Pokemon: Legend of the Blessed Aura (Hoenn)

[kemix0711]

Okay, after some confusion about where to place it, and a year of consideration, I am now ready to post this! And if anyone can tell me how exactly to create a table of contents, I'd really appreciate it.

Preface, preface. Hmm...none, really. Just translating myself into the Pokemon world. It's mainly based off the games and anime, with some elements of the manga included. Also, this was finished about a year ago, so it's mainly Gen III-IV. Sorry about that. But I put some Gen V in, as well. Some characters are from the franchise, others are mine.

Last thing: I ended with over two hundred chapters, so I'm splitting it up into four separate sagas: one per region starting with Hoenn.

Oh, and please don't steal. Enjoy!

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 1: It’s Showtime!

My name is Mike. I’m fifteen years old and I was born in Littleroot Town. Throughout my life, I’ve always wanted to go on an adventure with my very own Pokémon. However, my mother wouldn’t have any of it, because she wanted me to become a businessman, maybe even a Mayor. My dad sympathized with me since he was a trainer when he was my age, but he wouldn’t do a thing about Mom. The two of them just kept sending me to school, and even that was a nightmare. All the other guys picked on me for being different (somehow they learned about my aspirations of becoming a Pokémon trainer). Sure, I made high grades, but my loathing of those guys was off the scale. The only thing keeping me sane at school was my best friend Alexis Jameson. She and I have been best friends for as long as I can remember. I always fended off the guys she didn’t want to go out with, she always helped me feel better during my deepest frustrations, and everything in between. People kept calling us a couple, but nothing had really happened between us. As much as I’d been crushing on her, I couldn’t muster up the courage to ask her out, but instead wait for the day when she’d say-

“Hey, Mike! Wake up!”

I awoke from my daze with a startled look on my face. The first thing I saw was red hair and a mosaic figure attached to it. As I focused in, I could then see that it was Alexis, standing over my desk with a huge smile on her face. It was two minutes after the final bell had rung and people were packing up to go home for the day.

“Oh, hey Lexi. Sorry about that, I guess I’m just a little out of it today.”

“Out of it? It’s your birthday! I should think you’d be a little more INTO it!”

“Yeah, I am! I just haven’t completely woken up yet.”

“But it’s the middle of the afternoon-”

“STOP JUDGING ME!”

Alexis laughed. I felt so humiliated for zoning out now, of all times.

“Come on, Mike. Let’s go outside. I got something for you for your birthday!”

“Really? You didn’t have to do that…”

“I wanted to, idiot! After all, we’ve been doing it for the past five years!”

I turned away sheepishly. I couldn’t believe I forgot that. I then followed her outside, to the point in the road where we split off every day to go home. She then pulled a box out of her backpack.

“Here you go!”

I took the box, then opened it up. Inside were some jeans and an electric cyan-colored polo shirt. I stared in awe, happily admiring this gift. I was amazed; I like to think that Alexis remembered that that was my favorite color.

“Thank you so much! It means a lot!” I said with a smile.

“I think that outfit would look good on you, especially for traveling!”

The happiness left my face. Traveling, huh? Yeah, if I could actually GO travel, I thought. Suddenly, Alexis covered her mouth in surprise, as if she had read my mind.

“Oh my gosh, I am SO, SO sorry…”

“No, no! You’re right, it would look…good for that…” I muttered.

“…Mike, you OK?”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.”

“Well, you telling me not to worry makes me worry, ‘K?”

“*sigh* Well, since Mom denied me a Pokémon license when I was ten, I’ve just been feeling trapped. That AND alone, as if people are eager to abandon me; as if nobody will side with me. Dad certainly won’t, and the guys in class are-”

“You’re wrong if you honestly believe that,” she replied with a stern look on her face. “You think I’ve been supporting you these years for kicks? You’re my best friend! Trust me: I’d NEVER abandon you, so don’t go thinking that way, silly!” I looked down in disgrace. I had almost driven away my best friend, so the gloom I’d been feeling turned into depression.

“I don’t know what to say, I’m sorry. I’m such an idiot. I mean, you’re my best friend, too. You mean the world to me and I just…!”

“Don’t worry about it; it’ll pass in time,” she replied as she gave me a hug.

“…Thank you, Alexis.” I then proceeded to leave.

“Mike, I-” I spun back around, feeling the color filling my face. I thought to myself, what’s she going to do? What’s she going to say? However, she turned away with a smile. “…never mind, it’s nothing. I’ll see you tomorrow!”

“Okay. Bye.”

“Oh, and happy birthday, again!”

She then went off, her hair shining beautifully in the sunlight, but I could’ve sworn I saw her fingers shaking. I didn’t begrudge her a bit, since mine were practically flailing faster than a Feebas. I ran towards home, thinking, Hmm, that was interesting…could she have…nah.

Later, I was about three blocks away from where I lived, up in the hillside. I stopped to catch my breath when I heard a rustle. I turned to see what it was, and it was a couple of bushes rustling. I edged towards them carefully until a brown figure jumped out. When it landed, I stared in shock. It was the Evolution Pokémon, Eevee! Considering how much I loved Pokémon, I moved forward to pet its head, but I didn’t even think to notice its glare.

“Hey there, little guy! Are you lost?”

“EEVEE!”

That’s when it bit my hand. I drew back in horror, wondering what could cause it to act this way. It then tried to run off, but then it keeled over all of a sudden. I raced over to it to find that it was bruised on its sides.

“Hey, what happened to you…?”

“Ee…vee…”

I then picked it up, held it in my arms, and raced towards my house. I’ll have to call Professor Birch! He’ll know what to do! Hang in there, Eevee.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 2: Enter Team Rocket

I arrived at my home, which was a gigantic white mansion with three stories and six columns in the front. Mom wants only the best, since our family is huge in the economy business. However, Alexis’ family always has to outdo us JUST a little bit, so their mansion is similar yet bigger. But I digress. I ran in, bringing Eevee to Dad’s study.

“Dad, we’ve got a problem! We need to call Professor Birch!”

He quickly shut off his computer and turned his chair to face me.

“Hang on, Michael. Where’d you find that Pokémon?”

“ARE YOU GOING TO HELP ME OR NOT?!”

“…right, I’m sorry, son. Go put it in your bed, I’ll call the professor.”

I then proceeded up the never-ending stairs to my room, where I put Eevee in my bed. I then pulled up a chair and sat at its side, checking its wounds. As far as I could tell, it had been attacked by something big. About half an hour later, Dad came in.

“The Professor was a little busy, but he’ll be here in about five minutes. Now, what happened with this Eevee?” And after I explained the situation to him, he stood there, awestruck. After a little while, he finally responded with, “Were there any other people nearby when you found it?”

“No, just me.”

“Listen, once the Professor gets here, we’ll have to take this Eevee to his laboratory. It’s not safe here.”

“Really? Why not?”

“Trust me, son.” That’s what he said whenever he was keeping something from me: ‘trust me, son’. And if this had to do with Eevee’s injuries, something bad had to be going down. Just then, the doorbell rang. Dad left, and I went back to Eevee, putting my hand on his paw. He stirred and groaned, so I took my hand off and smiled weakly. Just then, Dad re-entered with Professor Birch, an expert in the field of Pokémon, and his aide, Joshua.

“Hello there, Mike! It’s good to see you again!”

“Nice to see you too, Professor Birch.”

After I caught him up to speed, he insisted that he study Eevee, claiming it would be safest here, and my Dad reluctantly agreed. He examined Eevee for a few moments, then took a sample of its hair and gave it to Joshua, who ran it through a machine.

“I’m going to need some time to analyze this,” he said to us.

The rest of us gathered around Eevee. I was keeping a careful eye on it, when I heard a loud voice say, “WHAT IN THE WORLD IS ALL THIS?!?” Yup. Mom. And seeing how she hated Pokémon, this was probably the worst time for her to come in.

“Look, dear, we’re just trying to figure out what happened to this Eevee and the Professor-“

“I don’t CARE what happened to some little furball! How did it even get in here? It’s messing up my son’s bed!”

“Your son was the one who brought it here! Then your husband asked-“

“Professor Birch, I appreciate your visit, but I’m afraid you’re going to have to take it back to your…shack or whatever. Just get that THING out of-“

“STOP THAT!” I jumped up, spun around with a glare, and continued, indignantly: “It’s not a THING, it’s a Pokémon! A LIVING BEING with feelings and emotions just like ours! That you would shut the doors to those in need just proves you’re more heartless than I thought! If you don’t have anything to say or do that can help the situation, then GET OUT OF MY ROOM!!”

The adults stood there in utter silence, until a wide-eyed Mom exited the room. The silence lingered until the machine started to beep.

“Professor, it’s positive! This Pokémon definitely has Pokerus!”

“I was afraid of this!” Professor Birch replied.

Naturally, I asked, “Um, what’s Pokerus?”

Professor Birch turned to me with a glint in his eye, and said, “It’s a rare virus that is found in Pokémon. It can enhance the rate at which they grow and evolve dramatically! Why, with this kind of experience, it’s no wonder it was attacked.”

“Attacked? By who?”

“Well, we don’t know yet, but it’s possible that the fact that this Eevee has Pokerus is involved. It can grow faster than a normal Eevee, so it’s natural that people would try to catch it.”

“To what point, though? That it walks battered in the streets?”

“There are some trainers that are ruthless like that.”

“Mike,” Dad interjected, “I think it’s time I told you about…” He paused.

“…about who?” I replied.

Suddenly, there was an explosion below.

“Oh, no!” Joshua cried.

“Mike, get Eevee out of here!”

I picked up Eevee, who groaned, woke up, and then sunk its teeth into my arm. I winced, but toughened up and carried it downstairs and outside, where I saw two figures with black uniforms and a red “R” on their chests. They were standing in the shade of a tree, almost out of my view. “What do you want?” I asked.

The female figure emerged from the shade. She had orange hair gathered into a ponytail and blue diamond-shaped earrings. She pointed and said, “We want that Eevee! So hand it over right now!”

“Are you the ones that attacked it and put it in this condition?!”

The male figure followed the other’s lead. His purple hair was all spiked up. He folded his arms and said, “Of course we are! You don’t expect Team Rocket to play nice, do you? Now give us the Pokémon!”

“Team Who?” I responded.

The female glared and shouted, “No, ROCKET! I’m Ashley.”

“And I’m Olson!”

“And I’M not interested! Now beat it,” I retorted.

“Not without that Eevee!” Ashley replied. “Go, Vileplume!”

“You too, Golem!” Orson shouted.

They threw two Poke Balls into the air, and Vileplume, a floweresque Pokémon, and Golem, a boulder-like Pokémon, emerged with glares on their faces.

“Yeah, REAL brave! Ganging up on one kid! What do you stand to gain from having Eevee, anyway?”

“It has the rare Pokerus! If we can use it to generate Pokerus for our Pokémon, they’ll be super-strong and Team Rocket will rule the world!”

“Olson, what part of SECRET escaped your empty head?!”

“Who’re you calling empty-headed?!”

As the two argued, I set Eevee down.

“Eevee, you’ve got to run away. They’re after you, but I’ll do my best to hold them off. Sure, I may not…forget it. Just run!”

“Eevee?” the Pokémon asked, confused.

“I won’t let them get to you! They’ll only hurt you even worse! Just go!”

“Vee! Eevee!”

“Don’t worry about me, you need to-AAGH!” I could feel Golem’s Rock Slide hit my back.

“Hahaha! Nice work, Golem! Now for that Eevee!”

“Lem, GOL!”

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw another set of rocks being hurled in Eevee’s direction. I jumped in front of it, feeling the full weight of the rocks crashing down on me. This went on for a while, but the last time I recovered, I could barely see the horror-filled face of Eevee.

“Run…go…” I said weakly.

“This is ridiculous! Vileplume, use Solarbeam to finish this off!”

“Vile!”

I turned back to see Vileplume charge up sunlight to fire at me. I closed my eyes, knowing the end was here.

“CLAYDOL, HYPER BEAM!”

There was a loud explosion. I looked up to see the source of that voice facing off against Team Rocket. He had blue hair and was dressed in a black suit with purple lines and a red tie. He looked back at me and said, “You okay, Mike?”

“I’ve been better, but I’m fine…wait, how do you know me?”

“Your father has told me all about you. Anyway, you and Eevee get to a safe place!”

Ashley jumped forward. “No! You’re not getting away! Vileplume, use Petal Dance!” Vileplume sent forward a flurry of petals my way. Just then, Eevee jumped in front of me and fired a purple ball at the attack, cancelling it out and even hitting Vileplume in the process.

“That was some powerful Shadow Ball!” I looked behind me to the source of that voice. Professor Birch and Dad had come from inside the house, with everybody else inside.

“Steven, it’s good to see you again!”

“Likewise, David! Looks like our hunches about Team Rocket were correct!”

Suddenly, I pieced it all together. Dad had been spying on Team Rocket, and allied with top trainers from around Hoenn to make sure they didn’t take over.

“Hey, runt! Don’t think we’re giving up!”

“Golem, use Rollout!” Golem charged towards us. I thought that I needed to help Steven out in some way. That’s when I turned to Eevee.

“Eevee, feel like battling together?”

“Eevee!” Eevee replied, excitedly.

“Claydol, use-”

“Eevee, use Iron Tail!” Eevee jumped at Golem, its tail glowing white. It slammed the tail into Golem, sending Golem flying back at Vileplume and knocking them both out, to my surprise.

“Great work, Mike! I’ll take it from here! Claydol, another Hyper Beam!” Claydol, a Pokémon that looked like a ancient figure with eight eyes, moved its disembodied arms, charged up two powerful beams, then fired at Team Rocket.

The four were sent flying into the sunset, with the two humans screaming, “TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF!” I breathed a sigh a relief, knowing that it was over…at least for now.

Later that evening, we refrained from explaining Team Rocket to Professor Birch because we just wanted to keep it on the DL, but I explained to Mom that I wanted to start a journey with my very own Pokémon. It took some convincing and assistance from Professor Birch and Steven, but she finally relented, saying she didn’t hate Pokémon, but was afraid that they might hurt me out in the world.

“Mom, if I have my own, I’ll be fine. I promise you.”

“Okay, Michael. I believe you. And I love you.”

Professor Birch stepped up with a Pokedex and six Poke Balls.

“Here you go, Mike! You’ll need these for your journey, and I’ll come by tomorrow with the three starter Pokémon for you to choose from.”

“Thank you, Professor…” I replied as I took them, “but I think I’ve already found my starter Pokémon. Right, Eevee?”

“Vee!” Eevee said happily, as I scratched its head.

“I understand, Mike. I guess maybe that’s the way to go: with what you think is strongest, right?” Professor Birch asked, with a smirk on his face.

“Wrong. The way to go is with the one your heart tells you to go with. I’ve got this feeling that Eevee and I have developed a bond that will overcome anything, so my heart is telling me to go with Eevee.”

“Good plan, young man,” Professor Birch said, the smirk changing to a proud smile.

“I have something for you, too,” Steven said as he handed me another Poke Ball. “Happy birthday.”

“…wow, really? Thank you!” I said. “Come on out!” I threw the Poke Ball, and out came the Iron Ball Pokémon, Beldum. “Wow! Nice to meet you! I’m Mike, and this is Eevee!”

“Beld!”

“Vee!”

After the three of us had introduced ourselves, we turned to everybody else and smiled, knowing that we had their full support on the start of our journey together.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 3: The Tithes That Bind

“Wow, that’s quite a list of attacks you have. Iron Tail, Shadow Ball, Bite…it’s just so much for something at your level! That’s incredible!”

“Vee! Eevee!”

“Hey, Beldum! You sure you don’t want any lunch?”

“Beld, Beldum,”

“Okay. Hey, you still remember how to do IT, don’t you?”

“Beld!”

“That’s good. I’m glad we did all that training yesterday!”

It was two days after Team Rocket had attacked, and we were sitting in a field outside of school at lunch hour. Eevee had been fully revitalized, and we’d been training the afternoon before. Beldum was currently absorbing nutrients from trees (apparently, that’s how it eats) while I shared my lunch with Eevee. I hadn’t told Alexis or anybody else about Eevee and Beldum, and was planning to inform the teachers about my leaving the school to go on my Pokémon journey after school was over that day. I had to keep up my guard, because I didn’t know if or when Team Rocket would come after me again, nor did I fully understand what Pokerus is. All I knew was I had to protect Eevee and Beldum from anyone and anything that might-

“Yo, Mike! What are those things you got there?”

Have I mentioned that I have the worst timing? I looked up to see my arch-rival, Rick, standing in front of me. He was a little taller than me, with black hair in kind of a bowl cut, like the guy from that old-time television show…the Three…Hoodlums?...ah, whatever. Anyway, he was the main guy who kept trying to ask Alexis out, so since she always had me drive him away, we weren’t exactly on the best of terms. Nothing filled him with more satisfaction than making my life miserable (i.e. stealing my books, hiding my lunch, calling me names, etc.), so the fact that he was acting nice towards me meant one thing: TROUBLE.

“Hey, Rick. These are my Pokémon. You like them?”

“Well, I’m not sure about the smaller one, but that large blue thing is pretty cool-looking.”

“They have names, you know. They’re Eevee and Beldum!”

“Jeez, man! Calm down! You know I’m not into that stuff! Anyway, I suppose you’re going to use them to further protect your GIRLFRIEND, huh?”

“No, Rick. I’m leaving.”

“Yeah, well, it’s only a matter of time before she’s all say what?”

“That’s right. The three of us are going to explore the world of Pokémon, starting with Hoenn.”

“You can’t leave! First of all, the teachers won’t let you. Second of all, Alexis will be alone, and third of-“ He stopped, and got a look as if deep in thought (that’s a first), and then grew a humongous smile. “…Okay! You have my support! By all means, go on this ‘adventure’ of yours!”

“What are you trying to pull?”

“Pull? Me?”

“…Oh, I see! You want me out of the way just so you can ask Alexis out!”

“NO! No, no! Don’t be silly! I just think it’s healthy for you to get out of the city every once in a while! Y’know, even if it is for a fool’s errand! Nyuk nyuk nyuk!”

“Right, whatever.” I paused, then said: “I just hope that Alexis will be able to deal with this decision.”

“Yeah! You guys have been friends for a long time; she’s gonna be devastated! How tragic,” he replied sarcastically.

