Night in the Tower

When I was a young boy, my parents told me there were no such thing as ghosts. Growing up I really believed that. That’s pretty crazy, right? Now we know ghosts are quite real and many famous trainers specialize in training the ghost-type Pokémon. It was Professor Oak and Elite Agatha who first speculated the existence of the ghost-type and it was because of their theories and the strange happenings going on at Pokémon Tower that they sent me, and Blue before me, to investigate and uncover the truth. I don’t know what Blue endured within the tower before I got to Lavender Town, but I know he realized the prototype Silph Scope was absolutely necessary to see just what was really going on inside. I didn’t know what I’d find inside, but I was confident that it wasn’t going to be ghosts. They weren’t real.
Professor Oak had sent me some urgent messages that I picked up at the Pokémon Center in Lavender. They sounded quite desperate. Apparently some of the other field research teams that he had dispatched to the tower had met with disaster. They had all abandoned the project. The rumors around town that whatever was going on inside the tower had involved Team Rocket somehow which I’m sure prompted Blue to take action in Celadon. It also explained why the Silph Scope was found among their stolen experimental devices in their headquarters.
“The tower is closed to the public until further notice,” the attendant at the front counter told me as I entered the site. “Mr. Fuji is quite adamant that no one else be allowed to enter until a thorough investigation has been conducted.”
“I was sent by Professor Oak,” I stammered, hoping it would give me enough credibility to proceed.
“So were most of the others,” she replied. “They didn’t last very long inside. Neither did those Team Rocket members who forced their way in soon after. The tower is too dangerous right now.”
“How so?” I asked. I knew the tower was used as a memorial for Pokémon that had passed on, but all the chatter around town of ghosts lurking in the darkness just seemed ridiculous to me. Ghosts weren’t real.
“There was a team from Saffron City that went in about a week ago. Not a single one of them has come back. I personally won’t even set foot on the first step up those stairs,” she said motioning to the large winding stairway that worked its way up the floors of the tower. “Just forget about it and go home. I’m sorry if you lost a Pokémon dear to you, but it’s just not safe up there.”
She wasn’t going to budge on the issue, but as far as I knew the tower was an open building day and night. There was no front gate, no locked doors, nothing to bar entry once this attendant had gone home for the night. Professor Oak’s researchers had failed. Team Rocket had fled. Blue certainly wasn’t inclined to come back after whatever happened to him. Not to mention a team of investigators from Saffron City had disappeared inside not too long ago. I needed to know what was going on inside and I was the only one with a Silph Scope that Blue assured me was necessary. So I waited patiently discreetly down the street from the path winding up to the Pokémon Tower and waited for night to fall.

