finally black out, he heard something…a song. It immediately began to sooth him. Jake didn’t know anything anymore, he was nearly dead. But he knew the creature was emitting the song. It was nothing more but a low hum, but it was beautiful.

Jake and Horsea watched in awe and shock as the creature swam even closer to them. It stopped just before it approached them, and gazed at them while quietly humming. Before Jake and Horsea even knew what was happening, the large creature ducked its head under them before bringing it back up swiftly. Jake and Horsea suddenly felt themselves being pushed up to the surface by the creature, its humming becoming louder and faster, its ice blue eyes lighting up.

Jake yelled as he was suddenly slung from the ocean by the creature’s tail before falling back under the surface. Looking around, he faintly saw the creature’s shape in the distance, swimming away. After it a few more seconds, it disappeared, along with its song.

Surfacing, Jake and Horsea looked around; it was late evening, with the sunset in the distant horizon. Turning to the left Jake suddenly noticed a shape speeding towards him…Lapras!

“Jake! Are you alright?” Tim called out as Lapras pulled itself alongside Jake. Sliding over, Alex held out is hand and helped Jake up.

“Yeah I’m fine…” Jake’s voice trailed off.

“Shaken up from the ship?” Zach asked, patting him on the back.

“It’s not that… underwater…we saw something…I don’t know if it was a Pokémon or what, but it saved me and Horsea…”

“Well, the ocean is full of unsolved mysteries.” Tim stated, “We know more about our own Moon’s surface than we do about our ocean floor.”

Jake simply gazed at the setting sun as Lapras began to move itself along the water. This whole ‘Pokémon Quest’ was getting pretty crazy, in both good ways and bad ways. Either way, it was fun.

“Wait, where’s Yuna?” Jake asked, suddenly spinning around.

“You’re not gonna believe this, but as soon as she surface, she flew away on…an Areodactyl.” C.C. said.

“Great. Just great.” Jake muttered.

“Hey, look!” Hayes shouted, pointing ahead. In the distance, a thin stretch of land could be seen, with small lines poking up all over it.

“No way that’s Celadon.” C.C. said as they continued to advance towards it.

“You’re right,” Tim said, smiling. “It’s Fuchsia City. Home to the Poison type Gym of Kanto.”

“Well, looks like we have something to look forward too.” Jake said as he turned to his two friends. They both smiled and nodded. Suddenly, a bright light shot forth from
Jake’s belt, surprising everyone. The light eventually clustered together and took on a familiar form.

“Charmander!” The small Pokémon cried out happily before jumping into Jake’s lap. Laughing, Jake placed a hand on his friend before turning his head back to Fuchsia City, ready to take on the next challenge.

[MothraRocks]

Pokémon Ninja!

Jake, Alex and C.C. all trudged their way to the Pokémon Center’s buffet line, their stomachs no longer growling, but roaring with hunger. Behind them, Charmander collapsed, falling asleep as soon as he hit the floor.

“Oh good God,” Alex murmured as he filled his plate with the nearest source of food, “I’m about to die of hunger.”

“I’m gonna take a nap upstairs.” Jake said as he turned around, alarmed by the sight of Charmander. “Oh crap…”

“Oh crap is right.” Said an annoyed female voice; Jake turned around and saw a frowning Nurse Joy behind him. “You shouldn’t put yourself before your Pokémon! Here, all of you give me your Pokémon, I’ll heal them up.”

The three trainers pulled their Pokéballs and handed them over to Nurse Joy without any hesitation. Jake handed over his three and Charmander, before telling her about Charmander not liking Pokéballs. Just as Nurse Joy turned around with the basket full of Pokéballs, a bright light shot forth from one, taking on the form of Zubat in the air.

“Zubat!” it called out happily before zipping around everywhere.

“Someone’s energetic.” C.C. commented on as he watched Zubat fly around in circles before turning to Nurse Joy, “I don’t think he needs any healing, I’ll keep him out for now.”

Nurse Joy nodded before turning around and headed into the back room with Chansey. Turning back, the trio suddenly noticed Zubat was gouging on their plates of food at the table.

“Zubat, stop it!” C.C. yelled as he ran towards the bat Pokémon, chasing him off. But it was too late; all of the food had been eaten, leaving nothing more than a few crumbs on the plates.

“It’s fine, we can just get some more from the buffet.” Alex said just as a man walked over the buffet line, putting up a sign that said ‘closed’ on it. All three of them moaned.

“You boys are always whining about everything.” Said a familiar female voice. The three turned around, shocked to see a red haired girl in a yellow top and daisy dukes.

“Misty?!” Jake exclaimed.

“Yup!” she said happily as she walked over to them, “anything exciting happened since I last saw you three?”

*****
“So then…where’s everyone else gone?” Misty asked after the three had explained everything to her.

“Hayes is headed to Celadon, Yuna flew off somewhere, Zach is staying with a friend somewhere just outside of Fuchsia City, and Tim said he was headed back to Vermillion to explain exactly what happened.” Jake said as his stomach growled loudly.

“Well, sounds like you’ve all gone quite a while without food.” Misty winked, getting Jake to blush again, “I always pack some food, here!”

Reaching into her bag, Misty pulled out a few rice balls, some sauce having been poured on it. The boys didn’t hesitate with grabbing at it, their hunger growing at a horrible rate, and shoved it into their mouths, quite content afterwards. Until Zubat began to dive bomb them again.

“Zubat, stop it!” C.C. ordered before pulling out a Pokéball. “Return!”

Zubat was suddenly engulfed in a bright red light, which was quickly retracted into the Pokéball. C.C. put the shaking Pokéball away and apologizing to Misty.

“Well, which one of you are gonna challenge the Gym?” Misty inquired.

“Uh, we haven’t really thought of that yet.” Jake said, “We kinda think of it on the spot.”

“I bet you and Charmander will do great,” Misty said softly as she leaned closer to Jake. Jake blushed before falling backwards clumsily, leaving Alex and C.C, snickering
behind him.

“Here’s your Pokémon!” Nurse Joy said as she walked up to them. “All nice and fit for fighting!”

The three thanked her as they recollected their Pokémon, Charmander jumping down by Jake’s foot and waving happily at Misty, who returned the gesture.

“C’mon,” she said, “I’ll show you where the Gym is.”

*****

“Misty, are you sure we’re going the right way?” Jake asked as another tree branch swung and hit him in the face.

“Positive, now pipe down, you’ll attract wild Pokémon.” She said before disappearing into the bushes again. Jake sighed before following, with Charmander now straying too far. The gang hadn’t expected the Gym to be way out in the forest; they had been walking for a good forty minutes now, just desperately trying to find it.

“Over here!” Misty’s voice rang through the dense foliage. The three trainers suddenly began pushing past each other, rushing to get to the Gym first – only to find themselves on the edge of a cliff, hundreds of feet high.

“Whoa!” Jake yelled as he began to fall, only to be saved by Alex pulling on his collar. Jake fell backwards, huffing.

“How do we get over THIS?” C.C. exclaimed, barely looking over the edge, vertigo overcoming his body.

“That bridge over – oh dear…” Misty started, pointing off into the distance. The boys looked, gasping at the sight of the old bridge, looking horribly out of shape.

“We have to cross THAT?” Alex asked. “Let’s skip this…seven Gym badges are good enough.”

“The bridge was in better condition last time…oh well. Let’s go guys!” Misty said as she confidently walked towards the bridge.

“Wow Jake, got a real girlfriend there.” C.C. teased as he walked by.

“She’s not my girlfriend!” Jake snapped, leaving Alex and C.C. laughing.

“Char, char.” Charmander said as he tugged on Jake’s pant leg, signally him to go.

*****
“C’mon, you can do it!” Alex yelled to Jake.

“No, I’m gonna fall to my death!” he yelled back. Everyone except him had crossed the bridge; he even had Pidgey and Butterfree out to try and help him. Jake wasn’t the
fondest of heights.

“For Pete’s sake.” Misty said as she drew a Pokéball and tossed it into the air. From within it, a giant blue serpent emerged, with devious red eyes. “Gyarados, give him a lift.” Misty continued as she rolled her eyes. Gyarados let out a low roar as it stretched out and picked Jake up by the backpack before dropping him off with the others.

“Thanks…”Jake’s voice trailed off.

“Mm-hmm.” Misty said casually before withdrawing Gyarados and turning around. In front of her was an old Asian-looking building, the roof a beautiful emerald color. “You
guys go on in…I’ll catch up with you later.”

“Um, ok.” C.C. answered as he headed into the building, followed by Alex. Jake looked at Misty…she was up to something. Deciding not to question it anymore, he headed in after the other two, the old wooden door slamming behind them.

Inside was old and barren, nothing but a large room with a few windows and a door at the end. The three looked around a bit more – no one was here.

“Nat!” Came a high pitched voice from behind the three. The trio whipped around to see a small purple creature, covered in fur with big red eyes and two antennas sitting on top of its head, staring at them.