“Shut up. This isn’t easy for me, either, but I have to do it. Not just for me, but for Alexis, for all of you guys, and for Eevee and Beldum, too!”

“Yeah, right. Listen, Mike, I don’t think you’re ready! I’m not even kidding around with you anymore; you’re just too weak to attempt this kind of journey on your own! Why, you’ve never even been outside of-”

“A: I’m not weak, because I have a ton of support and if I can get it from Alexis as well, then I’ll be more than ready! B: I won’t be alone, because Eevee and Beldum will be right there with me! And my bonds will keep me with everyone here! So can the pessimism, prick!”

“What’d you just call-”

“MIKE! RICK!” Hally, a friend of Alexis, was running towards us. “Guys, there’s trouble! These two weirdos are attacking the school with their Pokémon!”

“…No! Rick, we’ll have to pick this up another time! Eevee, Beldum! Let’s…huh?”

Eevee was saying something to Beldum, to which Beldum nodded and headed to the west. Eevee then came to me and nodded.

“What about Beldum?”

“Vee,” it said as it shook its head.

“…okay, let’s go!”

Eevee and I ran to the school with Rick and Hally close behind. Certain parts were on fire, a Vileplume was using Solarbeam to destroy the building, and a Golem was chasing teachers and students around. I looked around, and eventually saw the backs of two familiar figures.

“TEAM ROCKET!” I shouted.

Ashley then turned to face me.

“Ah, right on schedule,” she said, smirking. “Orson, do it!”

“My name’s OLSON!” he shouted as he spun around.

The unthinkable was happening. Olson had Alexis in his grip, and she could only mumble beneath the cloth in her mouth. I stood there, shocked and scared. I don’t think I’d ever seen her so frightened. I kept thinking, what do I do? I can’t attack, because Alexis might get hurt!

“What’s it going to be? Hand over Eevee and I’ll release the girl! Refuse and…well, you know!”

“That’s playing dirty! But…”

“Vee! Eevee!”

I looked down at Eevee, and saw that it had a determined look in its eyes, telling me to do it.

“But…are you sure?”

“Vee.”

“……okay. Go ahead.”

Eevee went over to them. Ashley picked it up and put it in a little cage. I turned to Olson with a scowl.

“WELL?!”

“Of course! Later, girly!”

He shoved Alexis towards me. I caught her and took the cloth off her mouth. She wouldn’t stop shivering.

“Are you all right?”

“…I think so. Mike, what…where…that Pokémon…”

“Long story. Tell you later!”

I looked up in time to see Ashley, Olson, Golem, and Vileplume running off with Eevee. Just then, a glowing figure charged right at them and knocked them back, sending Eevee flying. I ran to it, caught it, and let it out of the cage.

“Eevee, I’m glad you’re back! But who-?”

Just then, the figure zoomed over and stopped in front of my face. It was Beldum! It had saved Eevee!

“Beldum?! Thank you SO much! And that was an awesome Take Down!”

“Beld!” it said happily.

I looked at Eevee. “You planned this?!”

“Vee!”

“Wait, what’s going on, Mike? How do you have Pokémon?” Alexis asked, confused, yet looking fully recovered.

“I’ll tell you later. Right now, it looks like those guys aren’t done!”

“Vileplume! Get that little runt! Use Acid!”

“Vileplume!” Vileplume said as it fired a spray of poison at us.

“Beldum, block the attack!” Beldum charged ahead and caught the poison, nullifying it with its immunity to Poison-type attacks. “Sorry Ashley, but you’re going to need a lot more than that to beat a Steel-type!”

“Is THIS what you had in mind?! Golem, use Rollout!” said Olson. Golem curled itself in and started rolling at us.

“Beldum, form a wall! Eevee, get behind Beldum and push as hard as you can!” The two Pokémon formed the wall and pushed against Golem’s attack. It looked like a stalemate, so I thought to myself, How am I going to stop that kind of attack?...hm, what if…

“Vileplume, use Petal Dance!” Vileplume fired petals from its flower.

“Eevee, Shadow Ball!”

“Golem, block that attack!”

Eevee’s Shadow Ball neutralized the Petal Dance, but Golem intercepted the attack before it could reach Vileplume. That’s when an idea hit me. “All right Eevee, hit the ground with a flurry of Shadow Balls!” Eevee fired at the ground, raising a cloud of dust. “Now Beldum, do IT!” Beldum charged forward out of the dust with a Take Down.

“You don’t know when to quit! Golem, use Rollout!” Golem got in front of Vileplume and used Rollout, just like I’d planned.

“Now, Beldum! Reverse Release!” Beldum stopped and spun around at the same time to reveal that it was holding Eevee from behind. It let go, sending Eevee flying at Golem. The strategy went like this: Eevee’s Shadow Ball creating the dust was the distraction. Beldum, through the dust, went over to Eevee and held it in its claw, then used Take Down, emerging from the dust while still holding Eevee. Then, on my command, it stopped while spinning and released Eevee, giving it increased momentum. “Alright, Eevee! Hit Golem with an Iron Tail!” In midflight, Eevee’s Iron Tail smacked Golem in the face, causing it to topple into Vileplume and, subsequently, into Team Rocket.

“Gah! Get up, Golem! You’re crushing us!”

“No dice, guys! Eevee, Beldum! Let’s wrap this up with a double Take Down!”

Both Pokémon charged forward with a glowing aura about both of them. Upon impact, there was a huge explosion, and the four were sent flying into the sky with Ashley and Olson screaming, “NOOO! WE’RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!”

I breathed another sigh of relief and said, “Maybe this time they’ll think twice before pulling a stunt like that. Wait, we won our first battle! On our own! WAY TO GO, GUYS!” Eevee and Beldum happily rushed at me and the three of us met in a group hug, laughing. The students then ran to us with cheers and congratulations. All the girls wanted to squeeze Eevee while the guys admired Beldum. I looked over at Alexis, who was standing out of the crowd with a smile on her face. I smiled back, but then emerged from the mob towards the principal.

“Sir, I need to talk to you about something important.”

“Yes, Mike. I believe so,” the principal replied.

Later that afternoon, Eevee, Beldum and I left the principal’s office. By that time, I had changed out of my uniform into jeans, the shirt Alexis had given me, and a matching cap. We walked a ways to find Rick leaning against a locker.

“Well, Mike? How’d it go?”

“It went well. It feels weird to leave school like this. As for you, Rick…it’s been fun (and I use the term loosely).”

“Listen. I’m still not going to let up on you, because you’ll always be the same loser. That said, I was wrong. You can be both a loser AND ready for what lies ahead, I guess. Good luck.”

“Thanks, I think,” I replied as I shook his hand. “Take care. I’ll see you again.”

I then walked outside campus, having said most of my goodbyes. I found Alexis standing at the hill where we usually split off to go home every day. I walked over to her, and we stood there for a minute, watching the sunset. Finally, she broke the ice.

“The outfit looks good on you.”

“You think so? Well, you certainly know how to pick ‘em, then. Thank you.”

“…so, this is how it ends.”

“I guess. At least for now, anyway.”

“Will you be coming back to visit?”

“Yes. I’ll definitely come back for a while after the Ever Grande Conference, but I may visit beforehand.”

“…okay.”

“…Alexis, you’re still not sold on me leaving, are you.”

“YOU’RE DAMN RIGHT I’M NOT!” She glared at me, tears starting to form in her eyes. “I can’t just suddenly convert to a life without my best friend just like that! You mean too much to me and I don’t want this to happen! I know, there’s nothing I can do about it, but it just doesn’t seem fair that I’m losing you after-!”

“I know this isn’t easy. Frankly, it isn’t for me, either.”

“I just…I’m really going to miss you.” she said, the glare fading from her face.

“Like I said, it’s hard on me as well, but I’ll check in via phone often. Besides,” I said as I took her hands in my own, “I’m really not leaving you. Just like you’ll never leave me.”

“…thank you, Mike. Good luck and PLEASE be careful.” She then turned to leave.

My mouth suddenly acted on its own. “Alexis, I-” I cut off what I was going to say because I realized that I couldn’t. She would forbid me to leave if I did, anyway. “…never mind, it’s nothing.” Why’d you say that, you IDIOT?!? Now she’s going to get upset! After I thought that, I got caught by surprise as Alexis threw her arms around my neck. I stood there for a second, then returned the hug and said, softly, “I’ll come back to you. I promise.”

“I know,” she said, tears now streaming down her eyes.

We both moved back, now connected only by each other’s hands, smiling, and then we broke off and went our separate ways. She went towards her house, but I took the route out of town. We reached the point where Route 101 began. I turned to my Pokémon and said, “You ready, guys?”

“Vee!”

“Beld!”

And with that, we set out for Oldale Town to register for the Ever Grande Conference. However, questions still plagued my mind: When would Team Rocket come back? How did Eevee get Pokerus? It seemed like this first phase of my journey was an adventure in itself, and that that adventure had just ended. I couldn’t have been more wrong; in truth, ours had just begun.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 4: A New Rival

We arrived at Oldale Town about a day later. We had decided to train for a bit, and I could feel myself getting stronger alongside Eevee and Beldum. I gave the two to Nurse Joy, and while they were being healed, I registered for the Ever Grande Conference. Just then, I felt a tap from behind.

“Excuse me, Mike?”

I turned around to see that it was Joshua, Professor Birch’s Aide. I greeted him, and we discussed what he had come for.

“I need to deliver this parcel to Devon Corporation in Rustboro City, but I can’t make it through the Petalburg Forest because I don’t have anything to protect myself from groups of wild Pokemon that might attack to protect their territory. Since your Eevee and Beldum can hold their own against them, do you think you can take it there for me?”

“Wait, you’re sending a KID through a dangerous forest? You don’t think it’s dangerously irresponsible of you to do so?”

“Well-” he stammered.

“Just kidding, I’ll do it!”

“Oh, phew! Thanks! I’ll need to call President Stone about this. I’d better get to it; see you later and thanks again!”

“You’re welcome!” I called out to him as he ran off. I then checked my map and saw that I’d have to take Route 102 to Petalburg City to Route 104 to Rustboro City. “Okay,” I said, “sounds easy enough.” It was at that time that Eevee and Beldum were ready.

“By the way, Mike,” Nurse Joy said, “you have a message from a…Brendan Birch. He said to ‘meet up at Route 103’. That’s north of here.”

“Okay. Thank you, Nurse Joy!”

I then made my way to Route 103, and found no people for a while. I passed by some sleeping Zigzagoon and a Wurmple nest, but found nobody until I reached a lake where a kid about my age was waiting. He had a white hood-like hat with a red Pokeball symbol on it, black-and-red shirt with black pants, with a yellow backpack and matching gloves.

“Excuse me,” I said. “Are you Brendan?”

“That’s me. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Mike!” he said. “I called you here because I heard from my dad that you have an Eevee with Pokerus. I thought maybe you could show it to me?”

“Sure. Come on out, Eevee!”

I released Eevee from its ball, and Brendan began to examine it. He commented on its fur being silkier than most Eevee, and that it looked slightly more muscular, but other than that, nothing extraordinary about it.

“It just seems like a regular Eevee,” he concluded.

“Well, your dad had a machine that had to scan to find the Pokerus. Maybe it’s just harder to track by eye.”

“Have you trained with it? We could have a battle to test it out.”

“Okay, I’m in! How’s one-on-one sound?”

“Sounds good! Go, Mudkip!”

He threw out a Poke Ball, and out came the Mud Fish Pokémon, Mudkip. It looked kind of tough, but I knew Eevee could handle it. “You ready, bud?”

“Vee!”

“Mudkip, start off with a Water Gun!” Mudkip leapt out and shot out a stream of water at Eevee.

“Dodge and use Shadow Ball!” Eevee jumped above and fired a Shadow Ball at Mudkip, nailing it in the head.

“Man! Mudkip, use Mud Shot!” Mudkip fired a ball of sand, which hit Eevee in the eyes, disabling it from seeing anything.

“Oh no! Eevee, try to get to the water! Use Quick Attack and get to the water!” Eevee struggled, but it sped over to the water and washed its eyes.

“Nice try, but water is Mudkip’s specialty! Mudkip, use Surf!”Mudkip jumped into the water and summoned a wave that crashed down on Eevee.

“Eevee, are you all right?!”

“Vee!”

“That’s good,” I said to myself, but we’ve got to find a way to end this quickly. Mudkip is strong against Steel attacks, Shadow Ball’s not strong enough, Take Down isn’t…wait. Single attacks aren’t the answer. So then what is…? Wait, I’ve got it! I suddenly thought.

“Mudkip! Finish this with Water Gun!” Mudkip charged up a Water Gun.

“Now, Eevee! Get a Shadow Ball in there!”

“Mudkip! Stop your attack and dodge!” Mudkip jumped out of the way.

“NOW, EEVEE! FIRE IT INTO THE AIR!” Eevee fired the Shadow Ball into the air. “Now go after it with Quick Attack!” It jumped after the attack.

“Wh-what are you going to do?”

“I’m gonna win! Eevee, IRON TAIL!” Eevee used Iron Tail to hit the Shadow Ball, increasing its power and momentum, knocking Mudkip and knocking it into the water. It resurfaced belly-up, meaning it could no longer battle.

“Mudkip!”

“Way to go, Eevee! That’s a Homerun!” I caught Eevee as it came down from the air, and we shared a friendly laugh.

“Wow, that Eevee is something special after all. And you’ve certainly harnessed its true potential,” Brendan said.

“Aw, c’mon. You and Mudkip had great moves, too.”

“I suppose so. Well, I’m glad to have battled you, and I’ll be supporting you on your way to the Hoenn League!”

“Thanks, Brendan.” We shook hands, and our Pokémon shook hands below. We said our goodbyes and then Eevee and I went back to the Pokémon Center to heal up. As soon as we did, we started on our way to Petalburg City, the first step on our way to deliver that parcel and get our first badge.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 5: Where There’s a Wally, There’s a Way

After two days and about a dozen battles through Route 4, we finally made it to Petalburg City. After resting at the Pokémon Center and getting basic supplies, I walked around town, seeing the sights. One thing that seemed more and more common was how much people mentioned this man named Norman. Finally, I went up to a man who had a leather jacket, blue jeans, and light black hair.

“Excuse me, sir?”

“Yes?”

“I’ve been hearing talk of this man named Norman all around town. He’s some kind of celebrity, or something. I don’t know, I’m new to this town. Do you know anything about him?”

“Why yes, I certainly do. He’s the Gym Leader in this town, and the reason he’s created such a buzz is because ever since he became the Gym Leader, he’s had an unbeaten streak.”

“Unbeaten? Wow…do you know where I could find him?”

“Sure! Come with me, the Gym is this way.”

So I followed him to a dojo-style building, with a bunch of trainers lined up in front.

“Whoa. He MUST be famous if that many trainers want to battle him,” I speculated.

“Hahaha! Yes, I guess so.”

Suddenly, the trainer in the back looked at us and shouted, “THERE HE IS! THERE HE IS!” And at that, all of the trainers started murmuring to each other excitedly.

“Wait, YOU’RE Norman?! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Well, I wanted to keep it a surprise. It’s good to see you again, Mike. I’m happy you became a trainer after all!”

“How do you know me?!...oh, wait. My father, right?”

“There are more trainers in our organization than you thought. Come inside!”

I followed him in after he had told the trainers to wait for a while. He took me to a dojo-like arena, with a field and everything.

“I’d hoped I could get to talk with you more, Mike, but I’m just so busy today. So many trainers come every day to challenge me, and between that and spending time with my family, my time is taken up.”

“I understand. Being a Gym Leader must be hard.”

“Excuse me…” said a meek voice. We turned to see that is was coming from a small boy, about ten years old. He had brown hair, a white shirt, and green pants.

“Ah, Wally! I wasn’t expecting you!”

“Yeah, my dad told me I was supposed to come here today…”

“Oh, that’s right! I forgot! I don’t know if I can help you catch a Pokémon today, though. My schedule is all filled and-“

“Don’t worry, I can take him,” I said.

“Really? Are you sure?”

“I don’t mind, really! You can get to your battles, Wally can get a Pokémon, and I might be able to catch something myself!”

“All right! Wally, take this Zigzagoon and this Poke Ball. Go with Mike and stay close to him.”

“…okay. Thank you, Mr. Norman.” He then turned to me and said, “It’s nice to meet you, Mike.”

“Likewise, Wally,” I replied as I smiled and shook his hand. We then made our way to Route 102. Wally told me he didn’t know what to do when catching a Pokémon.

I turned to him and said: “Why don’t I demonstrate for you? Then you’ll probably feel more confident and know what to do.” Just then, out of nowhere, a small black wolf-like Pokemon, Poochyena, jumped at us. “GET DOWN!” I pulled Wally down, and Poochyena leaped over us. “Right on cue. Go, Eevee!” I threw the Poke Ball, and out came Eevee, raring to go.

“AROOO!” Poochyena cried out.

“It’s using Howl! Eevee, use Sand-Attack!” Eevee dug up sand and sent it Poochyena’s way. It then tried to Tackle Eevee but hit a tree instead.

“Good job, Eevee! Now hit it with Quick Attack!” Eevee sped towards Poochyena, headbutting it into the tree. Poochyena countered with another Tackle, this time hitting its mark. It then delivered a series of Tackles, each hitting their mark as well.

“Come on, Eevee, you can do it! Use Iron Tail!” With its glowing white tail, Eevee smacked Poochyena. When Eevee moved back, Poochyena looked like it couldn’t continue. This was the time. “POKE BALL, GO!” I threw the Pokeball, which hit Poochyena, who then went inside. The Poke Ball wiggled around for a while, but it finally clicked. I stood there for a while, contemplating this turn of events. “I…I did it! I caught my first Pokémon! All right! I CAUGHT A POOCHYENA!”

“Vee!”

“Wow, you’re really good! Congratulations!” Wally said.

“Thanks! Now, let’s go find you one! Feel ready?” I replied.

“After watching that, I think I have the confidence I need!” Wally said, a little different from before.

We looked around for a while until we came across a little white Pokémon with a green helmet and pink horns sticking out the front and back. It was a Pokémon called Ralts, according to my Pokedex.

“Hey, that one looks good,” I said to Wally.

“It’s so cute! And it seems just like me,” Wally added. “All right, go!” He threw the Pokeball out, and out came a Zigzagoon, which was a raccoon-like Pokémon with zigzags across its fur.