As I had surmised, the tower was completely unguarded at night. The troubling rumors and the fact that it was a Pokémon graveyard probably kept most of the townsfolk far from the tower at night. I was the only one dumb enough to set foot inside after dark, and as soon as I stepped off the stairs my heart was racing. Even though it was early May and summer was just around the corner, the air was chilled. Even so, I was sweating up a storm as I crossed the first floor towards the next set of stairs leading up to the third floor.
The tower was dimly lit. Small candles burned on the memorials that were left for lost Pokémon, but there was no other light source. There were windows along the edges of the tower, but for some reason the moonlight was not making its way inside. As I passed by the memorials, I wondered, who had lit these candles if no one was allowed up here? I convinced myself that it must have been the team from Saffron City that were still lingering in the tower for whatever reason. I tried not to ask myself how they had survived for a week without access to food or water. Certainly they must have brought enough supplies. Right?
As my nerves began to falter, I popped the Silph Scope down over my eyes and glanced around. I was hoping they’d allow me to see better in the darkness, but sadly they did not. Everything looked normal through the lenses of the Silph Scope. Still, I wouldn’t take them off now that they were on. They brought me some small amount of comfort and that was enough to get me to take those steps up to the next floor. It made me feel safe at first, but that began to dwindle with every passing moment spent in the tower.
Every passing step up across the floors of the tower and I felt a huge weight on my stomach pressing down and making me feel ill. I began to grow more and more terrified, jumping at every shadow flickering in the candle light. Eventually I felt like I was moving at a snail’s pace as I made my way up the flights of stairs and across each new floor. It was deathly silent in here. Aside from the lit candles, that I hoped were being maintained by the Saffron crew, there was no sign or sound of anyone else inside. I felt tremendously alone.
It wasn’t until the third floor that I realized I wasn’t alone. I tossed out Dustin’s Poké Ball and he was instantly on alert. I don’t know what spooked him, but it didn’t reassure me much. Still, I was glad to have the company as Dustin pressed forward one step ahead of me. Thanks to knowing the useless Pokémon move “Flash” Dustin’s eyes managed to illuminate the darkness just a bit better than the candles, but a gloom still clung to the place.
I was certain we were being watched and Dustin seemed to agree. His eyes darted from corner to corner, lighting them up like a flashlight. As we progressed he would often stop and jerk his head around to peer into the corners behind us, as certain as I felt that there was something there. Neither his psychic prowess or my Silph Scope revealed anything, though. Whatever was lurking out there was quick to elude us and by the fifth floor, I think Dustin was making me more nervous than comforted with his erratic scanning of every dank nook and cranny of the tower.
Stepping off the stairs to the sixth floor, I could hear faint laughter or perhaps weeping coming from the final floor above us. It froze Dustin and I in our tracks. I saw him tilt his head as he reached out to probe with his mind. I envied him a little, but he didn’t seem reassured much by whatever his psychic scan revealed. The noises from above confirmed that we were not alone and that disturbed both of us. The hairs on my neck were standing on end and my entire skin was covered in goosebumps by this point. I could see my breath in front of my face in the dim candle light, even though it really shouldn’t have been that cold. Every instinct in my body told me to run back down the tower and out into the safety of the moonlit night, but I’d come too far. I’d faced down Team Rocket just two days ago and I wasn’t about to let some laughing or weeping creature scare me away from this tower.
I almost wish it had, though. What awaited above in the darkness haunts me still. I’ve never seen anything like it before or since. As Dustin and I crossed the threshold of the seventh and final floor of the tower, we found ourselves surrounded by bodies - human bodies. They were strewn about the room like rag dolls that had been tossed aside, draped up against the walls and memorials, unmoving in the flickering candle light. The laughter, and I was confident it was laughter now, seemed to be coming from all around us. I couldn’t tell if it was coming from one of the bodies on strewn across the floor or not. It wasn’t until I looked at Dustin, who was staring intently up at the ceiling, that my stomach dropped and I slowly followed his gaze upward.
“Have you come to play?” A young woman was clutching the ceiling like some kind of spider or lizard, crouched on all fours, but staring down at us from across the room. Her face and neck were contorted in ways that didn’t look natural or comfortable and her mouth was in a wide, sneering grin. “My other dolls are broken now, and this one will soon be useless, too.” The voice was seething, but held a hint of laughter.
The girl dropped from the ceiling like a rock, but managed to contort herself in midair like a cat to land soundly on her bare feet and the palms of her hands. I could see she was wearing what remained of a very tattered dress, or perhaps tattered red hakama of a shrine maiden. Her wiry black hair fell around her face like a frame, but her grin did not change from the mocking crescent moon she held when we first saw her on the ceiling. “Answer me!” She insisted.