“What’s that?” Alex asked as he pulled out his Pokédex.

“Venonat, the Insect Pokémon. Venonat is said to have evolved with a coat of thin, stiff hair that covers its entire body for protection. It possesses large eyes that never fail to spot even miniscule prey. Its eyes act as radar, enabling it to be active in darkness. The eyes can also shoot powerful beams.”

“That’s a weird looking Pokémon.” C.C. commented as Venonat called its name again. It stared at the group a second more before sprinting to the other end of the room. Shocked, the three ran after it.

“So, you three are the challengers of my Gym?” Rang a voice, causing them to stop in the middle of the room out of shock. Venonat finally arrived at the door, jumping up and down again as a breeze blew. Suddenly, a figure, which was seemingly pulled out of thin air, stood in front of the doorway.

“Who –“ Jake started but was cut off by the man.

“My name is Koga.” He said in a very rough accent, suggesting English wasn’t his first language, “I am the Ninja Master and Gym Leader of this facility. Defeat the puzzle and you have earned the right to battle me. Come Venonat.”

With that, Koga disappeared through the doorway into the other room, leaving the three in huge hall, obviously confused.

“What puzzle?” Jake asked.

“Who cares? Let’s go before –“Alex said before walking face first into seemingly nothing. He cried out in pain as he grabbed his nose.

“What? What’s wrong?” C.C. asked, only for Alex to point right in front of him. Curiously, he put his arm out; meeting what seemed to be an invisible force.

“What is it?” Jake asked as Charmander tried to desperately push against the force.

“It’s…an invisible wall!” C.C. exclaimed, touching it again. “This must be a maze we have to get through.”

“Well I’m not going first,” Alex said as he spun around and began walking in the opposite direction, only to slam into another wall.

“Oh crap.” C.C. started; sweat beginning to show on his face.

“We’re trapped.” Jake gulped.

[MothraRocks]

“Not good, not good!” C.C. said as he pushed against the invisible walls. “Why are we suddenly in a box? How’d we get into it in the first place?”

“Who cares?” Alex asked, kicking at seemingly nothing, “let’s just get out of here!”

Backing up, Alex began to take a few deep breaths before charging at full speed towards the wall, only to find it was no longer there. He yelled out as he lost his balance and fell face first to the ground, yelling in pain.

“Wait, wasn’t there a wall just there?” Jake asked as he began to advance, slowly.

“I didn’t see one.” C.C. answered, getting a dirty look from Jake.

“Well duh, it – where’d Charmander go?” Jake asked, suddenly spinning around. On the opposite side if the room, he saw Charmander wandering around very awkwardly,
his arms stretched outwards. The three watched as he bumped into a wall and fell backwards, growling in frustration.

“How’d you get all the way over there Charmander?” Alex asked.

“Come here Charmander,” Jake said, making his way towards the orange Pokémon. He yelled out as he face planted against another wall. “This isn’t funny!”

“Well, we defiantly know the walls are moving…” C.C. said, “But how? It’s strange enough that they’re invisible walls, but moving as well? This is just weird.”

Charmander jumped back up for the umpteenth time, furious. He was sick of these walls; they weren’t amusing in the slightest. Taking a step forward, he felt himself slam into yet another wall. That was it, he couldn’t handle it anymore. Taking a breath, Charmander released a torrent of hot air and dozens of small embers, building up against the wall.

“No, Charmander, don’t!” C.C. cried out, “The entire building is made of wood! It could –“

Before C.C. could finish, a loud slam echoed throughout the hall, resulting in Charmander ceasing his attack.

“CHAR!” Charmander said in annoyed tone before walking through where the wall used to be, fazing the three trainers.

“Note to self; fire is super effective against invisible walls.” Jake said as Charmander drew another breath, the heat around him becoming evident.

*****

The door slowly creaked open as the three Pokémon trainers entered the room. They glanced around without fully entering, just craning their necks in. All they saw was an empty battle field and bleachers.

“Took you long enough.” Came a female voice. All heads turned to the bleachers on the left side, revealing Misty sitting down.

“I concur.” Koga’s voice echoed throughout the hall, before he mysteriously appeared on the other side of the battle field, seemingly out of thin air once again. “How did you find my –“

“They’ve been burnt to ashes. All of them.” Alex blurted out. For the first time, Koga’s eyes went wide with shock. He looked like he was about to lose it, but recollected himself just in time.

“Very well…which of you are to challenge me?” He demanded, his arms crossed.

“Me!” Alex and Jake yelled out at the same time. The two faced each other and snarled; they weren’t about to back down. That is until, C.C. pushed between them.

“I will!” He yelled, already grabbing a Pokéball from his belt.

“Very well.” Koga nodded as Jake and Alex went and sat in the bleachers, sulking.

“I choose you, Bulbasaur!” C.C. yelled as he threw his Pokéball into the air, clicking open and releasing the small grass and poison type.

“Interesting. Go, Koffing!” Koga said as his own Pokéball flew through the air, releasing what appeared to be a purple sphere full of craters. “Koffing, use Tackle!”

“Koffing!” The poisonous Pokémon bellowed as it charged towards Bulbasaur.

“Dodge it!” C.C. ordered. Bulbasaur jumped out of the way, leaving Koffing to crash into the ground. “Now use Razor Leaf!”

Bulbasaur swung his body from side to side as multiple leafs shot from the side of his bulb, slicing Koffing’s sides upon impact, getting a cry of pain from him.

“Koffing, keep your focus!” Koga called out, “Use Sludge!”

“Koffing!” The purple Pokémon replied before opening its mouth, releasing a purplish, black sludge that shot at Bulbasaur, knocking him off his feet.

“Bulbasaur…” The small Grass Pokémon said as it stood up. C.C. was shocked – Bulbasaur shouldn’t have taken that much damage from a Poison type attack.

“Bulbasaur, use Energy Ball!” C.C. yelled out. Bulbasaur opened his mouth, letting a small ball of green light begin to grow.

“Koffing, dodge!” Koga ordered, just as the sphere of energy whizzed from Bulbasaur’s mouth. The ball exploded where Koffing had been a second ago, creating a cloud of dust.

“Bulbasaur, use Vine Whip to grab Koffing!” C.C. said before two vines shot out from under Bulbasaur’s bulb and wrapping around Koffing, shocking him. “Good, now reel him in before using Energy Ball!” Bulbasaur cried out before pulling Koffing closer to him while charging up an Energy Ball, scaring Koffing.

“Koffing!” Koga yelled out, just as Koffing was dead smack in front of Bulbasaur’s face, a small smile appeared on his lips. “Self-Destruct!”

“Bulbasaur, look out!” C.C. yelled as Koffing began to glow a reddish color, followed by being cloaked in heat. “Use Energy Ball!”

“Bulba!” Bulbasaur cried out just as a light burst forth from Koffing. Bulbasaur didn’t have time to properly charge up a full energy ball, and was covered in smoke once Koffing finally exploded. Up in the stands, Jake, Alex and Misty all went down for cover as the gust of air washed over them.

“Bulbasaur?” C.C. called out into the smoky field. A tense silence followed before the cry of Bulbasaur filled the air, relieving C.C. and the others. However, once the dust finally settled, Bulbasaur wasn’t as ok as he sounded.

“Oh my gosh.” Misty said, looking at Bulbasaur. He was barely standing, scratches and dust all over him, his legs quaking beneath his weight. Opposite to him was the unconscious Koffing, now black from the explosion, laying on the ground. Silently and calmly, Koga recalled his Pokémon.

“How did Bulbasaur survive through such a strong attack?” Alex asked, staring at the injured Pokémon.

“Just as Koffing exploded, Bulbasaur fired an Energy Ball, right?” Misty asked, getting Alex and Jake to nod, “Well, the Energy Ball was fired back at him, getting him to take the damage instead. However, it also acted as a shield, blocking most of the explosion. I’m sure if he had charged up a better attack, he would have taken less damage, considering he would have been hit by a Grass attack.”

Jake and Alex nodded in agreement before turning back to the battle. From his belt, Koga threw another Pokéball.

“Venonat, help rid me of this opponent! “He called as the Pokéball clicked open, releasing the Pokémon from earlier. The small purple Pokémon jumped around while calling out its name.

“Bulbasaur, you still ok to fight?” C.C. asked. He was quite surprised when Bulbasaur suddenly stood tall and bellowed out a war cry, his vines flailing. C.C. smiled. “Ok, use Razor Leaf!”

“Bulba, Bulba, Bulba, Bulba!” Bulbasaur cried angrily as it swung from side to side, releasing multiple leaf projectiles, headed straight for Venonat.

“Venonat, dodge!” Koga said assertively. Up in the bleachers, the three watched on in amazement as Venonat easily avoided every single leaf, bending and twisting in ways it didn’t appear capable of.