“Okay, uh…use…Tackle?” Zigzagoon lunged forward and struck Ralts. Ralts then let out a huge Growl, which intimidated Zigzagoon a little.

“C’mon, you can do it, Wally!”

“Okay…use Quick Attack!” With blinding speed, Zigzagoon struck Ralts again, sending it back a way. Ralts got scared and started to run away. “No! I can’t let it end here! Poke Ball, GO!” He threw the Poke Ball, and it barely nicked Ralts. The Pokémon then entered the Pokeball. After wiggling a while, it finally clicked. Wally looked like he was about to cry as he picked up his Poke Ball and shouted happily, “I CAUGHT A RALTS!”

“Great job, Wally!”

“I owe it to you, Mike! You gave me the courage I needed to do it!”

“No, Wally. You’ve got the courage inside you. You’ve had it all along! You just need to get in touch with it more. Also, you should thank Zigzagoon, too.”

“Oh, yeah! Thanks so much, Zigzagoon!”

“Zigzagoon!” And with a lick from Zigzagoon, Wally got a determined look on his face.

“Now that I know I can be brave, I’m gonna do it! I’m gonna make it to the Hoenn Leauge Championship!”

“Well Wally, I wish you the best of luck and look forward to the day we finally battle!”

“Me too!” Wally said as we high-fived. We then returned to Petalburg City, where we parted ways: him for Verdanturf Town, and me for the Gym. I needed to let Norman know about Wally’s success. When I got there, there was an even bigger line. Conveniently, Norman’s wife, Caroline, brought me in, insisting that I pass the line. Norman had just finished another battle, and when he saw me, he came over.

“Well Mike, how’d it go?” he asked.

“It went well! Wally caught his first Pokémon! Oh, by the way, here’s Zigzagoon back,” I replied as I gave him the Poke Ball.

“Excellent! Well, as thanks, how about an exhibition match with me?”

“Excuse me?”

“Come on! I’d like to see what you’re made of!”

“I…um…I guess so, sure.”

We then went to our places in the ring. The judge, a teenager named Kenny, said, “This battle will be one-on-one with no time limit! Begin!”

“Go, Vigoroth!”

“I choose you, Beldum!”

He sent out a white ape-like Pokémon with sharp claws, and it glared at Beldum as it came out.

“Beldum, use Take Down!” Beldum charged forward with a bright aura.

“Dodge and use Slash!” Vigoroth jumped out of the way and sliced at Beldum with its claws. Although Beldum stopped, the attack didn’t seem to do much damage.

“All right, use Take Down again!” Beldum once again charged at Vigoroth with speed.

“Dodge it now!” Vigoroth jumped back, and Beldum stopped in front of me.

“Okay, Beldum. We’re getting nowhere like this. We’re gonna have to try something else.”

“Beld,” Beldum nodded.

“Vigoroth, use Fury Swipes!” Vigoroth charged at us, claws beared.

“Beldum, hold up a minute!” Beldum just stood there, much to Norman’s surprise. Vigoroth was two feet away when I yelled, “NOW! Turn around and grab it!” Beldum spun around and attached to Vigoroth’s arm.

“Come on, Vigoroth! Try to shake it off!” Vigoroth tried, but Beldum was too heavy.

“Now, use Take Down one more time!” Beldum charged in Norman’s direction, carrying Vigoroth all the way. “Reverse Release!” Beldum stopped, spun around, and released Vigoroth at the same time, sending it flying into the wall. Vigoroth slumped to the floor. “Great, Beldum! I knew you could do it!” I exclaimed.

“That’s really impressive, Mike. You found out how to use Vigoroth’s weight against him, inflicting a lot of damage. However…” Norman cut off just as Vigoroth got back on its feet.

“NO!”

“Vigoroth! Finish it with Flamethrower!” Vigoroth let loose a stream of fire at Beldum. Steel-types were especially weak against those kinds of attacks, so I knew that this wouldn’t end well. However, that didn’t take the shock away from my face when Beldum passed out.

“Beldum is unable to battle! Vigoroth is the winner, and the victory in this match goes to Norman, the Petalburg Gym Leader!”

I ran to Beldum’s side. It looked like it was burned too much. “Beldum! BELDUM! Are you okay?!”

“Beld…Beld!” it replied weakly.

“I’m glad you’re all right.”

“Beld…” it said, looking down.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. We’ll get stronger, I promise.”

“Is it okay?” Norman asked as he and Vigoroth came over.

“Yeah, it should be fine after a visit to the Pokémon Center. I’m really impressed with you and your Vigoroth! No wonder you have such a reputation!”

“True, but I can tell you and your Pokémon have a whole lot of potential! Believe it or not, you gave me and Vigoroth a run for our money! You should be proud,” he added.

“I am. I’m really proud of you, Beldum!” I said as I gave it a hug.

“Beldum!” it replied.

Later on, Norman and I were standing outside Route 104. “Petalburg Forest is to the northwest, and it’ll lead you right to Rustboro City. Are you sure you can manage?”

“Yes, sir. We’ll be fine.”

“I’ll let your parents know you’re doing well. Well, until we meet again!”

I then set off for the Petalburg Forest. With a new friend, Poochyena, along for the trip, and a new experience behind me, I could only wonder what lay ahead for our motley crew.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 6: Twin Trouble

The sky suddenly became covered by the trees as I entered the Petalburg Forest. Looking around, it seemed overall like a gloomy and desolate place, but you could hear Bug Pokémon chirping all around you. There were a couple of Beautifly feeding on flowers, some Dustox were dancing around, and all in all, the presence of these Pokémon made it seem a lot more lively. I walked through for a while (because I was lost) until I saw this odd mushroom-like thing on the ground. I bent forward to see what it was, when it jumped up to reveal itself as Shroomish, the Mushroom Pokémon.

“Wow! That’s one healthy-looking Pokémon! Let’s go, Poochyena!” I threw the ball, and Poochyena came out with a somewhat lethargic look on its face. “You okay?” I asked. Poochyena just snorted.

“Shroomish!” the Pokémon shouted as it sent out a Stun Spore.

“Dodge and use Bite!” Poochyena jumped out of the way and lunged toward Shroomish. The Pokémon dodged and slammed down on Poochyena with a Headbutt. “Okay, try a Tackle attack!” Poochyena jumped up and nailed Shroomish with a Tackle. “Great job, Poochyena!”

“Chy! Chy…” the Pokémon said as it began to fall asleep.

“Mish, Shroomish!” the Pokémon laughed.

“Poochyena? Wake up, man! WAKE UP!” I cried. However, Shroomish’s Effect Spore had caused Poochyena to fall asleep.

“Shroomish!” I looked up to see Shroomish charging at Poochyena again. I braced myself for the worst when I heard a voice say, “Shroomish! Stop!” The Pokémon screeched to a halt, then ran back to a girl about my age. She had blonde hair, a pink sweater, and a white skirt. “I’m sorry for my Shroomish’s behavior. Are you all right?”

“No, no! It’s my fault! I actually thought Shroomish was wild! I’m sorry!”

“Shroomish is such a little kid; he loves playing hide-and-seek. But I guess he didn’t want you revealing its location, so he attacked. I’m very sorry.”

“Don’t worry, it didn’t do anything but defend itself,” I said as I returned Poochyena to its Poke Ball.

“I’m Rose, by the way.”

“I’m Mike,” I said.

“Everything all right, sis?” said a small voice. Just then, two little boys came up to her, and what was intriguing was that they were twins dressed in the same hats with the same nets.

“Yes, yes. These are my brothers, Timmy and Tommy.”

“Hey, man! You’ve got Pokémon, too!” “Wanna battle us?” “You win, we show you the way out of the forest!” “It’s REEEAAALLLYY hard to find!”

“Timmy! Tommy! Stop that!” Rose scolded. “You see, I’m surrounded by little kids,” she said to me. “I’LL show you the way out of the forest, don’t worry.”

“Well, your brothers just want to battle. I think it could be fun! Okay, guys! You’re on!”

“YIPPEE!” the twins exclaimed.

“Well, alright. Thanks.” said Rose.

“Go, Silcoon!” “And Cascoon!” They sent out two cocoon-like Pokémon. Silcoon was white with covered eyes, and Cascoon was purple with bright, clear eyes.

“All right! Go, Eevee and Beldum!” I sent out Eevee and Beldum, who were raring to go.

“Silcoon, use String Shot!” said Timmy. Silcoon then fired out a silk string that attached to Eevee.

“Cascoon, use Tackle!” said Tommy. Cascoon jumped toward Eevee.

“Beldum, block the attack!” Beldum intercepted Cascoon, knocking it back a ways. “Now hit Silcoon with a Take Down!” Beldum charged at Silcoon.

“Silcoon, look out!” Timmy said. However, Silcoon couldn’t get out of the way in time. Beldum’s impact sent it flying into a tree, severing the String Shot.

“Cascoon, let’s show ‘em who’s boss! Tackle now!” Cascoon leapt at Beldum.

“Knock it away with Iron Tail, Eevee!” Eevee’s glowing tail sent Cascoon spiraling right into Silcoon. The twins were startled.

“I don’t get it! How are we getting beat so easily?” asked Timmy.

“Beats me! Usually we’d be winning by now,” Tommy replied.

“Guys, it seems pretty clear to me what’s wrong. You aren’t working together! You need to protect each other, like Eevee and Beldum have been doing! As long as you can establish trust between you and your fellow competitor, there’s nothing you can’t do! Show me what you’ve learned. Now, Eevee. Use Quick Attack on Silcoon!” Eevee sped towards it.

“Silcoon! Watch ou-”

“Cascoon! Get in front of that and use Harden!” Cascoon blocked the attack with its Harden.

“Wow! Thanks, Tommy!”

“Nice. Beldum, try Take Down on Silcoon!”

“No way! Cascoon, slow him down with String Shot!” The String Shot fired from Cascoon stopped Beldum’s attack.

“Thanks! I guess we’re even now!”

“There you go! Of course, don’t think we’re done! Double Take Down!” Eevee and Beldum both rushed at the cocoon Pokémon, knocking them into trees.

“NO, OUR POKÉMON!”

“Silcoon and Cascoon are unable to battle! Eevee and Beldum are the winners, and victory in this match goes to Mike from Littleroot Town!” Rose announced.

“Way to go, guys! And you brothers, as well! See what happened when you combined your Pokémons’ power?”

“You know, you’re right!” “Thanks a lot!”

“And thanks from me as well,” said Rose as she walked up. “My brothers did tend to argue a lot about battling, but maybe now YOU TWO WILL LEARN TO GET ALONG AND BEHAVE, RIGHT?!?”

“YES MA’AM!” they said, terrified.

“No problem. They have amazing skill! Now I hate to part like this, but where’s the exit? I have to deliver this parcel to Rustboro City.”

“What? Why didn’t you say so before? We would’ve led you out without battling!”

“This was more enjoyable. And maybe more so for you all than for me,” I answered.

“I suppose so. This way!”

And so I followed Rose and the twins to the exit. I thanked them, we said our goodbyes, and emerged from the forest at a lake. We were still a couple of hours away from Rustboro City, so I let the Pokémon out to take a break. Poochyena went to take a nap in the shade, Beldum attached to a tree for a snack, and Eevee and I went fishing. Nothing happened for a long while, until I felt a bite at the end of my rod. “Uh-oh! Help me out here!” Eevee jumped on my arm and tugged on the pole with its teeth. Beldum released from the tree, came over, and pulled me backward. Poochyena just kept napping. Soon, after some serious tugging, we managed to draw out what was giving us a hard time: a Magikarp. I know what you’re thinking: “Mike, that’s freaking lame.” However, this Magikarp was about ten pounds bigger than most others, AND it was gold! I couldn’t believe what I was seeing! “Wow…I’ve GOTTA catch it! Go get it, Beldum!” Beldum leapt into battle. “Use Take Down!” Beldum charged right into Magikarp, knocking it onto the rocks.
“Karp karp karp karp karp…” it said as it just splashed about.

“Uh…okay. Take Down.” Beldum hit Magikarp again. Magikarp just kept splashing. “….okay, this is getting annoying. FAST.”

“Karp karp karp karp karp…”

“Man! You’re feisty! All right, I’ve had it! POKE BALL, GO!” I threw the Poke Ball out at Magikarp. It wiggled a bit, but it quickly broke free and back into the water. I expected it to retreat, but it came back up, ready to battle. “All right Beldum, use Take Down one more time!” Beldum nailed Magikarp again, but this time, Magikarp retaliated.

“MagiKARP!” it yelled as it hit Beldum with a Flail attack.

“…Beld?” Beldum said, unfazed by the attack.

“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking would happen. Beldum, finish it with Take Down.”

“Beld, Beldum,” it replied as it smacked Magikarp out of the water.

“Okay, Take Two. POKE BALL, GO!” The ball hit Magikarp again; this time it wiggled for a while, then clicked. “All right! WE CAUGHT A MAGIKARP!”

“Beldum!”

“Way to go! And thank you guys for helping me reel it in!” I said. I then looked over at Poochyena, who was still napping. “Hmm, what could be wrong with him?”

Keeping that thought in mind, and keeping our new friend Magikarp close to the belt, we moved closer and closer until we finally reached Rustboro City, ready to deliver the parcel and win our first Gym Badge.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 7: The Industrial Rustboro City

Rustboro City was a huge city, bustling with people and cars and all sorts of technology. I looked around in awe at this sight; our town was nothing like this. I wandered around the city for a while, stopping for a lunch break at one point, until I finally reached the Devon Corporation. I went inside to the front desk and to the receptionist.

“Welcome to Devon Corp.! May I help you?” she asked.

“Yes, my name’s Mike McCarver. I’m here delivering a parcel from Professor Birch of Littleroot Town.”

“Ah, yes. Hang on just a minute,” she said. She then made a call, and two men in black suits came.

“Sir, if you’ll please come with us, we’ll take you to President Stone.”

I followed them through the building, seeing the researchers work on several Pokémon-related machines. At the same time, I wondered, what’s in this parcel? Then, at the next-to-top floor, we entered a fancy business room, where a man with a purple suit and light blue hair was waiting at the desk.

“Hello, Mike! It’s a pleasure to see you again! I bet you don’t remember me, but I’m President Stone!” he said, shaking my hand.

“Hello, Mr. President. I assume you’re involved with my father’s work as well?”

“Indeed. He and I are the financial and networking support in the group, respectively.”

“Tell me, what is Team Rocket?”

“They’re a group of criminals who aspire to take over the world using Pokémon. With them on the loose, the Hoenn Region needs a group like us. We initially began our organization when you were just a baby, so now you know how we all know you,” he explained.

“I see. Anyway, I have this parcel for you.”

“Oh! Thank you!” He opened it. “Ah, just as I expected! These are the prototypes for the new Pokenav!”

“Poke-who?!”

“No, no. Pokenav! It’s our latest product. It’s a map, a phone, and many other things to help a trainer on their way! We were having trouble building it, so I had it sent to Professor Birch for fine-tuning! As thanks for delivering these, I’ll give one of them to you!”

“You don’t have to do that! Really, it was no problem!” I said, embarrassed.

“I insist. Here you go!” he said as he handed me the yellow computer-like device. “So, I assume you’re also looking to challenge Roxanne, the Gym Leader, right?”

“Well…yeah, that’d be nice!” I said.

“Well, then. You need to stop by the Trainer’s School! She’s doing lessons on Rock types today! You might learn a thing or two while watching in on it!”

“Okay, then! I’ll go there! Thank you very much, Mr. President! Oh, and give my regards to Steven!”

I then left the Devon Corp. building and made my way to the Trainer’s School. As soon as I got there, I entered and looked around for where I might find that lesson. My search led me out back of the school, where a bunch of children were watching a battle. It was a battle between two Geodude, the original Pokémon Golem evolves from. One of the trainers was a woman with black hair, a gray dress, and pink stockings.

“Geodude, finish it with Mega Punch!” she called out. Her Geodude charged forward and punched the other one, knocking it out. “And thus ends the demonstration for today. See you kids tomorrow!” The kids all turned to leave, when I heard,

“How about a little demonstration of our own?”

“Golem, get in there!”

Once again, Team Rocket jumped into the fray, with their Golem at the ready.

“So, you’re Roxanne, huh? Not what we were expecting considering a girl of your reputation!”

That’s Roxanne, eh? I thought.

“I wanted to see how my Golem stacks up against your Rock-types! So let your students see you fail and then watch us take your Pokémon!”

“No way! You’re not laying a finger on the children OR the Pokémon! Geodude, use Tackle!” Geodude charged at Golem.

“Golem, grab it and use Seismic Toss!” Golem grabbed Geodude, jumped high into the air, and somersaulted into the ground, with Geodude on bottom. “Now use Rollout!” Golem bowled right over Geodude, and it struggled to get back up. I knew I had to do something before it was too late.

“Geodude! No!” Roxanne cried.

“And now, we’ll take it along with the other Pokémon in the Gym!” Ashley exclaimed.

“EEVEE, POOCHYENA! USE SHADOW BALL!” Eevee and Poochyena nailed Golem with double Shadow Balls. “Hey, guys! Remember this loveable mug?”

“THE RUNT!” Ashley and Olson shouted.

I leapt in front of Roxanne and the students. “Get everyone back, I’ll handle this! Poochyena, hit them with another Shadow Ball!” Poochyena’s Shadow Ball made its mark on Golem. “Way to go!” Poochyena snorted, satisfied.

“Hey, runt! Don’t think you’ve won just yet! We’re taking those Pokémon! Get them, Orwell!”

“Golem, use-THE NAME IS OLSON, YOU NIMROD!”

The two got into another one of their arguments.

“Sigh. You think you know nothing about two people, but just a little bit of squabbling lets you know they’re really in love,” I said.

“FAT CHANCE!” they both retorted. They then resumed arguing.

“Okay, Eevee. Let’s send them off with an Iron Tail.” Eevee’s Iron Tail caused Golem to roll along the ground, eventually catching Ashley and Olson, and then continuing to roll away.

“Agh! Cut it out!” “Jane, stop this crazy thing!” “TEAM ROCKET JUST KEEPS ROLLING ALONG!” they screamed, spinning out of sight.

“Good riddance to bad rubbish. Great job, you two!” I said, high-fiving with my Pokémon.

“Thank you so much, young man. Tell me, what is your name?” asked Roxanne as she came over.

“My name is Mike McCarver. It’s nice to finally meet you, Ms. Roxanne!”