“I’m not here to play,” I shouted back. I don’t know where the words came from because I was trembling with intense fear.
“You never had a choice!” she screamed and rushed forward at insane speed. Fortunately Dustin raised his right hand, a pendulum forever swinging in his left and the girl was thrown backwards across the room, slamming harshly into the wall. It was then that I saw it through the Silph Scope. It wasn’t the girl that Dustin had attacked, but something inside her. A dark purple mass was attached to the girl and I could see the grin fade from her mouth as it began to coalesce behind her.
“Help me,” she gasped in a strained, but normal sounding human voice.
“Dustin! Hit it again!” Dustin took a step forward with his palm extended and I could feel a shock wave of his Confusion psychic attack blast whatever creature had hold of this young woman. This time she was freed entirely and her body fell to the floor in a heap. What remained was a round, dark purple Pokémon with large eyes with red sclera surrounding little black pupils. It held that same sickly wide grin that was splashed horrifically across the girls face. I was looking at a ghost - a ghost Pokémon which until recently had only been theorized.
It looked at me and Dustin with some disbelief behind its twisted grin. It apparently didn’t expect to be pushed out like that. Dustin protectively stood between me and the creature. Before my eyes, two more creatures materialized out of apparently thin air. One of them a gaseous purple and black ball with eyes and a mouth, the other a floating purple apparition with two detached purple hands floating in front of it. I was all but locked up in terror at this point, but Dustin and I both knew that I was in danger.
Dustin sized up the opponents squarely. His gaze passed from one to the other. Finally I urged him to action. He hypnotized the gaseous orb which the Pokédex would come to identify as Gastly and it slowly drifted down to the floor in sleep. I quickly tossed out a Poké Ball to capture it if I could and get it off the battlefield. I didn’t have time to see if it was successful as the apparition with disembodied hands lunged forward with a gigantic tongue rolling out of its gaping maw. It looked as though it were going to lick Dustin, but he was having none of it. Confusion absolutely decimated the apparition later identified as Haunter. It left only the original creature, the leader of this mischievous trio, staring coldly at us across the room.
Dustin and the Gengar appeared to be having some kind of intense staring contest and for a moment I wondered if they were engaged in some kind of psychic battle. It was unfortunately too late that I realized this ghost Pokémon was using one of my beloved techniques against us! Dustin was sound asleep and this creature was somehow feasting on his dreams and gaining strength. How could I have been so stupid? I fumbled for Dustin’s ball to withdraw him and protect him, but before I could, a faint sound came trickling in from somewhere. It was the soft sound of a flute.
I didn’t have time to be puzzled by this because Dustin was instantly awake and taking action. He leaned forward to send a final blast of Confusion at the Gengar which squealed in pain and then suddenly vanished into the night. The candles flared up dramatically, enveloping the whole room in bright light before returning to a normal, healthy glow. The gloom that had been hanging around this place had been lifted. I saw the faint blinking light of my Poké Ball and knew I had captured that one gaseous orb. I took a deep breath and felt like a huge weight had been lifted. I’d forgotten completely about the faint flute music.
“Are you all right?” I asked rushing over to the young woman who had been tossed backwards by Dustin’s psychic attack.
“I am now,” she said in an exhausted tone. “Thank you.”
I didn’t really know what to say. Dustin had done most of the work. I had been practically frozen in fear. I helped the woman to her feet. She looked around at the other bodies. She frowned.
“They are alive,” she said. I wasn’t sure how she knew what I was asking in my head. “I can sense them breathing, dreaming. They are just weak. That Pokémon was playing with us like toys and draining our energy. We might not have made it much longer if you hadn’t shown up.” Her voice was raspy and quiet.
“Stay here with your friends,” I said. “I’ll go get help.”
“No need!” came a loud voice from the stairway. Dustin, the girl and I all snapped our heads in his direction, surprised by the announcement. Standing at the stairs, we saw an old, bald man in a kimono beside an old woman in a purple and white dress leaning heavily on a cane. The man looked genuinely ecstatic while the woman had a dark grin spread across her face. “We saw you come in armed with that scope there and knew we had to follow. I’d been waiting for Agatha here for days to help me investigate the tower and it appears her predictions were correct. There were ghost-type Pokémon in here!”
“May I?” she asked, pointing at the Poké Ball that now held Spectre the Gastly. I handed it to her. I’d like to reiterate, I had no idea who I was talking to at the time. As a newcomer to Kanto, I didn’t realize I was in the presence of two well known authorities on Pokémon in the region, one of them a member of the Elite Four. All I knew was I was exhausted from this ordeal and they were here to help. It had been a long night. In my exhaustion, I never even noticed the flute clutched in the old man’s hands.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.