“Vine Whip!” C.C. ordered just as two dark vines shot forth from the bulb on Bulbasaur’s back. Again, Venonat jumped out of the way gracefully before landing back on its feet.

“Good. Venonat, use Supersonic!” Koga yelled. Venonat let out a high pitched cry in the form of yellow sound waves, hitting Bulbasaur. C.C. gritted his teeth as Bulbasaur began too loose his balance, and wobble around on the battle field.

“C’mon Bulbasaur, snap out of it!” C.C. yelled, “Use Vine Whip again!”

“Saur…” Bulbasaur said dizzily as two vines slowly emerged from his bulb again. C.C. sighed as one vine dropped to the ground while the other suddenly slapped Bulbasaur across the head.

“Enough of this.” Koga said, in a voice so stern it sent a shiver down C.C.’s spine, “Venonat, use Psybeam!”

“Venonat!” the small Pokémon cried before letting loose a rainbow colored ray from its eyes. The beam struck Bulbasaur, causing him to cry out and slide across the floor in pain.

“Saur!” Bulbasaur suddenly cried angrily. It stood up before charging an Energy Ball and firing it, striking Venonat square in the chest and knocking him back. C.C. was stunned; he hadn’t realized how angry Bulbasaur was.

“Hey, what’s that green stuff around Bulbasaur?” Jake asked. Once the others looked, they saw he was right; there seemed to be a green aura around the Pokémon.

“That must be his ability Overgrow.” Misty said, “When Bulbasaur gets very weak, his ability will activate, enhancing the power of his Grass type moves, not to mention the Same Type Attack Bonus.”

“Well, I’d say Venonat is officially screwed.” Alex said smirking at the purple Pokémon desperately tried to stand back up, shaking as it did. However, this did not deter Koga at all.

“Venonat, show our opponent what other tricks we have up our sleeve.” He commanded.

“Venonat!” The small Pokémon cried as it stood back up finally. Suddenly, the small Pokémon was cloaked in a mystical glow, its form rising up into the air. C.C. and
Bulbasaur stood in awe as Venonat’s shape became narrow, with two long blades growing out from its sides. Finally, the light died down, revealing a bright pink moth creature, with three horns on its head and two glassy eyes.

“What is that?” C.C. said as he whipped out his Pokédex in panic, Bulbasaur taking a step backwards.

“Venomoth, the poison moth Pokémon. The wings are covered with dust like scales. Every time it flaps its wings, it loses highly toxic dust that activate once it makes contact with the skin.”

“Uh-oh…” Jake said as Charmander began to fiddle with his tail nervously. Bulbasaur took another step backwards while watching Venonat flap its wings at incredible speeds.

“Venomoth, use Psybeam!” Koga ordered. In the blink of an eye, Venomoth fired a multi-colored ray from its horns, leaving Bulbasaur with no time to react.

“Saur!” The seed Pokémon cried out in pain as it was suddenly hurled backwards, landing at C.C.’s feet. The Pokémon tried to stand back up before succumbing to the pain and collapsing, giving Koga the win.

“Return Bulbasaur.” C.C. said, putting away the Pokéball. He looked back up at Venomoth; it was fast. Faster than pretty much any Pokémon he had seen before, or had with him for that matter. Finally, C.C. made his decision and pulled out another Pokéball.

“Zubat, c’mon out!” The trainer yelled as the Pokéball whirled through the air, releasing the small, blue bat seconds afterwards. Up in the stands, Jake and Alex grinned.

“Pretty smart, after seeing how hyperactive Zubat was this morning.” Alex said, getting Jake to nod in agreement.

“Still, with Venomoth knowing that Psybeam attack, it has the type advantage covered.” Jake added in.

“Zubat, use Bite!” C.C. yelled. Zubat didn’t hesitate, and took off at speeds much faster than usual. Opening its mouth, Zubat prepared to bite down on Venomoth, only to have its opponent dart to the side, out of the way. Zubat screeched as it hit a wall, not able to stop in time.

“Venomoth, finish it with Psybeam.” Koga said, arms crossed. Charging up, Venomoth fired a multi-colored ray, striking the grounded Zubat on the back.

“Bat!” The small Pokémon cried as it took the ray on, full force. C.C. gasped as the ray died down, revealing Zubat to be barely moving, face down.

“Is that your back up plan?” Koga asked smugly, “Send out a weak little Zubat?”

“Why don’t you shut up?” C.C. demanded angrily, “Don’t talk about Zubat like that.”

“But it’s true boy. Look at it, it’s helpless.” Koga gestured. “I guess Bulbasaur was your only real threat.”

Suddenly, a bright light in the corner of Koga’s eye caught his attention. He and C.C. turned to look just in time to see a new figure in the air, the light around him dying down as it flapped its gigantic wings.

“Gol!” The Pokémon cried in a low voice while C.C. held his Pokédex up to it;

“Golbat, the Bat Pokémon and evolved form of Zubat. Golbat bites down on prey with its four fangs and drinks the victim's blood. It becomes active on inky dark moonless nights, flying around to attack people and Pokémon.”

“Awesome!” Alex called out from the stands, with Charmander looking on, quite excited. Down below, C.C. grinned happily.

“Ready Golbat?” he asked, with Golbat glaring at Venomoth, “Use Confuse Ray!”

“Golbat!” The Pokémon cried as a transparent yellow ray shot forth from its mouth, covering Venomoth. Koga watched wide eyed as C.C. ordered an Air Cutter attack, with Golbat’s wings glowing before firing off several air ‘disks’, striking Venomoth square in the chest.

“Venomoth, counter with Stun Spore!” Koga managed to get out. Unfortunately, Venomoth was suffering from Confusion, and only managed to hover around in a very awkward way.

“Golbat, finish it off with Bite!” C.C. yelled happily. Golbat raced towards Venomoth before clamping down on its body with its fangs, getting a cry of pain from Venomoth. Shaking it around, Golbat finally released it by throwing it into a wall, knocking it out.

“Great job Golbat!” C.C. yelled excitedly as he rushed over to hug his new Pokémon. He felt the giant bat Pokémon wrap its giant wings around him as it let out a cry of happiness. Up in the bleachers, Jake and Alex clapped, with Misty smiling.

“That was pure luck.” Koga said sternly as C.C. returned to his position.

“Not really…more like skill. Something you and Venomoth obviously lacked.” C.C. replied in a cocky manner, setting of a spark inside Koga.

“Child, I’m about to teach you some manners!” Koga yelled as he whipped a final Pokéball from his belt, “Go, Victreebel!”

The Pokéball whirled in the air before clicking open and unleashing a bright light. The light landed on the ground and built up into a large form before finally dying down, revealing a massive plant-like creature.

“What is that!?” Jake asked, alarmed. The giant plant Pokémon flailed its lone brown vine around while snapping its mouth open and close, letting out small hisses. Next to him, Jake saw Misty cringe.

“Ugh, I hate those Pokémon!” She exclaimed while backing away, “They’re so creepy!”

“What do you mean?” Alex asked before pulling out his Pokédex.

“Victreebel, the Flycatcher Pokémon. Victreebel has a long vine that extends from its head. This vine is waved and flicked about as if it were an animal to attract prey. When an unsuspecting prey draws near, this Pokémon swallows it whole.”

“That’s not good.” Jake said before turning back to the battle.

“It’s fine, right Golbat?” C.C. asked confidently, with Golbat crying out. “Awesome. Now, use Air Cutter!”

Golbat let out another cry before speeding upwards. Once he was high in the air, Golbat extended his large wings, which began to glow. A second later, multiple ‘blades’ of air shot forth from them, headed straight towards Victreebel. Dust and dirt flew up into the air upon impact, completely cloaking the giant plant Pokémon.

“Haha! Great job Golbat!” C.C. cheered as Golbat lowered itself, quite happy with its attack. However, once the dust settled, C.C. gasped; Victreebel looked completely unscathed, like it hadn’t even felt the attack.

“How is that possible?! They scored a direct hit!” Alex exclaimed.

“And Golbat used a Flying type move as well, that should have been super effective!” Jake added in, with Charmander staring at the field in disbelief.

“A Flying type attack on my Grass type? How original.” Koga mocked. “Surely you don’t think I wouldn’t have thought of a way to counter them?”

C.C. gritted his teeth in frustration. “Golbat, use Air Cutter again, followed by Bite attack!”

Again, Golbat stretched out his wings, firing of several blades of air again, striking Victreebel right in the body. Then, without missing a beat, dove down baring his fangs, ready to sink his teeth into his opponent.

“Victreebel, use Bullet Seed.” Koga said.

“Victree!” The Grass Pokémon screeched out before firing dozens upon dozens of glowing seeds at Golbat, striking his face. Golbat, faced with the sudden attack, could not keep his balance and ended up crashing to the ground. Before it could even look back up, Victreebel shot its long vine outwards, and grabbed the bat Pokémon. C.C. watched in horror as Golbat was lifted dozens of feet into the air before being brought back down and slammed into the floor of the gym, dazing him.