“Oh, you can just call me Roxanne. By the way, I received a call about you from someone named David McCarver. He told me that you were on your way to request a battle with me, and wanted it to be broadcasted on television,” she replied.

“There’s a shocker,” I muttered to myself sarcastically. I figured Dad would go to all that trouble.

“Of course, I was happy to accept a Gym battle and a request from a man in his position. I’ll accept your challenge, if your father is right about your challenging me. So, are you up to this?”

“Yes, I am! I’m ready to win my first badge!”

Now having met the Gym Leader and sending Team Rocket packing once again, I was more than ready to finally climb the first step on my way to the Hoenn League.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 8: Set in Stone Badge

The very next day, I came to the Rustboro Gym. On the outside it looked like a regular stadium, but on the inside, the battlefield was cluttered with boulders (imagine that). Roxanne was waiting with a group of older students, one of them holding two flags, and the others setting up video equipment. I then saw a ton of people in the stands, mostly students. I guess Dad has his methods of creating a buzz.

“Well, Mike. I’m glad you made it! Ready to begin?”

“Absolutely.”

We took our positions at either end of the battlefield. The student with the flags went to the middle of the field on the side and said: “This battle between Roxanne, Leader of the Rustboro Gym, and Mike of Littleroot Town will now begin! Each trainer will be allotted the use of two Pokémon! Only the challenger may substitute his Pokémon, and the battle will end when both of either trainer’s Pokémon are unable to continue! Begin!”

“All right, Beldum! Let’s do it!”

“Come on out, Geodude!”

Beldum and Geodude came out of their Poke Balls and took their places on the field. “GO!” the student said.

“Excellent choice in terms of type, Mike. However, Beldum’s only attack doesn’t do well against Geodude. Geodude, use Mega Punch!” Geodude charged forward.

“Oh, I learned how to stop that yesterday! Beldum, grab hold of Geodude’s arm!” Beldum spun around and grabbed Geodude’s arm. “Now charge at that boulder with Take Down!” The aura glowing about it, Beldum rocketed at the giant boulder with Geodude in tow. “Now, Reverse Release!” Beldum released Geodude while spinning, sending careening into the boulder for massive damage. Geodude quickly got up, not looking hurt, but mad.

“Geodude! Use Rollout attack!” Geodude rolled into Beldum, sending it flying.

“Okay, Beldum! Use Take Down on every one of the boulders!”

“What?!”

Beldum started charging at a boulder with Take Down, then the ricochet caused it to bounce to another boulder. This continued for a while, with Geodude looking around, confused. Finally, Beldum made contact with Geodude, but they both looked really hurt. I’d forgotten that Take Down took a little bit out of its user.

“Well done! I don’t think I’ve ever had such a heated match! But Geodude and I aren’t done yet! Geodude! Use Tackle at maximum force!”

“We’re not done either! Beldum, Take Down at full power!”

The two Pokémon charged at each other. When they hit, there was an explosion. When the smoke cleared, both Pokémon were on the ground, passed out. “Geodude and Beldum! Both Pokémon are unable to battle!” the student judge said.

“You did well, Geodude! Take a good rest,” Roxanne said as she returned Geodude to its Poke Ball.

“Great job, Beldum! We’ll win this one for you!” I said as I did the same with Beldum.

“Come on out, Nosepass!”

“Go, Eevee!”

As I sent Eevee out to battle, Roxanne threw her Poke Ball out as well. Out of it came a huge Pokémon looking like a boulder with a giant orange nose. It was the Compass Pokémon, Nosepass. Its eyes were closed, but I couldn’t get ahead of myself; with a nose that big, it probably didn’t need sight.

“Nosepass, use Rock Tomb!” Nosepass stomped on the ground. Before I could react, Eevee was trapped among stone.

“Eevee, get out of there! Use Iron Tail to break free!” Eevee’s Iron Tail shattered the stone, but Eevee looked really rattled from that attack. “Okay, use Quick Attack!” Eevee sped towards Nosepass and headbutted it, but it didn’t seem to do much.

“Nosepass, use Sandstorm!” Nosepass whipped up a tornado of sand which knocked Eevee away.

“I think this might be a good time to try that new move! Eevee! Hidden Power!” Eevee summoned up a green energy sphere which fired and hit Nosepass, knocking it back quite far. The type of attack depended on stats, but this looked like a Grass-Type move.

“Wow! That was certainly a gamble, Mike! Nosepass, use Thunder Wave!” Nosepass’s nose glowed blue and fired out two streams of lightning. The lightning surrounded Eevee and stopped it from moving.

“NO! EEVEE!”

“Now, Tackle it!” Nosepass nailed Eevee with a Tackle. “Just keep on going!”

There was nothing I could do. Thunder Wave had completely paralyzed Eevee, so it couldn’t dodge Nosepass’s attacks. “Come on, Eevee! Get out of there!”

“Vee…Vee…”

Tried as it might, Eevee couldn’t move. “Come on, Eevee! You’ve got to find the strength inside! I know you can do this! USE SHADOW BALL!” As if my words were magic, Eevee let loose a Shadow Ball, sending Nosepass for a loop.

“Way to go, Eevee! I knew all along you could do it!”

“Vee…EEVEE!”

It was at that moment that Eevee glowed. Not with an aura from Take Down, but a shining blue light. I saw its body and ears get bigger, and its tail and limbs much thinner. When the light faded, it had become violet-colored with a red gem on its forehead.

“Espeon!” it shouted.

“I don’t believe it! Your Eevee evolved into an Espeon!”

“Who?!”

“No, Espeon!”

“Let’s see what the Pokedex has to say!” I pulled out my Pokedex.

“Espeon, the Sun Pokémon. Espeon is the evolved form of Eevee. It is able to read air currents, allowing it to predict the future as well as its opponent’s next moves.”

“Wow! That’s so awesome! All right, let’s get back in the game, Espeon! Use Morning Sun!”

“Espe!” it said as it summoned the light to its body, clearing up its injuries.

“Nosepass, hit Espeon with Zap Cannon!” Nosepass fired a ball of electricity our way.

“Espeon! Confusion!” Espeon’s eyes glowed blue as its psychic powers caught the attack midair. Okay, they might expect me to fling Zap Cannon right back, so instead, I’ll do THIS! “Espeon, use Confusion to send the attack around Nosepass!” Espeon flung the Zap Cannon in circles around Nosepass. The Pokémon had no choice but to follow the attack around with its magnetic nose. It just kept spinning and spinning until it became disoriented.

“Nosepass, no!”

“Let’s wrap this up with our Homerun Attack!” Espeon fired a Shadow Ball into the air, leapt after it with Quick Attack, then used Iron Tail to launch the attack at Nosepass. As soon as it hit, Nosepass went flying into the wall behind Roxanne and passed out.

“Nosepass is unable to battle! Espeon is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Mike from Littleroot Town!” said the student.

I stood there in utter shock. I had won! I had beaten a Gym Leader! I was so happy I ran out to where Espeon was, saying, “Way to go, Espeon! You’re the best!”

“Espe! Espeon!” the Pokémon replied happily as I hugged it.

“You were great, Nosepass. Take a long rest,” she said to Nosepass, returning it to its Poke Ball. She then came out to me and Espeon. “I’m impressed, Mike. Your bond with Espeon is absolutely astounding! And you know, that bond was just what it needed to evolve specifically into Espeon! And your battle performance was amazing as well! It is with great honor that I award you this Stone Badge, proof of your victory here at the Rustboro Gym!” Roxanne said as she handed me a golden badge with two triangles connected by a rectangle.

“Thank you very much, Roxanne. We did it, Espeon! WE WON A STONE BADGE!”

“ESPEON!”

The next day, we were at the Pokémon Center calling up Professor Birch.

“You’ll never believe it! Eevee evolved into Espeon, and I won my first badge!” I said.

“I know, I saw! Your parents gathered some people at their mansion to watch the battle, and I was invited. Also, your friends at school got to see the battle thanks to your father’s influence. I can’t tell you how proud I am of your win!”

“Thanks, Professor. I’m glad you were all able to see the battle.”

“Now, I’ve heard that Rusturf Cave is blocked off at the moment, and Meteor Falls is a little hard to traverse, so your next destination should be the Dewford Town Gym, to the south. I’ve asked a friend of mine named Mr. Briney to help you get to Dewford Town.”

“Okay, thank you. Also, could you give my regards to Alexis and my parents?"

“Well, your parents, no problem. However, Alexis left on a class trip today. She should be back in about one or two weeks.”

“Oh, I see. Well, thank you, Professor Birch!”

With a new badge, a newly evolved companion, and a new Gym in sight, I couldn’t wait to get a new start on the adventures that lay ahead.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 9: Do You Believe in Magikarp?

A day later, we left Rustboro City and made it back to the ocean on Route 104. I decided to let everybody out for some pre-lunch training. I tested out Espeon and Poochyena’s speed by having them dodge boulders created by Beldum’s Take Down. I then proceeded to fine-tune Beldum’s Take Down. We were standing at one end of the lake, with Espeon standing on the rocks to the side.

“Ready, set…GO!”

Beldum used Take Down to move across the water at high speed. After about twenty seconds, Beldum made it to the other side. It then turned around and charged our way.

“Okay, Espeon! Confusion!”

“Espe! Espeon!”
Espeon used Confusion on the water to make waves come at Beldum with a break to separate them. However, the waves were a foot behind each other, and the horizontal break was eight inches apart. Beldum made it through the first wave with ease. It veered left to make it through the second. It continued for a while until Beldum came across an easy one. It made it through, only to find that the last one was all the way at the far right end!

“Come on, Beldum! Try spinning!” I said. Beldum did a spinning Take Down to the right and just barely made it through. “Way to go, Beldum!” I said. My other Pokémon also congratulated him. “All right, Magikarp. You’re up!”

“Karp karp!” said Magikarp as it moved into position.

“You okay to keep going, or do you need a rest?” I called up to Espeon.

“Espe, Espe,” the Pokémon said as it shook its head.

“Okay, if you’re sure. Use Confusion!”

“Espeon!”

At that, Espeon used Confusion to create whirlpools. Magikarp swam past them quite easily. After about a minute, it made its way to the other side. As soon as it turned around, Espeon used its psychic powers to move the whirpools around. Magikarp started to struggle a little, barely getting out of one.

“Hang in there, Magikarp! You can do it,” I shouted.

“Karp karp karp KARP KARP!” the Pokémon shouted as it got caught in a big one. It then went under.

“Espeon, stop!” Espeon stopped using Confusion, allowing a wiped-out Magikarp to resurface. We fished him out. “Magikarp, are you all right?”

“Karp karp…” the Pokémon said, tired and disappointed.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. We’ll work at it some more.”

“Well, you’ve certainly changed!” a voice said. I spun around. Behind me was a girl who looked about five years older than me, in a blue islander-style swimsuit with two pink flowers in her hair. Next to her was a black Cyclops-like Ghost Pokémon, Dusclops.

“I’m sorry, do I know you?”

“You probably don’t, but your father’s filled all of us in on what you’ve been up to! I’m Phoebe!”

“Oh, well, nice to…uh, meet you!”

“My grandmother introduced me to your family way back before you were even a year old. My grandmother made me a part of the organization that I’m sure you’ve heard of by now.”

“Yes, I know of the organization.”

After introductions, we all sat down for lunch by the water. She brought out Sableye, a trickster-like Pokémon with diamonds for eyes, and Banette, a marionette-like Pokémon with a zipper mouth. They, along with Dusclops and my Pokémon, were eating with us (Beldum was back up in the trees).

“So, you’ve been a member for four years?”

“That’s right. My grandmother had me demonstrate, and your father welcomed me with open arms. I’m sure the time will come when you’re asked to become one of us!”

“I hope so. Is Roxanne a member?”

“No, she’s far too busy with her Trainer’s School. Hey, that reminds me! I was at the gym and saw your match!”

“Really?”

“You and that Espeon have got some serious spunk, not to mention skill!”

“Espe!” Espeon replied in gratitude.

“I want to try my luck. What do you say to a one-on-one against me and Dusclops?”

“Okay, you’re on!”

We took positions by the rocks.

“Go, Dusclops!”

“Espeon, let’s do it!”

The Pokémon leapt into action, while the others watched intently (Poochyena was napping again).

“Dusclops, use Shadow Ball!”

“Espeon, counterattack!”

Dusclops and Espeon fired Shadow Balls at each other. The attacks cancelled each other out.

“Now, Espeon! Quick Attack!”

Espeon charged forward, but passed through Dusclops.

“Well, you need to brush up on Ghost Pokémon! They’re immune to Normal attacks!”

“You might want to look more closely!”

“Huh?” What she didn’t see was that Espeon had stopped RIGHT behind Dusclops.

“Nail it with Iron Tail!” Espeon’s Iron Tail smacked Dusclops’ back, sending it into the rocks. It got up, looking fine.

“Dusclops, use Will-o-Wisp!” Dusclops summoned several balls of blue fire, sending them at Espeon.

“Espeon, Hidden Power!” Espeon’s Hidden Power matched the Will-o-Wisp orb for orb, cancelling out the attack.

“You’re not bad! Dusclops, Shadow Punch!” Dusclops’ fist conjured up a black fist, ramming into Espeon.

“Oh, no! Espeon!”

“This will finish it! Hyper Beam!” Dusclops charged up and fired a bright beam.

“Espeon, use Confusion!” Espeon’s Confusion stopped the Hyper Beam and sent it back, but Dusclops dodged it.

“Dusclops, another Shadow Punch!” Dusclops fired a Shadow Punch.

“We’re not falling for that again! Use Psychic!” Espeon sent out a psychic aura that cancelled out the attack and held Dusclops in place.

“Dusclops, break free!”

“Dus…Dusclops!” the Pokémon said, slowly but surely shaking it off.

“Okay, now fire a Psybeam!” Espeon’s gem glowed and fired a rainbow-colored beam at Dusclops. The beam didn’t seem to do much. Dusclops’ Special Defense was just too high. “I need to come up with a physical attack that can knock Dusclops out! But its own Hyper Beam won’t affect it, because its body will vanish!” Dusclops finally broke free, but its eye twitched a little. “…wait, I’ve got it! The eye!” I whispered to myself.

“Dusclops, use Psychic to hold Espeon!” Dusclops’ Psychic captured Espeon. “Now finish it with Hyper Beam!”

“Just what I was hoping for!”

Dusclops fired Hyper Beam at Espeon.

“Espeon, use Confusion again! This time, aim for the eye!”

Espeon’s Confusion stopped Dusclops' attack. It sent the Hyper Beam towards the eye, this time doing the damage and freeing Espeon.

“NO, DUSCLOPS!”

“Let’s finish this up with-”

Suddenly, a net ensnared Dusclops. This was followed by laughter from two familiar voices.

“Well, well. We’ve got your Dusclops now!” said Ashley.

“TEAM ROCKET!” Phoebe and I shouted together.

“Don’t worry, kid. We’ll come back another day for your Espeon!” said Olson.

“Karp, karp!”

“Huh?” I looked over at Magikarp, who had an angry look on its face. It jumped to the rocks and struck them with its Tackle attack. The vibrations caused Ashley and Olson to fall to the ground, dropping Dusclops. “But why couldn’t it do that when I was capturing it?”

“Magikarp probably just needed incentive!” Phoebe replied.

“All right, runt! You’re gonna get it!” said Ashley.

“Your Magikarp won’t be able to stand up to our NEW Pokémon!” said Olson.

They threw out two Poke Balls, Out of Ashley’s came a black floating Pokémon with black locks, yellow and red eyes, and a red necklace.

“Misdreavus!” it said.

Out of Olson’s came a purple ghost-like Pokémon with two disembodied purple claws and a large mouth.

“Haunter!” it said.

“New Pokémon, eh? Well, figures they’d be Ghost types.”

“KARP!” said Magikarp as it tried to Tackle them.

“No, Magikarp! You can’t do anything to these guys! Return!” I said as I tried to return it to its Pokeball. However, Magikarp wouldn’t hold still, but just kept trying to attack.

“Misdreavus, Psybeam!”

“Haunter, Night Shade!”

The two fired their respective attacks, sending Magikarp flying. Magikarp flopped back, even though Phoebe and I kept trying to dissuade it. This repeated for a while, with Magikarp getting weaker and weaker.

“Hey, Orwell. That Magikarp’s gold! Why don’t we bag it, too?”

“Sure! And that’s OLSON, by the by!”

They threw out another net.

“LOOK OUT!” I shouted as I ran in front of Magikarp.

“KARP!” the Pokémon shouted as I was ensnared.

“Just go! You can’t do anything else here!”

“KARP! KARP! MAGIKAAAAARRRPPP!” it shouted. It then was enveloped in a bright light. The fish-like shape of its body suddenly changed to a sea serpent. When the light vanished, I was looking at a red Gyarados, the Atrocious Pokémon.

“Whoa. That’s amazing!”

“GYARRRR!” Gyarados said as it bit through the nets, freeing me and Dusclops.

“Dusclops! I’m so glad you’re safe!” Phoebe said as she happily hugged Dusclops.

“Aaaaaa…” Ashley said, freaked.

“…nice Gyarados?” Olson said, terrified.

“GYARRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!” Gyarados replied, then blasted them with a green flame.

“That’s Gyarados’ Dragonbreath!” said Phoebe. “Mike, want to finish this together?”

“You bet! Gyarados, Hydro Pump!”

“Dusclops, Shadow Ball!”

Gyarados fired a strong stream of water. It spiraled behind the Shadow Ball to create an even more powerful attack. As soon as the attacks collided with Haunter and Misdreavus, there was an explosion, sending the four into the sky once again. Guess what I heard? That’s right:

“TEAM ROCKET’S BLASTING OFF AGAIN!”

Later, Phoebe and I were ready to go our separate ways: her back to Mt. Pyre, and me to Dewford Town.

“Thank you very much for helping me get my Dusclops back. You and your Pokémon are amazing!” Phoebe said.

“You, too! I hope I hear from you again. Maybe we can have another battle!”

“Maybe so. However, I might get swamped by my duties as a member of the Elite Four.”

“Hold the phone. YOU’RE a member of the Elite Four?!?”

She grinned. “That’s right. I didn’t want to tell you because I wanted a match with you where you weren’t afraid to hold back, and that’s what I got! Anyway, I look forward to our next battle, and to the day you become one of the organization. Take care.”