Current Team:
Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto), Vesper (Zubat), Spectre (Gastly)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

The Rocket Raid

Erika and I raced across the Celadon Shopping Plaza, pushing our way through the panicked crowds. A voice on the loud speaker urged people to remain calm and remain indoors, but it felt like they were doing anything but remaining calm. There was no further explanation given for the alarm blazing around us, but Erika and I knew it had to be related to Team Rocket. We burst out of the shopping center into the midday sun.
The streets were just as chaotic. People were dashing every which way, ducking into buildings and out of sight. Team Rocket members had their Pokémon out in the streets and were attempting to herd civilians to some nefarious end, but we couldn’t stop to help everyone or we would never make it to Blue’s assault in time. There was no sign of local authorities. Erika and I rushed down the busy streets towards her gym, but about halfway there we ran into her gym trainers and the other trainers who were waiting with them. Blue was nowhere to be seen.
“Right now, Rocket controls the streets,” Erika spoke loudly to the group. “I want my gym trainers to make a sweep of the city. Knock out their Pokémon and subdue any Rocket members you can until police arrive. I don’t think they will move against Team Rocket until they absolutely have to, which is what we’re going to make sure of today.” The trainers from her gym nodded and began to organize into teams to sweep through the city streets. “The rest of you, come with me!” Erika ordered. She abruptly turned and began running east. The rest of us followed on her heels.
Erika led our group toward the Celadon Game Corner as frightened citizens did everything in their power to run away from it. As we turned the corner on to the street where the Game Corner was located, I spotted Blue. In front of him was a massive Charizard pinning two Rocket grunts to the ground, with menacing flames spouting in bursts from its mouth in their general direction.
“Just in time,” he said as Erika ran up to him.
“You started without us!” she managed to gasp while trying to catch her breath after our brisk run across town.
Blue chuckled. “An opportunity presented itself.” He motioned to the two pinned grunts. “I didn’t count on the Game Corner tripping an alarm, though. They must think I’m here to rob them. Whatever. At least it will summon the police whenever they feel like helping out.”
“So what’s the plan?” I asked. Blue glanced at me as if he had never seen me before.
“These goons told me how to get inside their headquarters. There are four underground floors with a lift going directly to a secret lab as well as their boss’s office. I want you three to come with me.” He motioned to me, Erika and another female trainer I’d never noticed before. “We will split up, subdue any threats, and find that lift key. Each one of us will take a floor on our own and secure it. Everyone else stay out here with these two clowns.” He motioned at his captives. “Stop any Rocket members who try to escape the building. Protect the citizens of the city at all cost, even if it means letting some Rocket go. Make sure innocent people aren’t hurt or harassed by our Pokémon or Team Rocket. When the police do arrive, cooperate but also try and stall them from interfering inside until we return. We don’t know who we can trust, or who is on Rocket’s payroll. I don’t want any Rocket goons slipping out of this snare.”
Blue withdrew his Charizard and entered the Game Corner. The two goons that were released from Charizard's grasp made an attempt to flee, but they were quickly surrounded by the other trainers and their Pokémon. The two young ladies Blue had instructed followed him inside, and I took up the rear guard. Inside we found more people in full panic mode, but Blue barked at them that we weren’t here to harm or rob them and marched to the back of the game hall. Everyone in the Game Corner looked as scared as I felt inside. I glanced around at them nervously, clutching a Poké Ball tightly in my hand. Blue tore a poster down from the back wall revealing a switch. He flipped it and a door slid open revealing a set of stairs that went down into the basement of the Game Corner. I shook my head in disbelief. I couldn’t believe I was part of this. My heart was racing as I followed Blue down those stairs into a gangster hideout.
“Fox, you take this floor. Erika, you’re in charge of the next one. Green, you’ll take the third floor down and I’ll take the final floor. If you find a key to the lift, come find me and we’ll take down the boss together,” Blue said as we reached the first landing. I took a deep breath and nodded to him. He and the girl named Green continued on down the stairs to the next floor. Erika lingered a moment and placed her fingers gently on my hand that was clutching a Poké Ball like my life depended on it. Her reassurance allowed me to relax a little. She gave me a quick nod and a smile and then disappeared down the darkness below.

I cautiously stepped out of the stairwell and into a small hallway. The lights flickered dimly, but I could make out a Rocket member standing in an open doorway to my left. He spotted me almost immediately, but I assume he didn’t quite know what to make of a 17-year old kid stepping into his headquarters.
“Are you lost, kid? You can’t be here!” he shouted at me. “Go back upstairs to the Game Corner.” I responded by tossing out Royal’s Poké Ball and watching the Rocket grunt’s expression change from irritation to panic as Royal let out a mighty roar. He nearly took up the entire hallway. The grunt rushed into the hallway and nervously tossed out a Drowzee. I knew full well what a threat a well trained Drowzee could be, but if I had learned anything about Team Rocket in my time in Kanto, it was that most of their Pokémon weren’t properly trained. Royal chomped down hard on the Drowzee knocking it out in a single bite.
“Surrender,” I pleaded. The grunt responded by tossing out a Machop who was swiftly defeated by Royal. “You won’t win. We have this place surrounded,” I said confidently. Royal edged forward backing the grunt up into the room he had been guarding. I peeked inside and saw what appeared to be a small lounge with another door leading out the back. The grunt ran to the door, but it appeared to be locked. If he had the key, he didn’t use it. With Royal watching the door, he was trapped unless someone unlocked that door from the other side.
“Hey! What’s going on?” came a shout from the other end of the hall. A Rocket grunt rushed out of the other room into the hallway and stopped short when he saw me and my enormous Gyrados clogging up the end of the hallway. “Wait. I know you. I remember you from Mount Moon.” His words struck me like lightning, because I recognized him, too. He was the trainer of the Dread Rocket Raticate that put Nibbles out of commission. Prior to this realization I had felt sick with anxiety, but now I was swelling with rage and excitement.