“Golbat, return!” C.C. said, not wanting him to faint. Nervous, he pulled out another Pokéball. “Go, Nidorina!”

Nidorina popped out of the Pokéball and let out an angry cry at the sight of Victreebel before scraping the ground with its foot, trying to intimidate its foe.

“Nidorina, Horn Attack!” C.C. ordered, throwing his arm out as he did. Nidorina charged at Victreebel, the horn on its head glowing and elongating. Just before it reached Victreebel though, the giant Grass Pokémon shoved it’s two leafs in front of it. Once Nidorina came into contact with them, the leafs acted like a trampoline, pushing the poison pin Pokémon backwards. Before Nidorina could re-collect herself, Victreebel launched its vine, knocking her across the arena.

“Nidorina!” C.C. called out, a panicked tone in his voice, “Use Dig!”

“Rina!” The blue Pokémon cried before burrowing underground, leaving a trail of dust at the opening of the hole.

“Victreebel, get it.” Koga said in a bored manner. Effortlessly, Victreebel’s vine shot forward and ran down the hole. C.C. could only watch in horror as Nidorina was plucked from the hole, dangling helplessly in front of the Grass Pokémon.

“Poison Sting!” C.C. cried in vain; the needles did what appeared to be nothing to Victreebel.

“Victreebel, Vine Whip!” Koga ordered. Victreebel screeched before flinging Nidorina high into the air. Nidorina cried out as the long, thick vine suddenly bashed against her side, sending her flying into the wall. Sliding down, Nidorina finally gave in and fainted.

“Return.” C.C. said, trying to hide his fear; he had to rely on Golbat, who was already injured, to take down this seemingly invincible Pokémon. Pulling out the Pokéball, C.C. released Golbat onto the field.

“Bat!” It hissed out, pain from its previous battle being obvious.

“Golbat, use Confuse Ray!” C.C. called out. Golbat opened its mouth, releasing the yellow ray which washed over Victreebel. Koga watched with a stern look as Victreebel began to lose its balance, with Golbat showing off its fangs, ready to strike.

“Focus Victreebel.” Koga said calmly. C.C. watched, a shiver running up his spine, as Victreebel regained its balance, shaking off the Confuse Ray attack. He was getting quite frustrated; nothing seemed to hurt this thing!

“Golbat, Air Cutter again!” C.C. yelled, enraged. Again, Golbat spread its wings and fired off several blades of air, striking the giant plant Pokémon, who still showed no sign of damage.

“C.C., keep it up!” Misty suddenly called out. C.C. looked up, a confused look on his face. “Even though it doesn’t look it, Victreebel is still losing Hit Points! Try another method!”

“Be quiet Misty, he has already lost the battle.” Koga smirked. “Victreebel, use Razor Leaf!”

“Victree!” The Pokémon screeched before firing dozens of leafs at Golbat, who narrowly avoided the assault. It was beginning to become evident that Golbat was tiring simply from dodging.

“Golbat, use…” C.C. started, but was stumped; what could put significant onto Victreebel? That’s when an idea suddenly clicked in his head. “Wing Attack!”

Golbat’s wings seemed to elongate as they began to glow, followed by him gliding quickly towards Victreebel. Victreebel let out a shriek of pain as soon as Golbat’s wings made contact with it, getting a smirk from C.C. and Golbat.

“What?” Jake asked in disbelief, “Why did Wing Attack work, but not Air Cutter?”

“Because, Koga obviously focused on training Victreebel’s Special Defense stat,” Misty said, leaning forward in excitement. “But not really on its Defense stat, leaving it vulnerable to physical attacks, such as Wing Attack.”

“That’s so cool…I can’t believe C.C. managed to figure that out on his own!” Alex commented happily.

“I heard that.” C.C. said, in an annoyed, yet happy tone. “Ready to finish him off Golbat?”

“Golbat!” Golbat cried out, full of energy. Stretching his wings again, he closed in for another Wing Attack. However, Koga would have none of it.

“Victreebel, Hyper Beam!” he ordered. Inside Victreebel’s mouth, an orange sphere began to grow, giving off heat and light. Golbat had no time to react before the beam struck him point blank, engulfing him completely. C.C. gasped as Golbat’s unconscious body fell from inside the beam, smoke running off of it.

“I win.” Koga said bluntly as Golbat was recalled.

“We’ll…just try again next time.” C.C. managed to get out. Up in the bleachers, his friends looked on with sympathy .

“Next time? There won’t be a next time.” Koga said, his arms still folded. “I don’t believe in second chances.”

“W-what?” C.C. asked in disbelief. “That-that’s not fair!”

“Life’s not fair.” Koga said as he pulled out Victreebel’s Pokéball, ready to recall it.

“C.C., do something!” Alex yelled out from his seat. C.C. looked distraught though; he had no idea what to do. Suddenly, an idea clicked in his head; it was a risky one, and probably wouldn’t work, but it was all he had.

“Wait!” C.C. screamed, stopping Koga just before he recalled Victreebel, “I still have one Pokémon left!”

“Well, in that case, send it out.” Koga ordered, slipping the Pokéball away. Jake, Alex and Misty looked on with eagerness, wondering what C.C. was up too.

“I choose you,” C.C. gulped, praying his plan would work, “Magikarp!”

“SAY WHAT?!” Alex and Jake yelled as their jaws hit the ground in disbelief.

“Char?” Charmander said in a very confused tone.

“As much as I adore water Pokémon…” Misty’s voice trailed off.

The Pokéball spun through the air, clicking open and releasing a bright white light, which soon took on the form of the orange Pokémon Magikarp. C.C. felt embarrassed as it flopped about helplessly on the ground.

“You…what?” Koga asked, completely puzzled by C.C.’s choice.

“That’s right, Magikarp!” C.C. yelled, faking confidence.

“Karp karp!” Magikarp said, flopping around some more.

“This is a joke.” Koga said, an annoyed look on his face. “Recall it.”

“No way, you’re gonna battle Magikarp whether you like it or not. League rules!” C.C. yelled back. Koga sighed before waving his hand.

“Treebel!” Victreebel shrieked before extending its long vine and picking up Magikarp with it. Magikarp wiggled about as it was pulled into the air before being dropped to the ground, landing with a ‘smack’. C.C. cringed as the fish continued to flop about, Victreebel excreting a laugh of some sort.

“This is an insult!” Koga lashed out before ordering another Vine Whip attack from Victreebel, who hit Magikarp again with its long brown vine, sending the fish Pokémon flying across the room. It once again landed with a ‘thud’. “Pathetic excuse for an opponent.”

“Leave him alone!” C.C. yelled out. He glanced at Magikarp; he was quite low on health…not low enough though. “C’mon Victreebel, is that all you got?”
Victreebel cried out before firing off a Razor Leaf attack, followed by flailing its vine around, striking Magikarp multiple times. Magikarp bellowed in pain as it was chucked around a bit more, taking all the attacks.

“Has he lost it?!” Alex exclaimed, “Magikarp is getting pummeled out there!”

“I think I know what he’s up too.” Misty stated quietly. “It’s an old trick, but hard to pull off; you need to get the timing perfect.”

“Hang in, just a bit more Magikarp!” C.C. called out as the vine wrapped itself around Magikarp before lifting him up into the air and smashing him into the ground, sending a cloud of dust up into the air, covering up the two Pokémon.

“Ha! That’s it? That’s your last resort? Pathetic.” Koga smirked. The dust settled, revealing Victreebel unscathed, looming over the small hole in which Magikarp lay motionless. Victreebel let out a shriek of victory while Koga smirked.

C.C. couldn’t believe it; he had pushed it too far and Magikarp had fainted. He gritted his teeth in anger; now he would never be able to compete in the Pokémon League! If only he had – wait a minute, what was that? He narrowed his eyes and gazed at Magikarp. Had he imagined it? No, there it was again, Magikarp’s tail had twitched a little. The realization that Magikarp had not yet fainted slowly sank into C.C., blocking out everything around him. There was still a chance. Victreebel was just in reach. Not hesitating any longer, C.C. yelled out his final command.

“Magikarp, use Flail!” C.C. barked. Suddenly, the horn on Magikarp’s head lit up a bright red as he let out a cry. Victreebel looked down in shock and confusion at the glowing fish. Koga’s eyes went wide just before Magikarp flung itself into Victreebel, the red horn glowing profoundly now.

“KARP!” Magikarp screeched as Victreebel shrieked in agony as it was flung backwards, crashing to the ground with a mighty thud.

“Victree…” Victreebel’s voice faded out before finally fainting. The room was dead silent.

“What the hell just happened? No really. Someone explain it to me.” Alex asked, baffled.

“I told Magikarp to use Flail.” C.C. started, watching Koga’s confused face, “Now, usually when people think of Magikarp, they think of it as weak – and that’s true, it is – but it learns Flail. Flail is a very tricky move to execute properly, but it’s totally worth it. Once the user is on the verge of fainting, Flail has a base power of over 200.”