“Same to you, Phoebe,” I replied as we shook hands. She and Dusclops then departed. I watched them go for a minute, until I heard Poochyena calling. I went over to it, by the shattered rocks. Poochyena pointed to a crevice in the rubble. I reached in there and felt something round. I pulled it out, and it was a Poke Ball. It wasn’t like any Poke Ball I’d ever seen: a typical Poke Ball had a plain red top, but this one had a purple top with two pink circles and a white M in between. I looked it up on my Pokedex, and it said that this was a Master Ball. I couldn’t believe it; I had a Poke Ball that could catch without fail. I placed in my pack, then called everyone back to their balls. It was then that I heard a motor running. I looked in the direction of the sound, and saw a boat in the water in the shape of a Wingull, a seagull Pokémon. There was an old man driving it, with his own Wingull on his shoulder.

“Ahoy there!” he called out.

“Hello. Are you Mr. Briney?” I asked.

“Indeed I am. And this here is me darling Peeko!”

“Gull, Wingull!”

“You the boy that Birch fellow tell me ‘bout?”

“That’s me. Could you-”

“Way ahead of ya, kiddo! I’d be more th’n abliged! Hop aboard the S.S. Wingull! Next stop, Dewford Island!”

I got on, and we started our three-day tour towards Dewford Town, and the site of my next Hoenn Gym Battle.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 10: Meditite and the Granite Cave

After three days of traversing the sea on the S. S. Wingull, Mr. Briney and I finally made it to Dewford Town. The boys and I had had enough rest; we were ready for some fun in the sun, as well as our second Gym Battle. As soon as we landed, we thanked Mr. Briney and went off. I went to see if the Gym was open, but it wasn’t. I asked around, and everybody said that Brawly, the Gym Leader, was taking the day and the next day off because of excellent surf conditions. I was initially distraught, but other trainers told me that surfing was his way of training his Pokémon, so I accepted it. So, I decided to try and find out how to do a little training of my own. That’s when I saw a couple of girls who were wearing uniforms similar to Alexis’ uniform. They certainly looked familiar, so I started to go over, but then a voice called out, “Hello there, Mike!” I turned around to see a man and a woman in business attire. It was Mr. and Mrs. Jameson, Alexis’ parents. I couldn’t believe they were here, but then I remembered Professor Birch talking about Alexis going on a class trip.

Still, I asked: “Mr. and Mrs. Jameson?! What are you doing here?”

“We’re chaperones on the class trip!” replied Mrs. Jameson. “I’m surprised you made it here in time! We’ve got three more days!”

“So, where’s Alexis?”

“She and her friends are exploring. In fact, many of the students are exploring Granite Cave today. She might be there, so you should check it out. She’ll be ecstatic to see you,” Mr. Jameson said.

“All right, thank you very much. I hope to run into you all again!”

“Hold on, your parents asked me to give this to you,” said Mr. Jameson as he handed me a Bike Voucher. “You can use this in Mauville City, just north of Slateport City.”

“Okay. Thanks again!” I said. I then ran north, in the direction of Granite Cave. After a while of going north, I finally found the cave, and a familiar face in front of it. “Hey there, Olivia! Long time no see!” I said. Olivia was another good friend of me and Alexis. Her face lit up when she saw me.

“Mike! Wow, it’s so great to see you!” After we got caught up, she said: “Hey, I saw your Gym battle! Your Pokémon are incredible!”

“Thanks. What’s going on with you?”

“Well, several of the students went exploring the Granite Cave, but according to the chaperones, we could only be in there until 3:00 because of the Zubat. Since it’s 2:40 now, I’m worried that they might’ve gotten lost after we got separated.”

“Okay, since I’m not on the clock anymore (ha ha, by the way), I’ll go in and find them.”

“Really? Thank you so much! But please be careful; there are tons of Pokémon that could be easily angered. I know Rick certainly did that yesterday.”

“Why am I not surprised? By the way, was Alexis one of the students who went in today?”

“No, she’s been at the hotel today.”

“Oh, good…well, wish me luck!”

“Good luck!”

I then went in, bringing Espeon out to use Flash so as to see better in the dimly lit cave. We went a ways, spotting a flock of Zubat and a few Sableye. Next thing I saw was a bunch of students, passed out, and surrounding them was a group of Geodude. These had to be the students Olivia was talking about, so I ran over. “Hey! What are you doing to them?!” I shouted.

“Geo?” one of them said, confused.

“Those are students! Let them go right now!” I said. To my surprise, the Geodude looked at each other, nodded, then brought the students to me. “Um…thank you.” I said, surprised. I couldn’t help but notice how down one of the Geodude seemed. “Hey, are you all right?”

“Espe?” Espeon added.

“Geodude, Geo…” the Pokémon said, with a hint of despair.

“Hmm, something’s wrong. Were the students hurting you or invading your turf, or…?”

“Geo!” the Pokémon replied, shaking its head.

Just then, we heard a rumbling. The Geodude started to panic and hid in crevices in the walls. Espeon and I looked at each other, confused, but we quickly discovered what was making the noise: a horde of Meditite. They were small human-like Pokemon with blue and white bodies. They stopped a ways away from us, and then the main Meditite shouted something at us and Espeon responded with its own argument. The conversation went for a while, but while they were arguing, I began to think that the Meditite must’ve been causing these problems for the Geodude. Probably the students, too. During the argument, Espeon pointed towards the passed-out students while saying something, and Meditite grinned, laughed, and responded in what looked like affirmation. Espeon looked at me and nodded. I was right: the Meditite HAD attacked the students.

“Okay, you’ve crossed the line! Get back or we’re going to have to take you out!”

“MEDITITE!” the Pokémon responded. At that reaction, the other Meditite encircled the three of us.

“Okay, so that’s how you want to play. Go, Espeon!”

“Espe!” Espeon responded. Meditite then jumped at us, footfirst.

“It’s using Jump Kick! Espeon, dodge and use Swift!” Espeon ducked, then sent out a stream of stars. Meditite used Confusion to catch the Swift and throw it back at us, hitting Espeon.

“It’s okay, Espeon. Hit it with Trump Card!” Espeon sent out a small, white card from its gem. The attack hit, but didn’t do much damage. Meditite then came at us with its fist, but it was glowing light blue. This attack was an Ice Punch! “Look out!” I said. The attack made contact, but Espeon quickly shook it off. “Okay, give it another Trump Card!” Espeon fired another Trump Card, and since this was the second one, it did more damage.

“Medi…tite…Meditite!” it said as it got to its feet and jumped into the air.

“It’s using Hi Jump Kick! Espeon, get it with Psychic!” Espeon’s Psychic grabbed Meditite, and then it was flung from wall to wall. “Okay, finish it off with one last Trump Card!” Espeon fired another Trump Card from its gem, and this time Meditite was flung against the cavern ceiling. It fell to the ground, but glared as it slowly got up. “It just won’t give up! This has to end! POKE BALL, GO!” I said as I threw a Poke Ball. It hit Meditite, sucked it in, wiggled for a while, then finally clicked. I picked up the Poke Ball, and Espeon and I smiled at each other. “WE CAUGHT A MEDITITE!” I said happily.

“Espe!” Espeon said, also happily.

“Medi medi medi medi medi!” the Meditite chanted, angry. They then started to close in on us, but then the Geodude came out of nowhere and started attacking them. After a ton of beatings from the Geodude, the Meditite retreated, terrified.

“That ought to keep them out of here for a while! Great work, you guys!”

“Geo, Geodude!” the Geodude responded, smiling.

It was then that all the students woke up. Espeon and I said goodbye to the Geodude and led the students out of Granite Cave. Once we got out, Olivia and the students conversed again. They thanked us, and then we went towards their hotel. On the way, I brought out all my Pokémon and introduced them to Meditite. It was received generally well among the other Pokémon, and Meditite was friendly with all of them, but it seemed to like Beldum a lot more than the others. Also, I noticed that Poochyena was acting awfully nice towards the other students. When we got to the hotel, we split off, but not before I told Olivia not to tell Alexis that I was here. I wanted to save something special for the next day. I’d see her then, and I’d be there with my Pokémon as well as a new addition to the team: a Meditite with a ton of fervor.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 11: A Tentacruel Reunion

“Come on, Gyarados! Let’s kick it up a notch!”

“Gyar!”

“Hey, Meditite! Beldum! How’re the waves for you guys?”

“Meditite!”

“Beld, Beld!”

It was the day after we’d ventured into Granite Cave. We figured that since Brawly wasn’t opening his gym until the next day, we’d try having some fun, catching the waves. I was riding on Gyarados and Meditite was riding on Beldum, who actually seemed to like being a surfboard. Espeon and Poochyena had decided to take in some sun, so they were napping on the beach. We hadn’t run into Alexis yet, but Gyarados and I weren’t gonna give up looking. We passed several schools of Goldeen, a goldfish-like Pokémon, some Horsea, a seahorse Pokémon, and some flocks of Pelipper, the evolved form of Wingull. There were other surfers catching waves as well, but Gyarados and I tended to go under when the waves came, while Meditite and Beldum would hang ten. Several people commented on Gyarados’ golden color, as well as Meditite and Beldum’s surfing skills. Finally, we decided to take a rest on the ocean, but I looked out my binoculars at the beach. Espeon and Poochyena were doing fine. Then I looked to the right, and saw, to my surprise, Rick. Of all the people he and his buddies Larry and Curly had to be with, it was Alexis. She was wearing red sunglasses and a white bikini, and looked both gorgeous and totally uninterested in whatever Rick was saying.

“Gyarados, now’s our chance! Let’s do it.”

“Gyar!” Gyarados agreed, grinning. We then submerged and moved towards the beach. We got close enough, and I stuck my ear above. I could faintly hear the conversation:

“For the last time, you’re not my type!” Alexis said.

“Oh, come on! How am I not your type, sweetheart?” Rick replied, astonished.

“Well, you’re certainly not a man, for one.” she replied.

“Not a man?! I EBB manliness! I’m definitely more of a man than that loser Mi-”

“GYARRRRRR!”

Gyarados and I had emerged from the water. The roar from Gyarados caused those stooges to scream and grab on to each other, while Alexis stared in shock. Gyarados and I laughed, then I jumped off.

“You EBB manliness, all right! Yeah, REAL men, right there!” I said, still laughing.

“Yeah, REAL funny, right THERE!” Larry retorted.

“Heh, good one. Anyway, what’s up, Lexi?”

Alexis paused for a while, then finally said: “Mike, I…I’m so happy to see you!” We then hugged each other tightly (I could HEAR Rick sulking).

“It’s been a while since I last checked in. How’ve you been?” I asked.

“Well, I’ve been missing you but getting by. How has your journey gone so far?”

“Well, you’ve seen part of it, as I hear.”

“Yeah, that battle was amazing! I had no idea you could come up with such ideas as those!”

“That comes from watching many a battle on the tube. Anyway, let me introduce you to my Pokémon. Hey guys, come here!” The Pokémon came from all around. “These are Espeon, Beldum, Poochyena, Gyarados, and Meditite. Say hello to Alexis and the others, everybody!” Espeon, Beldum, Gyarados, and Meditite all greeted them, but Poochyena was acting weird. It looked at Alexis with very wide eyes, a difference from its usual glare.

“Hello, everyone!” Alexis said. When she got to Poochyena, it jumped up into her arms and started nuzzling her face. The guys and I were startled, but Alexis started petting it and calling it cute. I couldn’t believe it: Poochyena had never acted this friendly with me, and it just changed when it saw Alexis? That was crazy.

“Well, it seems to like you, Alexis! Maybe more than Mike here!” Curly said. This made me think deeply.

“I’m sure it’s just meeting new people that’s got it in a good mood, Mike! Anyway, all your Pokémon are really great!” Alexis said.

“Thanks…” I said, still deep in thought.

“Hey, why’s that one meditating on your Beldum?” asked Rick. Just as he said, Meditite was meditating on Beldum’s back. Maybe that’s what Meditite liked so much about Beldum; I didn’t know for sure.

“It just seems to like doing that,” I responded, yet again pondering.

“So, Mike,” Alexis said with an inflection of annoyance, “Have you met any GIRLS on your trip?”

“Uh…” I stammered. Alexis has always had a way of getting your attention (especially guys, by the way).

“What’s THAT?!” Larry shouted (and with great timing). We looked, and out in the ocean, something was coming toward us. I got in front of Alexis, expecting anything. Out of the water leapt a jellyfish-like Pokémon, Tentacool. With an angry look on its face, it caught my neck in a Constrict attack.

“NO! LET HIM GO!” Alexis shouted. She and the guys rushed forward to help me until Tentacool loosened its grip all of a sudden. It struggled a bit, but it was moved off of me and thrown into the water. From the blue aura around it, I deduced that somebody had used Confusion on it. I looked at Espeon and Meditite, but they seemed as bewildered as me. So I looked around, until I saw the source of the attack. It was a yellow duck-like Pokémon, Psyduck, who had just finished using Confusion and was putting its arms on its head. I went over to it.

“Wow! That’s some Confusion! Thanks, little guy!”

“Duck!”

“Nice to meet you! Oh,” I went over to my backpack, which Espeon had brought. I reached in and pulled out a bag of potato chips. I took it back to Psyduck and gave the bag to it. “This is for you. Thank you for saving me from that Tentacool!” Psyduck took the bag, looked at it for a second, and then looked back to me.

“Psyduck!” it replied happily. It then wandered off, fingering the top of the bag. I then went back to the others.

“Well, that was an adventure!” I said. “But I wonder why that Tentacool attacked.”

“Espe! Espe!”

“Maybe it didn’t like us standing so close to its territory?” suggested Curly.

“Espe-ON!”

“What is it, Espeon?” asked Alexis.

“Espe!”

We looked out to where Espeon was pointing toward. A school of Tentacool had just emerged from the ocean. Among them rose an even bigger jellyfish-like Pokémon, Tentacruel. It had two horns on its body section, numerous tentacles, and was the evolved form of Tentacool. Out in the distance, I could see a boat, and the same old villains riding it. Ashley and Olson had Haunter and Misdreavus out, and they were doing some kind of attack.

“TEAM ROCKET! I should’ve known you’d be behind this!” The two just laughed after I said that.

“Well, well. The runt returns. You won’t last long against our Tentacool army!” Ashley replied.

“And with their help, your Espeon will be ours this time!” Olson added.

“Guys, run! I’m sure you remember what these two did to the school! You have to go find help,” I said to the others.

“Don’t have to tell me twice!” Rick said. He, Larry, and Curly ran off.

“You too, Alexis.”

“But Mike, what about you?!”

“I’ll deal with these guys. Gyarados, use Hydro Pump!” Gyarados shot a stream of water, sending many of the Tentacool flying.

“Have them use Acid!” said Ashley. Misdreavus and Haunter moved around a bit. Tentacruel then roared, and the Tentacool fired their Acid at Gyarados, knocking it far back towards me and Alexis. From what I could tell, their poison was going through the water surrounding Gyarados, but I was too distracted by the battle to pay it any mind.

“Wait, you’re controlling all of them?!” Alexis asked.

“Actually, Haunter’s Hypnosis and Misdreavus’ Confuse Ray combine to control one thing, but the Tentacool added to that make for a great mind control plan!” Olson said.

“We take over the leader of these Pokémon and have it issue commands to its troops. With Tentacruel working for us, we’ll be unstoppable!” Ashley added with a laugh.

“Ooh, then you’ll have taken over a beach. You’ll have ‘em shaking on land, THAT’S for sure,” I said sarcastically.

“Stop mocking us! Use Acid again!”

“Espeon, use Swift on the Tentacool!” Espeon’s Swift was enough to knock the Tentacool out, but Tentacruel ensnared Espeon with a Wrap attack. “ESPEON! Grr, we’ve gotta break their hold on Tentacruel! Gyarados is reeling, and…” I stopped when I noticed Meditite and Beldum going out into the water towards a wave. I thought about what they were doing, and it made sense.

“Where are those Pokémon going, Owen?”

“I’m not sure. But we’ve gotta keep focused on one thing: my name is OLSON!” The ensuing argument lasted even during the wave crashing over them. Haunter and Misdreavus were taken by surprise.

“Meditite, use Ice Punch on those two!” Meditite knocked both Pokemon into the water with Ice Punch. Suddenly, Tentacruel snapped out of it. It looked confused, then looked at Espeon, freaked, and set it back on the beach. It then turned to Team Rocket angrily and summoned up the Tentacool once more. Tentacruel fired a Sludge Bomb while the Tentacool attacked with Acid.

“Make it stop! Olson, do something!”

“MY NAME IS-Oh, that’s what you said!”

“FOCUS!”

“Tentacruel!” it shouted as it fired a Hydro Pump at Team Rocket, sending them and their Pokémon across the sea, occasionally skimming the surface.

“TEAM ROCKET’S SKIPPING OFF AGAIN!” they screamed as they went flying.

“Phew, I’m glad that’s over. Beldum, Meditite, that was a GREAT plan!” I called out. The two responded with gratitude, then went back to riding waves.

“Tentacruel…” the Pokémon said to me, apologetically.

“Don’t worry about it! It wasn’t your fault. Thank you for helping us!” It and the Tentacool waved to us, then departed.

“I’ll see you again! Hey, Espeon. Gyarados. You guys all right?”

“Espe,” said Espeon, rattled, but okay.

“Gyar…gya…….” Gyarados said before passing out.

“Gyarados?! Wake up! What’s wrong?! GYARADOS!”

I couldn’t understand why it had passed out, but all I knew was I had to help it. And that I was going to, no matter what the cost.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 12: We Say Goodbye, You Say Hello

“Well, Nurse Joy?”

“I can’t figure it out. It’s been heavily poisoned, I know that, but I don’t know specifically what it is, and there doesn’t seem to be anything we can do to cure it! This is just terrible,” said Nurse Joy.

We were at the Pokémon Center, trying to figure out what was wrong with Gyarados, as it wouldn’t recover from the Tentacool attack. Alexis was standing by me, Poochyena in her arms. Espeon was sitting by me, and Meditite was sitting on top of Beldum. All of us were quite worried.

“If we don’t find out what’s wrong soon, there’s a chance we may not be able to save Gyarados. Surely there’s somebody who can tell us what to do!” Alexis said.

“Well, maybe Professor Birch could help. I’ll give him a call,” I said.

“That’s a good idea; he’s an expert, so he might know what to do for Gyarados,” Nurse Joy agreed.