Jake and Alex mouths hung open. They couldn’t believe it. Down below, Koga simply stuttered, not sure how to react. Misty however, nodded in agreement; she had been sure it was that trick.

“Not to mention,” C.C. continued, “Once I found out you had trained up Victreebel’s Special Defense Stat, I knew that left its Defense Stat low. So, Flail finished it off.”

“Well, I – you and – uh” Koga stuttered before lowering his head. He took in a breath before looking back up, smiling. “Thank you.”

Now it was C.C.’s turn to be confused. “What?”

“Thank you. Thank you for reminding the ways of battling; never underestimate your opponent, and never become too full of yourself. There is always a way to succeed.” Koga smiled before pulling out three pink badges in the shape of hearts. “I present you all with the Soul Badge!”

C.C. could only smirk as he picked up the badge and admired it. His friends rushed down to the bleachers and high fived him before picking theirs up as well. They thanked him excitedly.

“Thanks, but it was Magikarp really. He’s the one who hung in there!” C.C. said, gesturing towards the Pokémon who lay there with a blank expression on its face. “Ready to evolve Magikarp?”

Magikarp lay there.

“Guess not.” C.C. said awkwardly before recalling the Pokémon.

“Where are you off to now?” Koga asked, having recalled Victreebel.

“Um, I guess Celadon.” C.C. answered.

“No way!” Misty suddenly piped up, “We need to go to the Safari Zone! There’s so many rare Pokémon there, I’m positive it would help you guys.”

“She’s right,” Koga said. “Just head back into the city, and ask for directions, you’ll find it in no time!”

“Alright, sounds like a plan.” Jake said happily before scooping up Charmander.

With that, the four teens said their goodbyes to Koga before headed out the Gym doors again. The Safari Zone was sure to have Pokémon they had never before seen. Headed over to the canyon again, Jake sighed.

He really didn’t feel like doing this again.

[MothraRocks]

A wild time in the Safari Zone!

“C’mon, it’s right up ahead!” Misty shouted happily, pulling Jake by the arm. Behind them, C.C. and Alex walked casually, hands in their pockets.

“Misty, it’s eight o’clock in the morning! I’m still tired from the St. Anne incident!” Jake whined.

“Stop your whining,” Misty said playfully, beginning to pick up the pace, “Everyone knows that Pokémon come out at different times of the day, so getting up early is the best way to see them all!”

“I guess it wouldn't hurt our Pokédexs.” Alex mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

The group walked for a few more minutes down the dirt road before coming to a lone building. The front was massive, and had multiple designs painted all over its brick red base. At the top was a giant sign that read ‘Safari Zone: Rare Pokémon await you!’.

“We’re here!” Misty said, almost singing it, “You’re gonna have a great time here, I promise!”

“Thanks,” C.C. said calmly, “Ok guys, should we head in or what?”

“Is there really anything else to do?” Jake asked sarcastically. C.C. rolled his eyes and headed to the door; Jake was usually in a foul mood when he got up early in the morning. He was hell when he came to school in the morning.

Just as the four approached the building, the glass doors opened, allowing a young teen to walk through them, shocking Jake, Alex and C.C.

“Oh, hey guys, what’s up?” Chris said, a confident look on his face, “Gotten any stronger Alex?”

“Of course! Much stronger than you!” Alex barked.

“Sure you have.” Chris said in a mocking tone.

“I have! You know what? I’ll prove it right now; I challenge you to a battle!” Alex retorted, grabbing his Pokéball. Jake and C.C. sighed as they walked over to a nearby tree and leaned on it. Charmander backed up a little, but stayed close, ready to watch the battle unfold.

“Deal. What rules do you want?” Chris said calmly, grabbing his own Pokéball.

“Three on three, no substitutes,” Alex stated. “Misty, can you ref?”

“Huh? Um, sure.” Misty said, confused at the sudden change in Alex’s mood.

“Thanks. Now, I choose you, Squirtle!” Alex yelled as he threw his Pokéball into the air before it clicked open, releasing the small blue Pokémon.

“Squirtle, Squirtle!” The water type cried out at Chris, recognizing his opponent.

“Predictable. Eevee, your turn!” Chris said as the Pokéball in his hand clicked open, spewing a bright light which took on the form of the small brown Pokémon.

“Ve!” It cried, a satisfied look on its face.

“Squirtle, use Water Gun!” Alex ordered. Squirtle took in a big breath of air before spitting out a torrent of water at Eevee. Eevee eyed the attack carefully before jumping out of the way at the last minute, leaving Alex shocked.

“Eevee, use Work Up!” Chris said. Eevee suddenly began jumping around, letting out various cries. It was exciting itself to raise its Attack and Special Attack.

“Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!” Alex yelled out, relieved Chris had used his last turn to raise Eevee’s stats. Squirtle withdrew all his limbs into his shell before taking off into
the air and slamming into Eevee. Eevee cried out as it rolled along the ground.

“Hang in there Eevee! Use Work Up again!” Chris ordered. Again, Eevee began jumping all over the place, growling and snarling.

“Squirtle…use Water Gun…” Alex said, obviously confused by Chris’ tactics. Again, a jet of water shot from Squirtle’s mouth, this time hitting Eevee. Eevee cried out as it was pushed backwards, but shook it off and growled at his opponent.

“Eevee, Work Up!” Chris ordered. Eevee jumped around yet again, growling and snarling.

“Use…Water Gun?” Alex said doubtfully. He knew Chris was raising Eevee’s Attack stats, but why that many times and take that much damage? Again, Eevee rolled on the ground from the attack, this time struggling to stand back up.

“Ok, Squirtle, finish Eevee off with a Rapid Spi –“ Alex began to order, only to be cut off by Chris.

“Eevee, use Baton Pass!” Chris ordered, throwing his arm forward. Everyone watched as a mystical white bar of energy appeared in front of Eevee, hovering there for a second before spinning and engulfing Eevee in a bright light. The light suddenly shrunk down to a small size before shooting into Eevee’s Pokéball.

“Alright, now, go Primeape!” Chris said as he threw another Pokéball, releasing what appeared to be a giant fur ball with arms and legs, with a pink nose and eyes. On its head – or what Alex perceived to be its entire body – were two triangle shaped ears. The Pokémon grunted angrily as Alex pulled out his Pokédex.

“Primeape, the Pig Monkey Pokémon. When Primeape becomes furious, its blood circulation is boosted. In turn, its muscles are made even stronger. However, it also becomes much less intelligent at the same time.”

“Ok, so all we have to do is outsmart it…” Alex said to himself, doubtfully. But why had Chris switched out Eevee? Every time a Pokémon received adjustments to its stats, it would lose them if they switched out.

“Alex, look out!” Jake suddenly yelled. Alex snapped awake in time to see Primeape throwing a punch at Squirtle, sending him flying right over Alex’s head. Alex whipped around to see Squirtle shaking as he stood up.

“What? Primeape can’t be that powerful! Squirtle was at full health, now he looks like he’s going to faint!” Alex yelled in disbelief.

“It’s because of Baton Pass!” Jake yelled out to him, “When a Pokémon uses Baton Pass, it switches out with another member of its team, passing along any stat changes as well!”

“So then…the Work Ups Eevee did…” Alex said as the realization dawned on him. Squirtle managed to jump back in front of Alex at this point, ready to try and fight, despite his bruises.

“Squirtle, use Bubble!” Alex ordered, worried about his Pokémon’s safety. Just as Squirtle opened his mouth though, Chris ordered a Thunderpunch attack. Primeape let out a shriek as his fist crackled with electricity before charging at his opponent. He winced as the bubbles exploded on his skin, but pushed through and struck Squirtle square in the chest. Squirtle flew backwards into Alex’s arms before fainting.

“Alright, one down!” Chris cheered as Primeape thrashed about wildly. Charmander took a step behind Misty, feeling slightly uneasy.

“Return…” Alex said, trying to compensate Primeape’s power. Squirtle disappeared into his Pokéball before Alex looked back up at Chris. He sighed before holding his left arm up.

“I forfeit the battle.” Alex said, a sinking feeling in his stomach. Jake and C.C. looked at him in disbelief; it wasn’t like him to give up.

“Then, the winner is…I’m sorry, what was your name again?” Misty asked.

“Chris!” Chris said happily as he recalled his Primeape. “You see Alex? You need strategy. All you do is try blunt attacks; they’re too easy to counter.”

“But where did you get a Primeape?” Alex asked, still annoyed about him giving up.

“Where do you think? The Safari Zone! Tons of rare Pokémon in there.” Chris said proudly. “Now, I need to get going; I already have five badges, time to get my sixth!”

Alex gritted his teeth as Chris pushed past him proudly. It took everything he had not to whip around and punch Chris in the face. A silence followed before he faded from view.

“Alex, it’s ok. Everyone loses once in a while.” C.C. said, trying to comfort his friend as he walked over to him.

“Yeah, everyone except for Chris.” He said angrily. An idea suddenly clicked in his head, bringing a smile to his face.

“I’ll just search the Safari Zone until I find something really strong!” he said, excited. Before anyone could say anything, he darted into the building, full of energy. The others followed suit, no really sure how to react to Alex’s sudden mood changes. Spotting a desk with a man, they all walked up to him.

“Hello!” The man said cheerfully in his dark green suit, “Would you like to participate in a Safari game? It’s only 500 Pokédollars each!”

“Yes please!” Alex said happily as he turned to Jake, “You’re holding our money this week, right?”

“Yeah…C.C., are you coming?” Jake grumbled as he pulled out the wallet.

“I guess so. How much money do we have left?” he asked as he watched Jake grab a handful of cash.

“Not too much…in fact, we’re almost out.” Jake replied as he began to count the remnants.

“It’s ok, I’m going to stay in here.” Misty said as she turned and began walking upstairs to the viewing area. The three shrugged and began to make their way through the back entrance, where the Safari Zone was, but was stopped by two large men blocking their way.

“I’m sorry, no Pokémon allowed.” One of them said as he began to pluck the Pokéballs from Alex’s belt. The other repeated this action with C.C. before turning to Jake and doing the same. Looking down, he spotted Charmander.

“He needs to stay as well.” The man said sternly. “This is a nature preserve, no Pokémon are allowed in to avoid injuring the others inside.”

“Oh, uh, ok.” Jake said, shuffling his feet, “but Charmander usually follows me everywhere, so would it be alright if –“

“No. Rules are rules.” The man replied roughly, making his way towards Charmander.

“Char?” Charmander said while tilting his head in confusion as the man bent down to pick him up.

“Uh, I wouldn’t do that.” Jake suggested as he took a step backwards. He spotted the flame on Charmander’s tail begin to grow.

“It’s a Charmander. Nothing big.” The man said, dismissing Jake. He scooped up and starred at the sneering Charmander.

“Char…” Charmander growled, his eye slightly twitching. Jake Alex and C.C. all began to back away, fear growing in their eyes.

“See? Nothing to –“

“CHARMANDER!” Charmander yelled as a stream of hot air and strings of flames flew out of his mouth, scorching the man’s face. He screamed and dropped Charmander before backing away, rubbing his face furiously.

“I warned you.” Jake said casually as Charmander’s flame died down to its normal size.

“Whatever! He still can’t come with you!” The man yelled, his voice muffled from his hands in his face. Jake sighed and looked over at Charmander, who gave a disapproving look before turning around and walking upstairs.

*****

“Your Safari Game will end when time is up or you have run out of Safari Balls.” The woman in the green skirt and shirt said. The breeze gently lifted her red hair, “Ready? Go!”

Jake, C.C. and Alex all took off running into the nearby trees, pushing through all the foliage before C.C. tripped over a tree root, causing Jake to fall on top of him, followed by Alex. The three groaned as they got up.

“Ok, new plan; we split up.” Alex said, brushing the dirt off his shirt. Jake and C.C. glanced at each other for a moment before looking back at him.

“Is that really a safe idea?” C.C. asked, “I mean, we don’t even have our Pokémon to protect us in case something happens.”

“We’ll be fine!” Alex said confidently, “If it was dangerous, people wouldn’t be allowed in here, right?”

“Well, I guess. Still, these are wild Pokémon –“Jake started, but was abruptly cut off by Alex.

“We’ll be FINE. Trust me!” He said before turning around and walking off into the bushes. Jake and C.C. looked at each other before hesitantly heading off in their own directions, hoping to find some Pokémon.

*****
“Ugh, this isn’t much of a Safari.” Yuna mumbled, quite ticked off. She had been walking for a good half an hour in the dense forest, trying to find something of interest. However, she wasn’t after just Pokémon; she believed another Element of Discord lay hidden somewhere in the Safari Zone. She just didn’t know where.

Yuna continued walking, pushing through the branches that got in her way, her temper silently rising. Finally, she came to a clearing, revealing a small lake that had a river flowing into it. She sat down for a moment, trying to rest. She looked back up at the blue lake before noticing the water beginning to ripple in the center. She focused on the spot curiously as the ripples began to transform into small waves. Suddenly, a long, slender creature burst out of the water, letting out its high pitched cry.

Yuna’s eyes went wide; she couldn’t believe she had found a Dragonair! She looked at its sleek blue body, matching the color of the water, its beautiful red eyes, followed by its gleaming horn on her head. Yuna wanted to catch it so badly, but had to restrain herself; she could lose valuable time trying to catch the Pokémon when she could be looking the next Element. She sighed in disappointment as she turned away…wait, what was that? It felt like a vibration in her pocket. Slowly, Yuna reached into her coat pocket and pulled out her lone jewel; the Element of Greed. It was shaking, and Yuna was almost positive it was giving off a slight glow.

She slowly turned around to face the Dragonair, noticing the Element was beginning to shake more violently now. Suddenly, the jewel in her hand let out a burst of green light, stunning her. Out of the corner of her eye, Yuna noticed another source of light, this time red. She slowly took her eyes off the Element in her hand and looked at the Dragonair: around its neck, where there would usually be a round, blue object sphere, was a small red triangle instead. Both jewels light began to fade once Yuna realized what she was seeing; the Dragonair had an Element of Discord around its neck! Knowing what had to be done; Yuna grabbed a Safari Ball, ready to kill two birds with one stone.

“Excuse me ma’am.” Came a male voice from behind, “That Pokémon is off-limits to capture.”

Yuna clenched the Safari Ball so tightly, she was sure it must have cracked. She turned around to see a large man, dressed in a dark green shirt and parts, staring at her through his sun glasses. He stood there, his arms folded, in silence. Yuna knew better than to argue; she had reluctantly left her Pokémon outside the Safari Zone, and had little means to back her up.

“I’m so horribly sorry sir!” Yuna said, putting on an effort to sound genuinely sorry while batting her eyes, “But couldn’t you let me catch it? It’s so pretty!”

“Ma’am, I just said that it was off limits for catching.” The man said sternly. Yuna was getting frustrated now; the Dragonair was going to get away sooner or later. But why did she feel she knew the man from somewhere?

“Well,” He said as a small grin appeared on his lips, “it’s off limits for you anyways.”

Yuna stood bewildered as the man ripped the dark green clothes off of his torso and legs, revealing what Yuna recognized as the Team Rocket uniform. Yuna’s suppressed rage finally escaped, along with memories from Diglett’s Cave.

“You! You’re the lousy, no good Team Rocket member I met outside Diglett’s Cave!” Yuna screeched, infuriated that she had been fooled by Team Rocket.

“So you remember me! You’re not as stupid as you look.” Klaus sneered. “You can call me by my name by the way; Klaus.”

“I don’t have time for you!” Yuna yelled before turning around to the Dragonair, who at this point was watching the argument between the two humans.

“I don’t think so!” Klaus said, a threatening tone taking over his voice as he reached for a Pokéball, “Go, Houndoom!”

The Pokéball burst open, revealing a large, black and orange dog-like Pokémon with two large curled horns on its head. It narrowed its eyes on Yuna as it flicked its barbed tail back and forth.

“Fire Fang!” Klaus ordered. Houndoom let out as roar before its mouth erupted into a bowl of flames and charged at Yuna, who just narrowly jumped out of the way.

“You moron!” Yuna screeched, stumbling backwards as Houndoom turned to face her once again, growling. Yuna was more than furious at the fact she was cornered without any Pokémon to defend her.

“Ha! That Dragonair’s as good as mine!” Klaus said as he faced the Dragon Pokémon, the Ultra Ball in his hand growing to full size. Yuna’s eyes went wide as he tossed it, and instinctively threw her Safari Ball at Dragonair at the same time.

Dragonair simply rolled her eyes at the humans. Pathetic how they couldn’t focus on the goal at hand and hand to resort to fighting with each other. Dragonair eyed the two Pokéballs for a moment before opening her mouth and exhaling a stream of dark purple energy; an attack Yuna recognized as Dragon Rage. Yuna and Klaus watched in shock as their Pokéballs were vaporized by the attack before the Dragon-type Pokémon flicked her tail and disappeared underwater, heading upstream.

“N-no!” Yuna stuttered out as she watched the figure underwater move upstream, out of sight. “Come back!”

“Houndoom!” Klaus called out. Yuna’s attention was diverted by the sound of the growling Pokémon. She gritted her teeth , angered she was once again cornered. “Stay here and make sure she doesn’t get away, understood?”

“Hound!” the Pokémon cried angrily as Klaus began making his way up the river.

Yuna knew she had to think of something, and fast.

[MothraRocks]

“No! Wait, come back!” C.C. yelled right before tripping, falling into a bush. He grumbled as he pushed himself up and watched as the Doduo ran off into the trees, out of sight.