I returned Gyarados to its Poke Ball and brought it with me to call the Professor.

“Hello there, Mike. What can I do for you today?” Professor Birch asked when he answered.

“Professor, it’s my Gyarados. It was attacked by a swarm of Tentacool, it was poisoned, and now it won’t wake up from its coma! We don’t know why, so can you please examine it?!”

“Okay, just send it over in the transporter. Joshua and I will have a look,” Birch replied.

I put the Poke Ball in, and in a flash of light, Gyarados was sent over. As far as I could tell, Birch brought it out of its Poke Ball and examined its condition.

“Oh no!” he said after a while. “Mike, I have bad news. Your Gyarados has a rare poison in its system. You see, Tentacool release the toxin into the water, and it infects anything that comes into contact with it!”

“Is there any cure?”

“Well, there are nutrients that keep the infection from getting worse, but…” he paused, and I knew the answer.

“…I see. In that case, just tell me what nutrients it needs.”

“Unfortunately, these nutrients must be mixed with water and surround Gyarados’ skin at all times.”

“Wait, so Gyarados has to be in a lake with those nutrients all day, every day?”

“I’m afraid so.”

I paused, knowing what this meant. I felt the tears filling my eyes. Gyarados was infected by a poison, and had to be kept in water at all times. Therefore, there was no other choice but to…

“…keep it at the lab,” I said, sadly.

“Are you sure?” Professor Birch asked.

“Yes,” I replied. Gyarados looked up. “Take care, pal.”

“Gyarrr…” it said, with a weak smile.

“Mike, we’ll do what we can for it here.”

“Thank you. I’d better go.”

I hung up the phone and sat there for a while. Alexis, Nurse Joy, and my Pokémon-except for Poochyena-looked at me, worried. I got up, and then ran out the Pokémon Center. They were all calling after me, but I didn’t listen. I just ran toward the beach. Once I made it, I just stood there on the sand, thinking about Gyarados with tears coming down my eyes. All of a sudden, I heard a voice.

“PSY-YAY-YAY-YAY-YAY-YAY-YAY!”

I looked to the right. There was Psyduck, still messing with the bag of potato chips. Knew I shoulda opened it up.

“Hang on, Psyduck! I’m coming,” I said as I went over to it. “Here, I’m sorry. I’ll open it,” I continued.

“Psyduck psy!” the Pokémon replied. I opened the bag, but Psyduck took only one chip and gave me the bag back. It ate the chip, and then its face lit up.

“You like it?”

“Psy! Psyduck!” the Pokémon said, happy.

“That’s good,” I said half-heartedly.

“Psy?” it asked, worried.

“That easy to tell, huh?” I said. The Pokémon nodded. “Well, it’s just…saying goodbye to a good friend. It’s just harder than I thought it would be, and I don’t know what to do now. I know that it’s for its health, but it just doesn’t seem fair. I can’t even get into the thought of battling because of this!”

“Psy-yay-yay. Psyduck Psy, Psy Psyduck,” the Pokémon said as it patted my back. I smiled and scratched its head.

“Thanks, Psyduck. I don’t know what all you’ve said, but I’m inspired,” I said as I started to get up. “I can’t just give up now! I’ve got to press on and win this next Gym Battle! For Gyarados!” I said as I jumped up and adopted a pose.

“Psy Psy-yay-duck!” Psyduck said as it imitated my pose. We then high-fived.

“You with me, buddy?” I asked as I got out a Poke Ball.

“Psyduck!” it responded as it hit the Poke Ball. It went inside, wiggled, and clicked almost instantly.

“All right! I CAUGHT A PSYDUCK!” I said, holding Psyduck’s Poke Ball proudly. I then rushed back to the Pokémon Center to show Alexis. Once I got there, she and the Pokémon all looked concerned.

“Mike, are you all right? Do you feel better?” Alexis asked.

“Much. Everyone, say hello to our new friend and teammate!” I said as I threw the Poke Ball. Psyduck came out and greeted the others enthusiastically. Everyone greeted it well (except Poochyena, of course).

“Wow, you caught that Psyduck?”

“Well, we talked, and it made me feel better. I then asked it if it wanted to come along, and it did, so here it is!”

“That’s so awesome! Well, you’re just the best, Psyduck!” Alexis said. Poochyena looked a little cross when she made that comment.

“So Alexis, what are you doing tomorrow?” I asked.

“Tomorrow’s a free day for us until we take the cruiser back to Littleroot Town in the evening. Why?”

“Well, I thought that maybe you could come see my gym battle, if you have nothing better to do.”

“Nothing better to do? You’re my best friend! I want to spend as much time with you as possible before we get separated again! You can count on me!”

“Thanks, Lex. With you and the others having my back, I know I can win my second badge!”

That night, after Alexis had returned to the hotel, I noticed that Poochyena had gone back to being its usual self. I was pretty sure I knew why, so I went up to it. “Poochyena, can we talk for a minute?”

“Chy,” Poochyena nodded.

The next morning, we woke up bright and early. The five of us went running down the street to get in some last-minute training. We ran by a café, but stopped because Mr. and Mrs. Jameson were having coffee there.

“Good morning!” I said to them.

“Well, good morning, Mike! Getting in some training this morning?” said Mrs. Jameson.

“That’s right. I have a Gym battle today.”

“Well, those Pokémon look fit and ready to go! Best of luck!” said Mr. Jameson.

“Thank you very much! Say, I’m glad I found you two. Can I ask you both a favor?”

“Certainly, Mike. What is it?”

I joined them in the café and talked with them. Later that morning, I was standing outside the Gym not long before it was supposed to open. Alexis ran up to us, wearing a green spaghetti-strap shirt and some jeans.

“Sorry I’m late! I couldn’t choose what to wear,” she said, exhausted from running.

“I don’t think it would be hard. I mean, you’ve only got four hundred sets of clothes.”

“Hardy haw haw. I’ll have you know that I only brought ONE hundred!...ah, whatever. Anyway, my parents told me you have something for me?”

“Yes, I do. Now, this wasn’t easy, but I think it’s for the best,” I said. I then gave her a Poke Ball.

“A Poke Ball? What’s in it?” she asked.

“Throw it and find out,” I replied.

“Okay.” She threw it, and out came Poochyena. Its eyes grew wide again, and it jumped into her arms. “What?! Why would you give me your Poochyena?” she asked, shocked.

“This wasn’t just my decision. Poochyena made its decision from the moment it saw you. It belongs with you. Around me, it doesn’t want to do anything, but around you, it can truly be happy.”

“Mike, I don’t-”

“I talked with Poochyena last night. We agreed that it belonged with you, because that was what was best for it. I also talked with your parents about this decision, and they too agreed. Especially your dad; he was quite enthusiastic, seeing as he was apparently a Pokémon trainer in his day. So with all that in mind, I know this is the right decision.”

“But it’s your Pokémon! Besides, I can’t train it!”

“You don’t need to! You’ve just got to make it happy, just like you’ve done for me for the past fifteen years,” I said. She looked surprised at that, and then looked away with a smile.

“I suppose. Okay, I’ll take Poochyena.”

“I don’t think Poochyena would have it any other way. Frankly, neither would I. You’re a great girl and an even greater friend.”

This made her turn back and say: “…thank you, Michael. That’s really sweet.”

“Er…” I could feel color filling my face. I think that’s the first time she’d ever called me by my full first name. Just then, her face turned bright red as well, practically confessing that she’d just goofed.

“…uh…I mean, thanks, Mike! I’ll, uh…” We both turned away, embarrassed. “…I’ll take good care of it! You know, it’ll be a constant reminder of you and your Pokémon while we’re apart!”

“You do realize that from now on, we’ll NEVER be apart, right?” I asked as I turned around.

“Huh?” she replied as she turned back around.

“We put a little bit of our heart into what we give to somebody we care about. The gifts between me and you will bind us, no matter what!” I said.

“Right!”

“Now let’s win this…”

“Together!” we said as we high-fived.

“Chy!” Poochyena added happily.

With an old bond with Alexis now permanently reinforced, and a new bond with Psyduck forged, there was nothing keeping us from victory.

 

[Lifestream]

I've only read the first chapter so far, but you've got some real talent! I'm interested in reading the entire thing! You keep on writing, and I assure I'll keep reading Great job!!

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 13: Knuckle Badge Showdown

Just then, the Gym doors opened. Out came a big guy with light blue hair, an orange shirt, and jeans. It was Brawly, the Gym Leader.

“Hey there!” he said to us. “You must be the ones who stopped the Tentacruel attack!”

“You heard about that?”

“My student Shauna was there to see the incident. Your Pokémon sent those criminals packing! I’m impressed,” he replied. “So, little dude! I assume you’ve come to challenge me, Brawly, to a battle?”

“That’s right. The name’s Mike McCarver. I’m ready to win my second badge!”

“Well, don’t think I’ll make it easy, dude! Let’s step inside!” he said.

The three of us stepped in to a room that was sort of like a beach house. Brawly took his place at the far end, and a bunch of girls were in the stands on his side, cheering him on and fawning over him. I took my place at the other end, with Alexis and Poochyena on my side. Shauna, a girl in a pink two-piece jumpsuit and a blue ponytail, took two flags, stood on the side, and said: “This battle between Brawly, Leader of the Dewford Gym…” (she was blushing when she said that) “…and Mike of Littleroot Town, is about to begin! Each trainer will be allotted the use of two Pokémon! Only the challenger may substitute his Pokémon, and the battle will end when both of either trainer’s Pokémon are unable to continue! Begin!”

“Machop, let’s go, dude!”

“You’re up, Psyduck!”

Brawly sent out a Pokémon that looked like a fighter made of clay. It certainly had been working out, as made evident from its muscles. Psyduck got a determined look on its face.

“Machop, Karate Chop!” Machop lunged forward, fist first.

“Dodge and use Scratch!” Psyduck jumped up, then came down with its arm.

“Dodge and use Karate Chop again!” Machop rolled to the side, then nailed Psyduck with a Karate Chop.

“Come on, Psyduck! Hit it with Water Gun!” Psyduck fired a water stream, sending Machop back a ways.

“Okay, try a Seismic Toss!” Machop grabbed Psyduck and jumped into the air.

“Psyduck, use Confusion!” Psyduck’s Confusion stopped them in midair. “Okay, now fire a close range Water Gun!” Psyduck’s Water Gun hit its mark, nailing Machop’s chest. Machop flew across the Gym, but landed on its feet.

“Okay, use Cross Chop!” Machop formed an X with its arms and ran towards Psyduck.

“Psyduck, bend forward!” Psyduck bent forward, letting its head take the attack. It went back a ways, but it seemed fine. “You doing okay?” Psyduck looked back at me and nodded, grinning. I grinned back, knowing this was the time.

“Come on, dude! Having your Pokémon take a direct attack? That’s gonna cost ya! Machop, another Cross Chop!”

Before Machop could start, Psyduck started to glow with an intense aura. Its headache had gotten large enough.

“You’ve done it now! And it’s gonna cost YOU! Psyduck, use Disable then Confusion!” Psyduck’s Disable prevented Cross Chop from initiating. Psyduck then used a more powerful Confusion to freeze Machop in its tracks, then slam it against the ceiling.

“Dude, that was crazy! C’mon, Machop! Use Karate Chop!”

“Machop!” it said as it came back down. Its attack hit Psyduck’s head, but it appeared to do no damage.

“Psyduck, finish it with Water Pulse!”

“Psy!” it said, then it fired a ball of water at Machop. Machop was knocked back, then Machop was knocked out.

“Uh, Machop is unable to battle! Psyduck is the winner!” said Shauna. “Sorry, Brawly,” she added.

“Way to go, Psyduck!”I said. I could also hear Alexis and Poochyena cheering on the side.

“Psy!”

“Way to hang ten, Machop! Take a rest. Makuhita, let’s ride!” Out came Makuhita, a yellow boxer-like Pokémon with gloves and red circles on its face. “Use Arm Thrust!” Before we knew it, Makuhita was nailing Psyduck with a series of punches. After the attack, Psyduck’s aura faded, and Psyduck fell to the ground, knocked out.

“No! Psyduck!” I said.

“Yes! Psyduck is unable to battle! Makuhita is the winner!” said Shauna.

“Way to go, dude!” Brawly said.

“Maku!” replied Makuhita.

“You did great, Psyduck. Return,” I said as I returned it to its Poke Ball. “Okay, let’s do this! Meditite, you’re up!” I threw the ball, and out came Meditite.

“Medi, Meditite!” it said ecstatically.

“Okay, Meditite! Use Mega Punch!” Meditite launched a powerful fist.

“Makuhita, rolling dodge!”Makuhita rolled to the side.

“Give it a Hi Jump Kick!” Meditite jumped high into the air.

“Now, Makuhita! Grab it and use Seismic Toss!” Makuhita jumped after Meditite.

“Gotcha! Use Meditate!” Meditite meditated in the air, causing Makuhita to miss and fall flat on its stomach.

“Great strategy, Mike! You’ve got him now!” I heard Alexis calling.

“YOU WANT TO START A FAN CLUB FOR THAT GUY OR SOMETHING?!?” the girls on the other side chanted.

“Boy, that’s the pot calling the kettle black,” Alexis retorted.

“Couldn’t have said it better myself! Anyway, now that Meditate raised your attack, how about a Mega Punch?” I called out.

“Meditite! Medi-TITE!” Meditite jumped down and nailed Makuhita with a Mega Punch. However, it managed to land on its feet after the impact.

“Makuhita! Get up and use Knock Off attack now!” Makuhita hit Meditite with a strong palm. Luckily, the attack didn’t seem to faze Meditite at all.

“Okay, give it an Ice Punch!” Meditite aimed an Ice Punch at Makuhita.

“Dodge it like a wave!” Makuhita rolled out of the way.

“Try again!” Meditite did another Ice Punch.

“Keep on rolling!” Makuhita kept rolling away. “That’s the way! Mike, we’ve been training on the waves, learning to roll with them, ride them and not let the big waves throw us! Even if they do, you’ve gotta recover with style to stay on your game! Got it?”

“I see. Interesting analogy. Remind me to take up surfing when this is through!”

“We’ll just go after the battle! Your girlfriend over there is invited as well!” Brawly said, pointing to Alexis.

“GAH! GIRLFRIEND?!?” I shouted, embarrassed.

“WAIT!! WE’RE NOT-!” Alexis shouted, also embarrassed.

“Haha! Of course you aren’t! Anyway, use Vital Throw, Makuhita!” Makuhita grabbed Meditite.

“Stop it with Confusion!” Meditite’s Confusion stopped Makuhita in its tracks and wiggled out of its grip. “Now hit it with Mega Punch!” Meditite landed another Mega Punch, but Makuhita didn’t move an inch, nor did it seem affected. It’s no good! Attacks won’t work on its front, and it just keeps rolling so as to dodge! Hmm…letting big waves throw you: the attacking sending you flying. Recovering with style: rolling and getting back up…wait. WAIT. “Meditite, I need you to deliver a TON of Ice Punches. Go!” Meditite flung Ice Punch after Ice Punch, each time missing.

“You can keep doing that all day, but Makuhita will keep rolling along!”

“What are you thinking, you idiot?!” Alexis said.

“I’m thinking about strategy! Meditite, just stay still and use Meditate!” Meditite meditated.

“Okay, it’s time we ended this! Makuhita, use Arm Thrust!” Brawly commanded.

“MAKUUUU!” Makuhita shouted, charging forward.

“Meditite, use Detect!” Meditite moved away at the last second. After missing, however, Makuhita fell over.

“WHAT THE-?!” Brawly said, astonished. Meditite had missed those Ice Punches on purpose, making the ground covered in ice. Makuhita would easily slip and fall when traversing an icy ground, especially since surfboards aren’t made of ice.

“Okay, Meditite! Use Hi Jump Kick!” Makuhita couldn’t get up in time to escape Hi Jump Kick. It got hit, and was still on the ground.

“Dude, try to stand! Don’t let it throw you like that!” Tried as it might, Makuhita couldn’t get up.

“Sorry Brawly, but it looks like your battle strategy has been wiped out, so to speak! Finish it with Dynamicpunch!” Meditite hit Makuhita with a glowing arm, sending Makuhita quite a distance. When it landed, it fainted.

“Makuhita is unable to battle! Meditite is the winner, and victory in this match goes to Mike from Littleroot Town!” said Shauna, mortified.

“Way to go, Meditite! You really put him on ice (pardon the pun)!”

“Medi!” it said as we high-fived.

“Great job, dude! You were totally awesome!” Brawly said to Makuhita. “I gotta say, throwing off our recovery with that Ice Punch was an excellent maneuver! You’ve shown a tremendous amount of skill, plus a good eye for tactics! You’re all right, little dude!” he said to me.

“Thank you, Brawly. Your Pokémon were amazing! I don’t think luck could’ve played a bigger role today!”

“Even if Lady Luck was hitting on you today, you’re still amazing, dude! I see you becoming a major star in the Pokémon world! And so, here’s the Knuckle Badge, proof of your win here at the Dewford Gym!”

“Thanks, big dude! YEAH, WE WON A KNUCKLE BADGE!” I said as I took a badge shaped as a blue fist with a brown thumb.

“MEDITITE!”

“You were incredible, Mike! I’m really proud of you!” Alexis said as she grabbed me in an embrace.

“I couldn’t have done it without support from you guys! Thanks, Alexis! Thanks, Poochyena!”

“Roof!” Poochyena said in agreement.

“Yeah, you’re REALLY not in a relationship! That’s why you’re all over each other!” Brawly said, teasing us. At that, Alexis and I quickly broke apart and turned away, blushing. “Hahaha! Time to hang ten, you guys!” We went with him and his friends to the beach to surf. Psyduck and I couldn’t quite get the hang of it at first, but we got into it. Alexis and Poochyena were naturals, as were Meditite and Beldum. Brawly and Makuhita certainly recovered from our battle with style, as they were laughing the whole time they were surfing. It was then that I realized the true value of playing with Pokémon. From then on, we’d make play part of our routine, and still all the while move closer and closer to victory in the Hoenn League.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 14: A Clean Slateport

“So, where will you be going next?”

“Well, according to the Pokenav, my next destination should be Mauville City, so I’ll be heading to Slateport City and going north.”

“I hear that there are Contests in Slateport City! You should apply for one!”

“Nuh-uh! You know I’ve got stage fright!”