“This is stupid!” C.C. yelled in frustration, brushing dirt off his shirt, “I’ve seen barely any Pokémon at all, and the ones I do see run before I can do anything!”

“Well if you keep yelling, you’re gonna scare away all the Pokémon.” Jake said from behind, his arms folded.

“How long have you been there?” C.C. asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Long enough to know that neither of us are having much fun,” Jake mumbled, “I’m afraid to get up to some of these Pokémon anyway; with the death glares they’re shooting me and all.”

C.C. sighed before leaning against a tree, a bead of sweat running down his forehead. It was hot, he was sore, and he was beyond miserable, he had been at this for about an hour or two, with no luck at all.

“Wanna head back?” he finally asked Jake, who responded with a nod.

“We need to find Alex though; we can’t just leave him out here.” Jake said before walking past C.C., who followed behind.

*****
“Exeggcute, the Egg Pokémon. It is often mistaken for eggs. When disturbed, they gather quickly and attack in swarms.” Alex’s Pokédex said, scanning the five pink ovals that stood in front of him.

“Alright, sounds like it could be good in battle,” Alex said as he drew a green Safari Ball, pressing the button on front and increasing its size, “Go, Pokéball!”

Alex watched as the green ball whirled towards the Exeggcute, all five pair of eyes glaring at it. Just as the ball was about to reach it, the five ovals lunged towards it, sending it flying off into the bushes somewhere.

“Exeggcute!” The Pokémon cried furiously before turning around and bouncing off into the foliage, calling its name multiple times.

“Come back here!” Alex yelled before rushing in after it, completely ignoring a sign, overgrown with vines and whatnot.

Alex continued to push through the dense plant life, trying not to trip, while the voice of the Exeggcute began to fade in the distance, worrying him. Eventually, Alex came to an opening, looking at the face of a cliff, with no plants or vines anywhere.

“Exeggcute?!” Alex called out, looking around. The Pokémon was nowhere to be seen or heard, annoying the young trainer. He was about to turn back, when a low noise suddenly caught his attention. Silently, Alex began to walk around the side of the cliff, the noise becoming louder. Finally, he found the source of it;

“Magmar, the Spitfire Pokémon. In battle, Magmar blows out intensely hot flames from all over its body to intimidate its opponent. This Pokémon's fiery bursts create heat waves that ignite grass and trees in its surroundings.”

Alex gazed at the sleeping Pokémon as he silently put his Pokédex away, wide eyed. A smile slowly appeared on his face; this was the Pokémon he needed! He couldn’t believe he had found a Magmar, it was one of his favorite Pokémon!

“Alright! Go, Pokéball!” Alex yelled before throwing a Safari Ball, which successfully hit the sleeping Pokémon, encasing it in a red light before sucking it in. The ball fell to the ground and began wiggling for a few seconds.

“I can’t believe I caught a Magmar!” Alex said as he approached the Pokéball. “And on my first try too!”

As if on cue, the Pokéball suddenly flung open, releasing a stream of red light once more, which took on the shape of Magmar. Alex flinched for a moment as he looked at Magmar, who still had its head hanging down, but was now standing up.

“Um, Magmar?” Alex managed to say, suddenly feeling a little uneasy, “Are you asleep?”

Magmar’s head suddenly snapped up, resulting in the red and yellow Pokémon staring Alex down, its tail slowly waving behind it. The look it was giving Alex was that of pure hate.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have woken you up! I’ll be on my way now!” Alex quickly spat out, turning around and ready to walk away.

“MAR!” Magmar suddenly bellowed, a ball of fire landing a few feet in front of Alex. Alex yelled in surprise, watching the grass get covered by the hot flames.

“Magmar, I’m sorry!” Alex said, bring his hands up and backing away slowly. Magmar wouldn’t have any of it though; taking in a breath, a concentrated stream of flames shot out of its tube-like mouth barley missing Alex. Deciding it wasn’t any good, Alex turned around and ran full speed the way he came.
Unfortunately, Magmar wasn’t ready to give up just yet.

*****
Yuna glared at the Houndoom, its red eyes concentrating solely on her. Yuna had finally thought of a way how to get away from it, but she needed it to take its attention off of her for a few seconds, otherwise, she was quite literally toast.

“MAR!!”

A loud cry, followed by a boom off in the distance suddenly filled the air, catching Houndoom’s attention. Suddenly realizing what he was doing, Houndoom turned back to Yuna, only to receive a face full of water.

“Doom!” Houndoom suddenly cried out in pain and surprise, it’s eyes shut tight as it stumbled backwards.

“What’s the matter? Puppy don’t know how to swim?” Yuna asked mockingly before leaning down to the lake again and splashing the Houndoom. Houndoom let out another cry, this one more out of anger than pain, with its eyes still shut. Deciding she needed to get out of there quick, Yuna dashed over to the Houndoom, pushing it into the lake. Wasting no more time, she dashed the way Klaus had gone, hoping he hadn’t caught the Dragonair yet.

Behind her, Houndoom weakly pulled itself out of the water before collapsing. He wasn’t paid enough for this crap.

*****
“Dragonair, you’re mine!” Klaus called out as he grabbed his Pokéball. Next to him, his Scizor stood proudly, glaring at the injured Pokémon.

“Wait! That’s mine!” a voice suddenly sounded. Klaus sighed; he knew that voice. Turning around, he saw Yuna racing towards him, an angry expression on her face.

“My, my. So you managed to get past my Houndoom.” Klaus playfully said, “But you’re a bit too late; the Dragonair is mine.”

“Not if I have anything to say about it.” Yuna said, gritting her teeth as she stepped forward, only to have Scizor dash in front of her, its red coat shining in the sunlight.

“What’s this? Oh, I still have a Pokémon! And last time I checked, um, you don’t.” Klaus smirked, watching the frustration grow in Yuna’s face. “What’cha gonna do about it?”

Not missing a beat, Yuna brought her two index fingers to her face and blew, letting out a loud whistle. For a moment, it was silent, until Klaus made another remark.

“I repeat; What’cha gonna do about it?”

“Oh, it’s not what I’m gonna do about it,” Yuna smirked as a shadow suddenly went over Klaus. The poacher looked up, stunned to see a giant gray and purple winged Pokémon flying overhead, landing next to Yuna. “It’s what HE’S going to do about it.”

Aerodactyl let out a high pitched screech, glaring at Klaus. The poacher took a step back, one of the rare moments when he actually showed fear. Gritting his teeth, he looked back at Yuna who was now smiling silently, her arms folded. He wasn’t about to be shown up by her again.

“Scizor!” Klaus ordered, throwing his arm out, “Use X-Scissor!”

The red Pokémon cried out before dashing towards Areodactyl at incredible speeds, its arms crossed into an ‘X’. Suddenly, its two arms lit up a bright green just before impacting against Aerodactyl, who stumbled back and roared out in surprise.

“Aerodactyl, use Bite!” Yuna commanded. The Fossil Pokémon lashed out with its razor sharp teeth, but failed to catch its speedy prey, who moved to the side in a blur. Aerodactyl cried out as Scizor unleashed another X-Scissor upon it.

“Don’t bother,” Klaus said confidently as Scizor appeared next to him, “Scizor here has incredible speed. Team Rocket trained him to be ruthless in his attacks.”

“I’m sure you didn’t even train it.” Yuna replied, “It doesn’t matter anyway. Areodactyl is a hunter by nature.”

“As is Scizor.” Klaus said, rubbing his chin, “So this should be interesting. Scizor, Bullet Punch!”

“Sciz!” Scizor cried out before racing towards Areodactyl again, his two red pincers now a metallic gray. Once again, Areodactyl couldn’t do anything as the fists came into contact with his body, causing more damage than the X-Scissor.

“Quick, get up in the air!” Yuna cried out. Areodactyl managed to shake the pain off long enough to spread his wings and flap, taking flight. Scizor halted its assault just long enough to glare up at it’s before two wings jutted out of its back, allowing it to fly right up to Areodactyl’s level.

“Bullet Punch, back to back!” Klaus ordered, resulting in Scizor speeding towards Areodactyl.

“Quick, Stone Edge!” Yuna yelled out. Multiple glowing orbs suddenly appeared surrounding Areodactyl’s body, rotating in two circles. The lights died down revealing small, sharp rocks, which rained down like bullets, heading straight towards Scizor.

Yuna gasped as Scizor dodged around the dozens of rocks, while still advancing towards Areodactyl, striking him over and over, all over his body. Areodactyl cried out, the steel type attack being super effective. Yuna began brainstorming, hoping to get him out of this situation.

“Areodactyl! Use Stone Edge again, but don’t fire!” Yuna called out. Again, dozens of glowing rocks appeared, circling Areodactyl’s body. Scizor was moving so quickly he had no time to react, and flinched upon punching the improvise rock defense, and making him let up on his attack.