“Oh, come on! You’re performing for three judges!”

“Oh. Well, maybe so, then.”

“Anyway, we’re getting back to school ASAP, because we’ve got a research paper to present.”

“Jeez! I’m glad I got out when I did!”

Alexis and I were walking to the docks, where the class was waiting for the boat back to Littleroot Town. About an hour before, we’d said goodbye to Brawly and his friends after surfing. After a while of walking, we made it to the dock.

“So, how’re you going to make it to Slateport City, anyway?”

“Uh…good question. Mr. Briney was the one who brought me here, so-”

“Did I hear my name?” a voice called out. We looked to see Mr. Briney coming up in the S. S. Wingull.

“Hey there, Mr. Briney! Hey, Peeko!”

“Wingull!”

“So, how be things around here? Say, where’d ya find her? I say, ye and that lassie sure are cute together!”

“This is getting old,” Alexis and I said to each other.

“Hahahahaha! Anywho, where’re ya heading?”

“I’m taking her to her ferry going back to Littleroot Town! Then I need to find a way to Slateport City!”

“Nonsense! Come with me, I’ll get ya there!”

“Really? Thank you! Just a minute, I’ll get Alexis to her ferry, then come back!”

“That’s okay, Mike! We’re nearby already! You go on with Mr. Briney!”

“…okay. Well, I guess this is goodbye for now.”

“For now. I hope to see you again soon,” she said as we hugged. She then ran to the ferry, waving the whole time.

“I’ll see you soon, Alexis! Take care of Poochyena!” I called as I waved back.

Once she was out of view, I got on Mr. Briney’s ship, and we started our voyage. It took us about six days, and I started thinking what I would do for that Contest. The night before we got there, Mr. Briney told me:

“Why don’t ye demonstrate that there Beldum’s Take Down ability for that there contest?”

“Hm, how so?”

“By having it hit targets! The precision and speed are what count!”

“I see…” I started to formulate a routine in my head. “Do you have a Frisbee?”

“Sure! Take it! Will it help yer appeal?”

“You bet it will!” We tried it out for Mr. Briney.

“Wow! That’s some routine! But, if ye make it past that round, I hear ye’ll have a whole string of battling after that! And Beldum’s Take Down won’t be enough! Let me fill ye in on a little secret…”

And so, we spent the night training. The next day, we made it to Slateport City. I said goodbye to Mr. Briney and Peeko, then headed toward the Pokémon Center to heal up. After that, and checking in on Mom and Dad, I headed to the Contest Hall. After registering, I sat in the waiting area with the other Coordinators. Beldum looked nervous, but I tried to cheer it up.

“Relax, Beldum. We’re ready for this thanks to that training. Besides, Alexis said it’s just for three judges.”

“Beld.”

“This Alexis girl was obviously pulling your chain, sir!” a voice said. It was coming from a man with long blond hair, a magenta jacket, an orange bow tie, brown pants, and flannel sleeves. “My name’s Robert. I’ve been a Coordinator for as long as I can remember, and I guarantee that these performances are for hundreds of people in an audience as well as three judges!”

“WHAT?!? Oh, man! I’ve gotta get out of this! Where’s the exit?! Where’s the-”

“Don’t worry. Beginners always get a little fright in their first Contest. If you just maintain composure and stay true to Beldum, you two will do your absolute best!”

“…well, okay. Okay. Okay, just got to maintain composure.” I took a deep breath. “THIS IS GOING TO BE A DISASTER!” I shouted.

“Haha! Well, just keep that outstanding courage and you’ll do fine,” Robert said.

“Sorry, I’ve just got stage fright. Ever since this one guy sabotaged a role I was playing and the audience laughed, I’ve been afraid of the stage.”

“Imagine that they’re not there, but that you’re just practicing. That’s a good technique,” he said.

“…okay! I’ll give it a try! Thank you, and best of luck today!” I said. It was then that he was called to the stage. I watched his performance with his Milotic, a Pokémon that looked like a sea snake with pink locks. They were incredible, using Twister, Hydro Pump, and Safeguard in conjunction. Later on, I got called up, and Beldum and I made our way to the stage. We stood next to the MC, Vivian, and behind us were the judges. The first was the Contest Master, Mr. Contesta. The second was the President of the Pokémon Fan Club, Sukizo. The third was Nurse Joy.

“And now, our final entry: Mike McCarver, a rookie from Littleroot Town!” said Vivian. I was greeted with applause, which was flattering.

“Okay, Beldum! Showtime!” Beldum came out of its Poke Ball. I got the mindset that there was no crowd there, and felt the confidence inside me. “Okay, use Take Down on this target!” Beldum hit the target I was holding into the air. I then slipped a Frisbee into its claws. “Take Down again!” Beldum charged toward the target. “Reverse Release!” Beldum spun around, tossing the Frisbee at the target and keeping it in the air. Beldum flew to catch the Frisbee, and it repeated this process a few times, all the while getting applause from the crowd.

“Wow! Even though it’s only one move, Mike has found a unique method for Beldum’s attack! What an amazing display of precision and power!” said Vivian.

I couldn’t believe how good I was feeling; I was over my stage fright! Just after Beldum hit the target for the sixth time, I said, “Now, Beldum! Finish up with a spinning Take Down!”

“Beldum!” it said as it spun into a Take Down and smashed the target to pieces. Beldum then came over, and then I jumped on its back without it stopping. I slipped a little bit, but got my balance back in time. We went into the air so that I could catch the Frisbee. As we floated down and reached the ground, I jumped off Beldum’s back and we bowed.

“And they finish up with a super-strong Take Down followed by a display of camaraderie and teamwork! Absolutely stunning!” said Vivian.

“Although the Take Down seemed one-note, the Reverse Release was a tremendous technique!” said Mr. Contesta.

“Indeed! And Beldum’s spinning Take Down was truly remarkable!” said Sukizo.

“I was won over by the display of trust between the two when they flew up together! How magnificent!” said Nurse Joy.

“And that’s the judges’ comments! Now let’s check out the score…” she said as the points were tabulated, then she exclaimed: “…26.8! A good score for a first-timer!”

“YEAH! Way to go, Beldum!” I said.

“Beldum!” it replied happily.

After I made it backstage, Robert congratulated me, saying Beldum and I made a great team. Just as we shook hands, Vivian made an announcement: “And now, we’ve determined the top eight for the battle portion of this Contest!”

“Oh, yeah! Now she’s speaking my language,” I said.

“And here they are!” she said as they were put up. I saw Robert at the top and me in the fifth slot.

“Yahoo! We made it! Well, Robert, I’ll see you in the final stage!” I said to Robert.

“I certainly look forward to it, Mike!” Robert replied.

Beldum and I cruised through the quarter and semifinals, beating a Zigzagoon and a Dustox with ease. Robert and I met on the final stage, ready to battle. We shook hands for good luck to each other, then took our respective places on the field.

“And now, the favorite of this Contest, Robert, and the rookie, Mike, will face off for the Slateport Ribbon! Trainers, you have five minutes to lower your opponent’s points! Whoever’s points are lower after five minutes will be out! Begin!”

The timer started, and we sent out our Pokémon.

“Let’s go, Milotic!”

“Showtime, Beldum!”

The two emerged, ready to battle. Vivian was making commentary throughout the battle, but it was too much to keep up with, and I was focusing on the battle more than anything.

“Beldum, start off with a Take Down!” Beldum zoomed toward Milotic with a Take Down.

“Milotic, counter it with Hydro Pump!” Milotic’s Hydro Pump knocked Beldum against the wall. I lost about a fifth of my points for that. “Now use Twister!” Milotic’s tail fired out a cyclone at Beldum.

“Beldum! Go right through it with a Spinning Take Down!” Beldum spun through the Twister with no effort at all, nailing Milotic and docking Robert a few points.

“Milotic, use Iron Tail!” Milotic’s Iron Tail swung into Beldum, but at my command, Beldum turned around and grabbed it with its claws. Robert lost a few more points, but he was still in the lead.

“Let’s take those points down a few! Use Take Down!” Beldum charged toward the wall. “Now, Reverse Release!” Beldum’s spin threw Milotic into the wall, docking Robert many points and putting me in the lead by a slight margin. “Way to go, buddy!”

“Beld!” it responded.

“Use Recover,” Robert said calmly.

“WHAT?!”

“Milooooo…” it said as it recovered its energy. That cost me quite a few points and gave Robert the lead again.

“Now use Hydro Pump!” Milotic’s Hydro Pump knocked Beldum into the wall. “Now combine Twister with Hydro Pump!” Milotic’s attacks combined into a water spout.

“Beldum, look out!” Beldum flew to the side, barely getting hit by the attack. “Now for our secret attack! ZEN HEADBUTT!”

“What?!”

Beldum glowed blue as it zoomed toward Milotic, hitting its head and causing it to flinch. That cost Robert a few points, but I’d lost more than half by that time, so he was still in the lead.

“Come on, Beldum! We can still win this thing! I know you’re strong, so let’s do it!”

“Beldum! BELDUM!” Beldum responded. It then glowed light blue. It looked as though Beldum had doubled, then grew a base to connect the two of them. However, when the glow faded, the base had two red eyes, and many spikes around it with one as a nose.

“Amazing! Mike’s Beldum has evolved into a Metang!” Vivian shouted, astonished.

“Metang!” Metang called back to me.

“Wow. I can’t believe it,” I said to myself. I then noticed one of Metang’s hands, looking as if it had sparks. It took me a second, but I figured out what that was about. “What do you think, Vivian? Should we stop here, or keep going?” I asked Vivian.

“Well, uh…that’ll be up to the judges!” she responded.

“I’m sure Metang will be able to give us a tremendous performance! I know that the evolution was!” said Nurse Joy.

“Yes! Remarkable, too!” said Sukizo.

“Well, I don’t see why not. All right, continue with two minutes, thirty seconds,” said Mr. Contesta. The timer immediately started.

“Okay! Metang, give it a Zen Headbutt!” Metang charged at Milotic.

“Milotic, use Iron Tail!” Milotic’s Iron Tail kept it from taking major damage, but both Robert and I lost points. “Use Hydro Pump!” Milotic then fired a Hydro Pump at Metang.

“Metang, use Confusion!” Metang’s Confusion caught the attack and sent it right back into Milotic, causing some damage and costing Robert many points.

“Now, Milotic! Recover!” Milotic started to revitalize itself.

“Stop it with Confusion!” Metang’s Confusion stopped Milotic in its tracks and lifted it into the air. “Now, Metang! Use Thunderpunch!” Metang’s arm glowed with sparks again, and it punched Milotic and sent it flying into the wall. Robert’s points took a major hit.

“Milotic! Use Flail!” Milotic leapt at Metang.

“Metang, use Iron Defense!” Metang hardened up its surface and defended against the attack, decreasing the points deducted.

“Iron Tail!” Milotic aimed its tail at Metang.

“Metal Claw!” Metang’s claws glowed and went toward Milotic. As the attacks hit, the Pokémon were flung backward. After more points were deducted, the timer buzzed.

“And that’s it! It looks really close, so our judges will examine this and come up with a winner!” said Vivian. I then looked up at the scoreboard, and saw that Robert and I were almost out of points, but they looked even. I wondered what that meant. “All right, folks! Upon careful examination, the judges have determined that both scores are equal! Therefore, in the event of a tie, the judges declare both Coordinators the winners! Congratulations!” The audience went wild.

“Way to go, Metang! You were incredible!” I said as I hugged my newly-evolved Pokémon.

“Tang, Metang!” Metang happily responded.

“Good work, Milotic. Your performance was beautiful!” Robert said to Milotic.

“Miloooo!” Milotic happily responded.

“Mike, I’m impressed. I’ve never NOT defeated an opponent in a Contest with Milotic before. Not only that, but this is the first time I’ve tied with somebody! You and Metang are truly amazing,” Robert said as he held out his hand.

“Thank you, Robert. You and Milotic were great as well. Good luck in your upcoming Contests,” I replied as I shook his hand.

“And best of luck to you at your Gym Battle in Mauville,” he replied.

Later, everyone gathered around us as Mr. Contesta gave Robert and I blue ribbons. Metang and I looked at each other and smiled, knowing that this experience helped us to gain confidence for the upcoming battle at Mauville City. In the meantime, the word “showtime” kept going in my head. Showtime…I liked the ring of it.

 

[kemix0711]

I've only read the first chapter so far, but you've got some real talent! I'm interested in reading the entire thing! You keep on writing, and I assure I'll keep reading Great job!!

Thank you for your kind words. I'm glad you're enjoying it, and rest assured I'll post the whole thing!

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 15: The Wrath of Paul

It was the day after Robert and I had won the contest. He had gone off to Rustboro City, while I was going to make my way north. I’d finished getting supplies and everything, so I made my way north. I was around the Pokémon Center when I heard a harsh voice say:

“It was your fault that battle didn’t go well! I don’t care if I won in the end; you messed it up for me!”

I looked in the direction. It was a boy with purple hair and dark blue clothing. He was talking to a Pokémon that looked like a giraffe with a dark head with fangs for a tail. I pulled out my Pokedex to find out what it was:

“Girafarig, the Long Neck Pokémon. Girafraig has a second head on its tail that bites those who approach it carelessly.”

“Wow, that’s an interesting Pokémon,” I said to myself.

“Not even your knowing Mirror Coat is enough to redeem you! You’re out of here!” the boy said angrily.

“Rig?! Rig…” Girafarig responded.

“Hey, hold up! You shouldn’t release a Pokémon just because you lost! Who do you think you are, anyway?” I said, running over.

“Hmph. Mind your own business. This thing didn’t perform up to snuff, so it’s useless to me!” he replied. “And as for who I am, I’m Paul, an expert trainer from the Sinnoh region.”

“Well, Paul, you’re not very much of a trainer if you’re just going to break your bonds with your Pokémon just like that!”

“What bonds?”

“…what.”

“Bonds are a waste of time. They make you soft and weak! The only way to win is with power, and that’s what I look for in all my Pokémon! If you’re not powerful enough, then you’re not fit to be in my group!”

“You don’t get it! Bonds are a Pokémon’s greatest strength! As long as it receives support from its Trainer and its companions, there’s nothing it can’t accomplish! So, logically, it’s YOUR fault you lost!”

“…what’s that?!”

“You couldn’t give Girafarig the support it needed, so you’re the one who didn’t perform up to snuff.” As I was saying this, Girafarig was looking at me with hope in its eyes. Paul, however, got more and more enraged until he blurted:

“HOW DARE YOU!!!”

“The truth hurts, doesn’t it? But why take my word for it? Just ask any trainer, and they’ll say the same thing.”

“NOBODY TALKS THAT WAY TO ME, YOU BASTARD!”

“Dude. Take a chill pill and a breath mint.”

“I challenge you to a one-on-one Pokémon battle. Our very best! Your “bonds” against my power! And trust me, power is what will put you in your place! GROTLE, STAND BY FOR BATTLE!” He sent out a giant turtle-like Pokémon with small trees on its yellow shell. My Pokedex couldn’t pick up a thing about Grotle.

“Okay, then. ESPEON, SHOWTIME!” I sent out Espeon. “Use Swift Attack now!” Espeon’s Swift hit Grotle, but it didn’t budge.

“Grotle, use Energy Ball!”

“Energy Ball?!”

Grotle fired a green glowing orb, sending Espeon a ways back.

“Counter that with Psybeam!” Espeon fired its Psybeam, once again hitting the mark but not moving Grotle.

“Use Razor Leaf now!” Grotle fired razor-sharp leaves at Espeon.

“Use Quick Attack to dodge, then hit it with an Iron Tail!” Espeon dodged the attack, then nailed Grotle with an Iron Tail. This time, Grotle moved about half an inch.

“Grotle, let’s finish it here! Giga Drain!”

“Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good.” It was worse than it sounded, unfortunately. Out of nowhere, Espeon was surrounded by a green light, and fell to the ground, having lost strength to Grotle’s benefit. “NO, ESPEON! Try to get up!” It took a little bit, but Espeon got up. “Now use Psychic on Grotle!” Espeon’s Psychic lifted Grotle. However, it seemed to be doing a lot more to Espeon than to Grotle. “Throw it!” All Espeon could do was toss it to the side. Unfortunately, there was a river there, so before I could tell it to stop, Grotle was in the water, grabbing on to the edge to keep from being swept away.

“Hmph,” Paul said.

“Uh-oh! Espeon! Can you get it out of there?!” I asked.

“Espe…” Espeon said, shaking its head.

“Paul! You’ve got to return Grotle to its Poke Ball!”

“Why would I do that? I’m not gonna carry Grotle! It has to use its power to get out!”

“IT WEIGHS TOO MUCH! CALL IT TO ITS POKE BALL NOW!!”

“Ask someone who cares.”

“You are USELESS! Psyduck, help me out!”

I called Psyduck out of its Poke Ball, then we both jumped in. As I was diving in, I could’ve sworn I saw Grotle grin, but that's not important. We got underneath Grotle and tried to push, but Grotle was too heavy to move. Despite our power, we couldn’t lift it. I even had Psyduck try Confusion, but it wasn’t enough. I felt myself running out of air, so I tried to head back up. That’s when I felt a tug at my leg. I looked down to see that I’d gotten tangled in some seaweed! I kept trying to get it undone, but even with Psyduck’s help, I couldn’t do it. A few seconds later, I blacked out, as far as I remember.

When I came to, I was in a bed, and Espeon, Metang, Meditite, Psyduck, and Girafarig were all above me. When I sat up in the bed, they all immediately smothered me, especially Espeon. “Guys, come on! Lay off!” I said, laughing. Suddenly, I remembered what had happened. It was then that Nurse Joy came in.

“Well, it’s good to see that you’re up! How are you feeling?”

After coughing a bit, I responded, “Fine. A little waterlogged, maybe, but I feel okay. What exactly happened?”

“Well, you nearly drowned trying to save a Pokémon, is what I figure. When I came out, there was a boy with purple hair and a Grotle in the river. He suddenly returned it to its Poke Ball, then brought it back out, and said, ‘excellent, Grotle’. Then the two left!” I grumbled to myself as she continued, “I looked to where Espeon and Girafarig were shouting at and saw you in there! It was then that Girafarig fished you out along with your Psyduck’s help, then we brought you here! You’ve been out for days!”

“Really? Wow, thank you, Girafarig.”

“Rig!” the Pokémon said, nuzzling my face.