“Now use Fire Fang while it’s stunned!” Yuna ordered, confident.

“Areo!” Areodactyl shrieked before its mouth burst into flames. Angrily, the flying terror clamped its jaws down on Scizor, who let out a cry of pain. Bringing his head up, Areodactyl flung Scizor down to the ground, sending dust up into the air.

“No!” Klaus yelled, noticing his Pokémon had passed out. He pulled out a Pokéball and recalled Scizor before bringing out another one. “This isn’t over yet! I still have my Golem!”

“Please, more target practice for Areodactyl.” Yuna grinned. “Bring it.”

*****
“Alex!” Jake called out, sweating now.

“Alex! Let’s go!” C.C. yelled out right after, looking at the thick vegetation.

“I don’t think he’s anywhere around here.” Jake said. “Maybe we should just head back and wait? There’s maps everywhere around here, he can find his way out.”

“Yeah, I guess…” C.C. said, thinking of the consequences. “It’s just, what if he gets in –“

“GUYS!!” a voice called out from up the path. Jake and C.C. turned to see Alex running towards them, a panicked look on his face. He was running at a speed Jake and C.C. had never seen him go at before.

“Alex? What’s wrong?” C.C. asked.

“I didn’t mean too!” Alex yelled frantically, grabbing Jake and C.C.’s arms, tugging them along, “I swear! It was an accident!”

“Slow down!” Jake yelled, “What’s going on?”

“MAG-MAR!” Boomed a voice from behind. The three turned around, shocked to see a flaming red and yellow Pokémon, looking quite pissed off.

“Is that a Magmar?!” C.C. gasped, about to pull out his Pokédex.

“Yes! I didn’t notice but I ran past a sign that said not to go past it because I was chasing an Exeggcute, and then I couldn’t find it and –“

“MAGMAR!” Magmar cried out, shooting a thick stream of red flames right over the heads of the teens, who ducked and yelled out in surprise.

“Quick! This way!” C.C. yelled out, running down the path, “The exit is this way! It won’t chase us that far!”

*****
15 minutes later
*****

“It’s still chasing us smartass!” Jake yelled out, jumping out of the way of another Flame Burst attack.

“Look!” Alex pointed up ahead, “The exit!”

Looking ahead, Jake saw the giant building they had exited out of earlier, the glass windows on the upper floor reflecting the sunlight. Picking up the speed, the three ran up to the metal door and began banging repeatedly on it, finally getting someone to open it.

“Can I help you?” The woman asked before noticing the Magmar behind them, obviously angry. “G-get inside!”

Before anyone could even make a move, another Flame Burst attack struck the side of the building, blowing a large hole in the side, smoke and debris flying out seconds after. Jake couldn’t see anything, but he could hear the screams of various people. Behind him, he heard the steps of Magmar, thudding closer to him.

“Magmar…” The Pokémon hissed, glaring the three teenagers down. It was obvious Magmar wasn’t ready to give up anytime soon, and would get these three humans if it was the last thing he did. Cornered, the three teenagers gasped as flames began to build up in Magmar’s mouth.

Just as Magmar released the torrent of flames, he felt something lash against his face, making his head snap to the left, and the flames shooting off into the distance.

Turning back, Magmar roared out in fury; who dared attack him? He would finish them off too! His question was answered when he saw three small Pokémon rush out of the hole, snarling at him.

“Bulbasaur!” The small blue and green one called out angrily, raising his vines once again, ready to protect C.C. and the others.

“Charmander! Squirtle! Bulbasaur!” Jake cried out, relieved and worried at the same time.

“Go back, it’s too dangerous!” Alex said desperately. But the three starter Pokémon refused to move, determined to protect their trainers, their friends.

“Magmar!” Magmar cried out. If it was a fight they wanted, it was a fight they would get! The spitfire Pokémon suddenly ran toward the three starters, its arms flailing behind it. Before anyone could react, its two fists came into contact with all three Pokémon, knocking them backwards.

“That was Faint Attack!” C.C. yelled out in surprise.

“Saur!” Bulbasaur cried out, landing on its feet. Pushing up on its hind legs, Bulbasaur pointed its bulb at Magmar and began to fire off multiple Razor Leaf attacks. Magmar brought its arms up to brace itself as the leafs struck against it, not causing much damage.

“Squirtle, Squirtle!” Alex’s starter Pokémon suddenly cried out as he jumped into the air before firing a Bubblebeam attack at Magmar, each bubble exploding upon impact. Magmar let out a cry of pain and annoyance from the water attack. Next, he saw Charmander running towards him, his arm outstretched, ready to land a Metal Claw attack on him.

No. Magmar realized what these Pokémon were trying to do; Bulbasaur would keep him at bay with its Razor Leaf while Squirtle injured him with its Bubblebeam attack, and Charmander would attack with Metal Claw just to add extra damage. But he refused to let these Pokémon beat him. Roaring out again, Magmar brought down his arms, feeling the full sting of the Razor Leaf and Bubblebeam, but shrugged it off. Focusing on them, Magmar opened its mouth, releasing a white cloud which quickly covered up Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur. All three Pokémon halted their assaults, and began to cough violently, their eyes squeezed tight.

“A Clear Smog attack!” C.C. said again, shocked.

“Charmander, try an Ember attack!” Jake called out. Charmander opened his eyes slightly before sending a stream of hot air and dozens of embers flying at Magmar, landing on its face. Magmar felt virtually nothing, and continued its attack, the Pokémon coughing even more.

“Jake, try attacking again!” C.C. said, covering his mouth as the smog cloud began to reach the trainers, “But try another fire attack! A stronger one!”

“What?” Jake asked, confused.

“I saw when Charmander used Ember, the embers were burning brighter than usual. I think it’s flammable gas!”

Jake stared at C.C. for a moment before nodding, “Charmander, use Fire Spin, and aim directly at Magmar!”

Charmander took in a breath, gagging for a second before orange flames shot out of his mouth, in the form of a tornado. Magmar gasped as the Fire Spin attack was launched directly at him, suddenly becoming larger the closer it came to him. Magmar cried out in pain as he was thrown backwards, and stopped emitting Clear Smog as he did.

“Alright, Squirtle, use Rapid Spin!” Alex ordered. Squirtle, now able to breath, brought its limbs into its shell before spinning quickly and becoming airborne. Magmar’s eyes went wide before Squirtle crashed into his face, knocking him onto his back.

“Awesome! Now, Bulbasaur can you use Leech Seed while he’s down?” Alex asked, a determined look in his eyes; he had a plan.

“Bulbasaur!” Bulbasaur nodded in agreement before firing three seeds from his bulb. The three seeds landed on Magmar’s stomach and quickly sprouted roots which spread to the ground. Magmar called out as he tried to get up, only to find out he was now trapped.

“Ok! Squirtle, use Rapid Spin to get high above Magmar, and then drop while using Water Gun and spinning!” Alex ordered as Squirtle quickly went back into his shell, going up and up as he spun.

“Alex, what are you doing?” C.C. asked, very confused.

“Just watch.” Alex grinned, making a fist.

Squirtle continued to rise into the air, still directly above the struggling Magmar. Finally, forty feet up or so, he stuck out his limbs and began to fall quickly towards Magmar. Not wasting a second, he fired his Water Gun and began to twirl at the same time. Within a second, Squirtle was cloaked in water, looking almost like a comet.

“He’s like a missile made of water!” Jake exclaimed, suddenly aware of Alex’s plan. The three boys watched as Squirtle came into contact with Magmar, dowsing him in water, steam rising up. Magmar let out a cry of pain, unseen as Alex reached into his pocket and pulled out a small ball.

“Go, Pokéball!” Alex yelled as he flung the green Pokéball at Magmar, engulfing him in a red light like before. Just like the first time, the ball wiggled back and forth, Alex’s nerves high. He watched it, rocking, Magmar struggling to get out.

“Beep.” The ball echoed as it went still.

“Yes!” Alex yelled happily as he ran over and picked up both the Pokéball and Squirtle up, “You were great Squirtle! I caught Magmar because of you!”

“Uh, Alex?” Jake suddenly mumbled. Alex turned around, and saw Jake pointing to the destroyed building. “Maybe we should leave. Like, now.”

*****
“Wait, you guys did WHAT to the Safari Zone?!” Misty exclaimed as Jake pulled her along, heading out of Fuchsia City, onto a sea side dirt path. Misty had left the Safari building earlier to go to the Pokémart to get some supplies, and had bumped into the three boys, who were rushing out of the city, a worried look on their faces.

“Well, it was really Alex’s fault when you think about it.” Jake answered, not looking at her.

“Who cares? Got myself a Magmar!” Alex announced proudly.

“Do you guys know how much trouble you could get in for that?” Misty commented, trying in vain to free herself from Jake’s grasp.

“Doesn’t matter anymore, we’re done with Fuchsia City,” Jake said, a smile beginning to form, “Now we’re off to get our fifth badge at Celadon City!”