“Well, that’s just great. Paul’s gone, and some people I know are going to have a fit when they hear about this!” I said.

“That, um…” Nurse Joy stammered.

“What? What is it?”

“Word of this is already on the news! There are reporters outside!”

“…well, can’t call home for a while. Anyway, thank you, Nurse Joy.”

“No problem! Be sure to drink plenty of hot liquids before you start doing anything!” she said as she left.

“Thanks again, Girafarig. I’m glad you saved me,” I said to Girafarig.

“Rig, rig!” Girafarig responded.

“You know what? Paul’s still wrong! Bonds are the most important aspect of being a Pokémon Trainer! We’ll prove it to him next time we meet!” The whole gang agreed. “Girafarig, how’d you like to come along with us?”

“Rig?”

“I’d love to have you on my team. What do you say?”

“RIG!” the Pokémon said, nuzzling me again.

“All right! WE’VE GOT A GIRAFARIG!”

With a new rival to add to the list, and a new Girafarig to add to the team, none of us knew what kind of surprises lay ahead. But we were optimistic about one thing: that our bonds would get us through whatever trials came our way. However, little did I know that one of the greatest trials of my life was about to descend upon me…

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 16: A Visitor’s Rampage

After I’d fully recovered, (not from the abuse Alexis put me through over the phone), I finally started Route 111 going to Mauville City. Many electric Pokémon populated this area; I saw a bunch of Plusle and Minun playing together and practicing their Helping Hand. I also saw many Electrike racing around with each other. Just as I made it near the Trick House, where many Trainers usually hung out, I saw a familiar figure. It was Paul, and he was leaning against the tree, smirking when he saw me.

“So, you made it out of that one, did you?”

“No thanks to you.”

“And I’m guessing you now have my Girafarig.”

“Many thanks to you.”

“Hmph. Good luck with THAT weakling. Next time we battle, it won’t be another draw. Next time, I’ll overpower your Pokémon, and I’ll beat you!”

“You just keep telling yourself that, but as long as you don’t care for your Pokémon, you’ll never be a Champion.”

“Hmph,” he said as he began to walk off. Just then, I heard a giant crash. I looked, and something had attacked the Trick House, as one of the pieces had fallen and Trainers were running around and panicking. I thought it was Team Rocket, but what emerged from the wreckage was not them. Instead, it was an orange humanoid-like thing with a purple gem in its stomach. It had no mouth, two beady eyes, and sky blue and orange limbs. I took out my Pokedex.

“Deoxys, the DNA Pokémon. Believed to be from outer space, Deoxys is able to alter its cellular structure so as to change its appearance and abilities.”

“That’s not good!” I said. Deoxys started attacking the Trainers after changing its appearance; specifically, its hands changed to four tentacles, and it fired multi-colored balls at Trainers (the attack was called Psycho Boost). They didn’t hit, but it scared the Trainers into freezing up on the ground in fear. It then grabbed Paul using Constrict.

“HEY! LET ME GO!” Paul shouted, but Deoxys wouldn’t let go. Instead, it sent out a purple aura which went into Paul. As soon as it did, Paul’s eyes glowed red, and he stopped struggling. Deoxys set him down, and then Paul said: “I am Deoxys! I have come to this world to make it my own! Do not attempt to resist or your lives will be forfeit!”

I ran up to them and shouted, “Why have you come here? Why not somewhere else?”

“My, my. What courage. If you must know, this planet is populated with humans who disrespect their Pokémon! I have come to put an end to this species so that Pokémon may be the dominant species! And I shall rule it all!”

“You’re insane!”

“I prefer ‘proactive’. Now stay out of my way,” it said as it fired another Psycho Boost. I stood my ground, and it just missed me. It then fired a Zap Cannon by me and I still didn’t move, so it changed back to normal and said,“You sure are courageous, small human. Perhaps you should just follow and battle for me. If you do, you won’t die..by MY hand, anyway. What do you say?”

“Sorry, but I’d be letting down too many people to just throw my life away like that,” I said, thinking about Alexis and the others. “What about you? You just seem confused, but I can help you get back on track. By witnessing the bonds I’ve developed with MY Pokémon, you’ll learn that not all humans are what you think we are. How about YOU join ME?”

Deoxys lowered its arms at this, befuddled. “…bonds? I don’t know what you mean.”

“I’ll show you. Come out, Espeon! Metang!” I let out Espeon and Metang. “See, we’ve been through some major battles together, and been in some major pitches, but I’ve retained my faith in these Pokémon because I know they are capable of so much,” I said as I stroked Espeon’s back. “Also, I know they’ve retained faith in me because I believe in them, and our friendship has reinforced that faith,” I added as I patted Metang’s head. “So you see, the faith and friendship that one shares with another is a bond. And it’s not exclusive; you can form bonds by making friends, too!”

Deoxys grabbed its head in confusion. “…friends? Bonds? It all seems so confusing to me, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about. All right, how do I get these so-called ‘friends’?” it asked as it lowered its arms again.

“Well, I’ll be your first friend, if you want,” I said as I held out my hand. Deoxys hesitated, but it slowly moved its hand towards mine. Just before they could meet, a flame shot at Deoxys. It took to the air and fired another Psycho Boost behind me. I looked and saw a police force led by Officer Jenny and her Growlithe, a red dog-like Pokemon. “No! I was about to get through to it!” I said to Jenny.

“Oh, you’ll pay for that deceit!”

“Sorry, but we need to stop that thing from causing more destruction! We need to restrain it by any means possible!” Jenny replied.

“Are you out of your mind?! It’s too powerful! I can still-”

“We’ll have to weaken it, then! Growlithe, use Flame Wheel!” Growlithe surrounded itself with fire and charged towards Deoxys.

“Just try to weaken THIS!” Paul said as Deoxys summoned rocks, causing a Rock Slide attack to nail Growlithe and knock it out.

“FINE! Espeon, Hidden Power!” Espeon fired its Hidden Power, but Deoxys used Confusion to fiddle around with it and throw it back at the police force. “Okay, try a Homerun Attack times Seven!” Espeon fired seven Shadow Balls into the air, jumped at them with Quick Attack, then used Iron Tail to hit them all at Deoxys, but Deoxys used Protect, negating all damage. It then went back to attacking people.

“Can we even tire it?! This seems impossible!” said Officer Jenny.

“Well, there is one way to stop this, but I doubt Deoxys will stay still long enough for me to use it,” I replied.

“Well, there must be a way to keep it from moving or something!”

“Wait…THAT’S IT!!!” I exclaimed. I then ran over to Paul and looked at his belt. He had six Poke Balls on it, so I grabbed one at random, hoping I’d found the right one. “GO!” I shouted as I threw the Poke Ball. Sure enough, out came Grotle, looking confused. “Listen, Grotle. Paul is under Deoxys’ control, and there is a way to get him back, but we’ve got to work together. You with me?”

“Grotle? Grot…Gro-TLE!” it said, ready to help. So, I explained the plan to the Pokémon.

Soon, Espeon, Metang, Grotle and I were hiding in bushes. I had set the Master Ball out on a pedestal near Paul. Deoxys flew by, but the Master Ball caught its eye. It stopped and then floated down to where the Master Ball was. I heard Paul say: “Hmm, now THIS is an interesting Poke Ball. I’ve never seen something like this, so who knows what it could do? I’d better get rid of it." Deoxys reached for the Master Ball.

“NOW, GROTLE! GIGA DRAIN!” I shouted.

“What?!”

“GROTLE!” it shouted as it drained Deoxys strength away. Thanks to Espeon and Metang’s Confusion attacks, as well as the Giga Drain restraining it, Deoxys couldn’t move, so I knew that that was my chance.

“What’s going on here?! No matter, I’ll kill you all!”

I then ran up, grabbed the Master Ball, and jumped at Deoxys, shouting, “I DON’T THINK SO! MASTER BALL, GO!”

With all my might, I threw the Master Ball at Deoxys. It broke free from the attacks, but not in time to escape the Master Ball. It hit Deoxys, and Deoxys went into the ball, while Paul screamed, “NOOOOOOOO!!!” The ball wiggled around for a good while, but it finally clicked.

“I…I can’t believe it! I CAUGHT A DEOXYS!”

“You did?! That’s incredible! It’s a legendary Pokémon from outer space!” said Jenny as she ran up.

“Even so, don’t let this get out! Just tell the media that it was a mysterious Pokémon and it just disappeared! I’m sure Deoxys doesn’t want the kind of attention the media gives, and neither do I.”

“Well, I suppose that the truth could stay in my report. However-”

“What happened? Did I blank out? You! What just happened? Where’s that Deoxys?” Paul said, returned to normal.

“Um…it flew away after Grotle came out of its Poke Ball and used Giga Drain. That REALLY scared it off! I admit: Grotle’s a powerful Pokémon!” I said.

Paul looked at me with a stern face, so I thought he didn’t buy it. However, he said, “Of course it is. Let’s go, Grotle!”

“Grotle!” it said, then followed him to the west. Grotle looked back at me and smiled, and I gave it a thumbs-up in return.

After they’d gone, a purple aura emerged from the Master Ball. It implanted into me, and I heard myself say, “You may have captured my body, but you have not tamed my soul! I won’t battle for an inexperienced human like yourself!...jerk.”

Then the aura left me, and I said to it, “Well, I’m sorry you feel that way, Deoxys. I hope that we’ll be able to patch things up and forge a friendship later on in the road. In the meantime, it’s great to have you.”

The aura returned to me, and I said, “Hmph. Well, let’s get going, then!” And then, the aura returned to the Master Ball.

“Was that Deoxys speaking through you?” Jenny asked.

“Yeah. Seems its only means of communication is through people. It won’t be a bother.”

After that, I said goodbye to Jenny and continued down the road. With a new Pokémon to add to the team, I was more than ready for the Mauville Gym. However, with Deoxys’ attitude, I now had one more item to add to my agenda: to find some way to open the door the Deoxys’ heart and become its friend, no matter what.

 

[kemix0711]

Chapter 17: Reunion by Rematch

“Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat?”

“I don’t have a mouth. Besides, on my planet, sustenance is acquired through deep meditation. And it helps my mood, so please leave me alone.”

“*sigh* Okay. Where exactly is your planet, anyway?”

“…um…”

“Never mind. You don’t have to answer that.”

It was a day after I’d captured Deoxys. We were still on Route 111, and we’d stopped for some lunch. Deoxys was a ways away from us, meditating. After Meditite had finished eating and Metang had finished with its tree, they went next to Deoxys. Metang rested on the ground, and Meditite got on top of it and also started meditating. What surprised me was that Deoxys welcomed their presence and still chose to be like it was. Later on, I was walking along the road, and I found a white hat that looked familiar. I picked it up, wondering where I’d seen it before, and my answer came in the form of, “Hey, Mike! I see you found my hat!”

“Brendan! How’s it been going?” I asked as he ran up.

“Pretty good! I’ve been training hard and taking names before I start going after badges! How about you?” he replied as I gave him his hat and he put it back on.

“I’ve been catching Pokémon and I’ve earned two badges at the moment,” I said as I got out my badge case and showed him the Stone and Knuckle Badges.

“Quite an impressive feat! Your Pokémon must be really powerful!”

“Yeah, but…” I thought about Deoxys. “I’m having a problem with one of them,” I said as I faintly heard Deoxys’ aura come out behind me. “See, it doesn’t eat. It’s not pressing for it to eat, but I’m still concerned. What do you think will-”

“I’ve got just the thing! Try this bag of Pokeblock!” he said as he handed me a bag. Inside were little block-like candies. “My dad said it’s the ultimate in terms of Pokémon diet!”

“Yeah, I’ve heard this stuff is a Pokémon’s favorite, depending on the color. Are you sure you want to give me all this, though?”

“It’s fine! I needed to take a load off, anyway, because I’ve got another whole bagful!”

“Oh. Well, thank you, Brendan!”

“Say, can I see how your Eevee’s doing?”

“Oh, yeah! Come on out!” I said as I let Espeon out of its Poke Ball.

“WHAT?! It evolved already?!” Brendan said, shocked. “And it’s looking great, too!”

“Espeon!” Espeon responded gratefully.

“Yeah, it evolved in our first Gym Battle! Speaking of which, how about WE have a battle? I’m dying to see your Pokémon’s strength!”

“Okay! Let’s make this a three-on-three battle!”

“All right. You’re up, Psyduck!” I said as I released Psyduck.

“Let’s do it, Seedot!” he said as he released a brown, acorn-like Pokémon. “Use Bullet Seed!” Seedot fired a barrage of yellow bullets at Psyduck.

“Use Confusion to send it right back!” Psyduck’s Confusion sent the Bullet Seed back at Seedot, but the attack had little effect.

“Seedot, Tackle attack!” Seedot lunged at Psyduck.

“Psyduck, use Fury Swipes!” Psyduck slashed away at Seedot, stopping the Tackle.

“Now! Bullet Seed!” Seedot fired another Bullet Seed at Psyduck, this time hitting the mark. “Now use Leech Seed!” Seedot fired a brown seed that hit Psyduck and trapped it in the vines that sprouted from it. No matter what attacks I shouted, Psyduck couldn’t move. The Leech Seed drained its energy until it passed out, unable to battle.

“Psyduck, you did great! Take a rest! Let’s go, Girafarig!” I said as I sent Girafarig out of its Poke Ball.

“Rig!” Girafarig responded, raring to go.

“Bullet Seed, Seedot!” Seedot fired a Bullet Seed.

“Girafarig, use Mirror Coat!” Girafarig glowed with a bright aura, absorbed the attack, then flung it back with double damage. Seedot was knocked onto its back. “Okay, use Crunch attack!” Girafarig jumped at Seedot, then turned around midjump. Its tail then opened its mouth, which chomped Seedot’s foot.

“Seedot! Try to break out of there!” Try as it did, Seedot couldn’t break free.

“Finish it with Psybeam!” Girafarig fired a Psybeam at Seedot, causing it to faint. “Great job!” I exclaimed.

“Awesome job, Seedot! Take a rest,” Brendan said as he returned Seedot to its Poke Ball. “Go, Aron!” He said as he threw a Poke Ball. Out came a small Pokémon in iron plating, Aron. “Use Metal Claw!”

“Arrrr!” it said as it jumped at Girafarig with a Metal Claw attack.

“Girafarig! Dodge and use Psybeam!” Girafarig fired a Psybeam, but Aron dodged it. “Use Psybeam again!” Girafarig shot a Psybeam from its horns at Aron, but it didn’t do much damage.

“Aron, use Take Down!” Aron hit Girafarig with a Take Down, sending it back a ways.

“Girafarig! Try a Thunder attack!” Girafarig fired an electric bolt from its horns, and it did moderate damage. “And again!”

“Counter that with a Metal Claw!” Aron’s Metal Claw took out its target, but before I knew it, the Thunder attack nailed Aron, causing it to faint as well. We returned our Pokémon to their balls, congratulated them, and then faced each other.

“You’re doing well. No wonder you’ve won two badges already!”

“You too. I’d think that if you’d gone for badges, you’d have probably won four by now.”

“Now, let’s wrap this up. Come on out, Marshtomp!” He sent out a blue fish-like Pokémon that resembled his Mudkip from before. It had probably evolved.

“Showtime, Espeon!”

“Espe!” Espeon said as it leapt into action.

“Anything about this seem familiar?”

“Our starters facing off? Yeah, good times.”

“And just like before, look where we are!”

I looked, and saw all the water around us. “Aw nuts.”

“Marshtomp, use Mud Shot!” Marshtomp fired a Mud Shot at Espeon.

“Espeon, use Confusion!” Espeon’s Confusion caught the Mud Shot and fired it back.

“Dodge and use Muddy Water!” Marshtomp jumped over the attack and then summoned the water around us. It turned brown and formed a wave that crashed into Espeon.

“Espeon, use Psychic to send Marshtomp into the air!” Espeon’s Psychic sent Marshtomp flying and caused it to slam into the ground multiple times. “Now, use Morning Sun before it’s too late!”

“Espe!” it said as it regained energy.

“Marshtomp, Rain Dance!” In the air, Marshtomp sent a glowing blue orb into the air that summoned rainclouds to block the sun. Espeon looked startled, as the attack seemed to have only revitalized half of the usual energy.

“Espeon, Swift attack!” Espeon fired the stars at Marshtomp.

“Use Water Gun to repel them!” Marshtomp’s Water Gun fended off the attack. It was then that Marshtomp started to glow with a blue aura. “All right! It’s Marshtomp’s Torrent!”

“Who?”

“No, Torrent! It’s an ability that the Mudkip evolutions have that raises the power of Water moves in a pinch! So use Muddy Water again!” Marshtomp summoned up another Muddy Water.

“I have an idea. Use Sunny Day!” Espeon fired a red orb into the air, causing the rainclouds to dissipate, thereby cutting the damage Muddy Water would’ve done with Rain Dance. “Now use Morning Sun again!” Espeon’s Morning Sun revitalized a ton of energy.

“Marshtomp, hurry and use Iron Tail!” Marshtomp charged at Espeon with an Iron Tail at the ready.

“Hidden Power!” I said to Espeon. The white orbs surrounded it and became a beam that knocked Marshtomp a LONG distance away (must’ve been super effective). It was a safe bet to say that Marshtomp was unable to battle, and Espeon was the winner.

“Marshtomp! Are you all right?!”

“Marsh…tomp,” Marshtomp replied.

“That’s good,” he said. “Mike, your Espeon is something else! We’ll keep training until we can beat you two!”

“Whenever you guys want another match, let us know! We’re always up for it, right Espeon?”

“Espe! Espeon!”

“Marshtomp!”

We then parted ways, after shaking hands. He went towards Slateport City, and I towards Mauville City. Before we got there, we took another break. Everyone was out of their ball, and Deoxys was meditating again. Everybody else seemed to like the Pokeblock, so I took some to Deoxys.

“No thanks. I don’t need to eat anyway.”

“I’m sure there’s some way you can take this in! You’ll love it.”

Deoxys sighed and reluctantly took the Pokeblock in its hand. From the vertical line on its face, Deoxys sent out a ray that took the Pokeblock in. Deoxys looked deep in thought for a while, then said, “Hm. Sour, yet sweet.” It paused, then looked at me and said, “…I like it.” It then closed its eyes and didn’t say another word.

I smiled and said, “Anytime.” I then went back to the others, and we finished up, packed up, and began the last leg of our journey to Mauville City.