“Watch the door,” I instructed Royal. “We’ll take care of this.” In a flash of light, Rascal Jr. was at my side and ready to get our revenge. The Team Rocket grunt I’d faced off against at Mount Moon tossed out what I dubbed the Dread Rocket Raticate. I knelt down to be closer to Rascal Jr. “I know you never knew Nibbles, but we’re doing this for him. We have to prove just how far we’ve come.” Rascal Jr. squeaked his acknowledgment and rushed forward.
Rascal was faster and stronger. At every turn, he outmatched his opponent. He got in a quick tail whip to disorient the
Dread Rocket Raticate, then would dart in for a quick attack, dashing back out to avoid a hyper bite. I smiled smugly. Although I had defeated this Rocket grunt at Mount Moon it had come at a great cost. Seeing how far I’d come since then, with my own well-trained Raticate, filled me with a surge of pride in myself as a trainer and in my team. Rascal Jr. ended this contest with a hyper bite of his own that soundly defeated the Dread Rocket Raticate without even taking a single scratch.
The Rocket grunt shook his head and joined his friend behind Royal in the locked lounge. I quickly surveyed the rest of the floor and found it empty. I had done my part. This floor was secure and as a bonus I got to rematch an earlier nemesis of mine. It felt good. Royal and I sat in the locked lounge awaiting Blue’s return.

The door at the back of the lounge unlocked with a loud click. The two Rocket grunts jumped to their feet as if they were about to be rescued. Royal edged closer to me from behind, but it was Blue who walked through the door. Behind him I could see the lift and I knew Blue had come up from the bottom floors after finding the lift key.
“We’re done here,” Blue announced. “I see you have this floor under control. Green and Erika are bringing up the others and we’ll hand them over to the authorities. You wouldn’t believe what I saw down there,” Blue said motioning behind him. “They were running some kind of experiments on Pokémon. Really twisted stuff. The police are going to have a field day. Still, I think we were a bit too late. Their boss wasn’t here and a lot of the experiments look like they were moved to another site.”
“Wow,” I managed to say. “Still. We did it. We took down their headquarters. They’ll have a hard time recovering form this.” Blue nodded in agreement and together with the grunts we made our way back out of the headquarters.
Emerging in the late afternoon sun, we were greeted by the flashing lights of the police. Many of them looked cross, others flustered, but they were arresting the right people at least. Members of Team Rocket were lined up in handcuffs and being escorted to police cars and vans. The young trainers who had been assembled to take down Team Rocket were all giving detailed statements to the police. Though they might have charged the four of us who actually went inside with trespassing, whatever crimes we may have committed were dismissed in favor of prosecuting Team Rocket. Inside they found stolen equipment, stolen Pokémon and the unethical experiments Blue had mentioned to me.
We were detained by the police long into the night to make sure they had all our statements accurately recorded, then they let us go. Blue and I were the last to be released. Erika and her gym leaders had been among the first due to her social standing in the community. As we left the police station, Blue stopped me and shook my hand.
“I want you to have this,” he said handing me a strange headset with his other hand. “I may have picked this up from some of the stolen lab equipment inside.”
“You stole evidence?” I asked. “What is it?”
Blue laughed. “Yeah, but we’ll give it back to its rightful owners eventually, right? You’re going to need this for your research in Lavender Town. It’s a Silph Scope - made by the Silph Company. You won’t get far in the Pokémon Tower without it. Trust me. I had a bad experience in there before bumping into you outside.”
“Thanks, Blue,” I said earnestly. He shrugged and walked off. He looked as exhausted as I felt as he disappeared into the dark city streets. This was by far the craziest day I’d spent in Kanto and I’m still honored to be part of the team that took down Team Rocket.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.


Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto) & Vesper (Zubat)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

Quiet Gardens of Celadon

After leaving behind the sleepy little hamlet of  Lavender Town, Celadon City is quite the overwhelming spectacle. While Saffron City may have the tallest buildings in the land, Celadon is known throughout Kanto as a center of commerce. It boasts the largest population in Kanto, making it the most bustling city you’ll find. The streets are packed with people coming and going about their daily lives. Aside from a world-renown shopping center, the city also boasts all forms of entertainment. Neon signs lit up the evening sky broadcasting all forms of attractions in Celadon City.  As tempting as it was to check out some of the local nightlife, I was here on a mission.
My first morning in Celadon found me standing face to face with the Celadon City Gym. I had read in a brochure that only local females were allowed to join the gym as members which  made it a bit intimidating for shy male trainers like myself. I took a deep breath and walked inside. It was humid and balmy, as it was partially a greenhouse. There were plants everywhere making it difficult to see much of anything. Blue had told me this should be my first stop in Celadon and to wait for further instructions. As I pushed my way through the dense plants, I stumbled into other trainers. I startled them as much as they startled me!
I decided that since I was here waiting for Blue, I’d challenge the gym. So I battled my way through the vines and grasses; I battled my way through the strikingly beautiful trainers that Gym Leader Erika had assembled at her gym to test challengers. As expected, Celadon’s specialty was Grass-type Pokémon and most of the Grass-types in Kanto are also Poison-types which made them particularly susceptible to Dustin’s psychic assaults, but I was saving Dustin for the finale. I didn't want to show my hand too quickly. It was Shakespear who helped clear the way through the gym trainers to face the leader. Shakespear pecked his way through the crowd of Oddish, Bellsprout and the occasional Ivysaur.
“Blue sent you, did he not?”  Erika asked me when I found her lounging in the shade under a tree. I nodded and she smiled softly. “I can see why. I train with these girls every morning and your Spearow put all that training to shame.” She sat up and wrapped her arms around her knees. She was dressed in a beautiful, ornate kimono. She looked a bit like a samurai princess. “Are you ready to face Team Rocket, I wonder.”
She stood up and brushed the grass and dirt off her clearly expensive attire. She smiled her lazy smile at me again before throwing a Pokéball in my direction, unleashing a Victreebel. I didn’t open with Shakespear this time. Instead, Dustin took the field and Erika looked surprised and also satisfied. Dustin tore through the Victreebell with a psychic confusion attack. Erika tossed out a Tangela, which were a rather rare species of Grass-type Pokémon. It was a pure Grass-type and wouldn’t be  utterly defeated by a psychic assault, but Dustin was well versed in the Fox-school of Pokémon battling. He hypnotized Tangela and lulled it to sleep, then began to rejuvenate himself with Dream Eater. He faced off against Erika’s final Pokémon, a Vileplume, at full strength and won a decisive victory.
“I am impressed,” she said as she stepped forward with her hand extended. In it was the Rainbow Badge her gym bestowed on worthy challengers. As I took it from her, our hands touched and I thought perhaps lingered a moment. Her skin was so soft. She blushed a little when I looked at her. “Would you take a moment to accompany me to the shopping plaza?” she asked. “We have some time before other things require our attention.”
“I … uh … yes?” I was a bit flustered. Was she asking me out? “I have some things I need to pick up at the store, too,” I finally managed to stammer and she laughed very softly. It was true I’d had a close call with Royal on the way over from Lavender as I scrambled to dig my last poison antidote out of my bag. I needed to resupply and reorganize before something terrible happened due to my absent-mindedness.
“Let me speak to the trainers here for a moment and I will meet you outside,” she said with a smile. “We are waiting for a few more to show up, as well.” I nodded and made my way back out of the steamy gym. As I stepped out into the cool spring air, I wondered if it was the greenhouse or the girl's hint of flirtation that had gotten me so hot and uncomfortable. Had Erika asked me on a date? It was distracting to say the least at a time when I should have been focused on what we were about to be up against. Perhaps it was just the kind of pleasant distraction I needed, though.

The Celadon Shopping Plaza was extraordinary. A shopping mall built six stories tall and specializing in all things Pokémon related. There were other shops and restaurants, of course, but it was truly a trainer’s paradise. As I followed Erika through the crowds of busy shoppers, my eyes drawn equally to every flashing sign as they were to every brief smile on Erika’s face. I restocked all the items I needed to keep my Pokémon healthy. She helped me find everything I needed at the the right shops for the right prices, smiling shyly and giving a few brief laughs here and there. She also took me to an old man selling rare stones, explaining one in particular would allow Arnold to evolve into a more powerful form if I so chose. It was something to consider and I was grateful for her expertise on both shopping and Grass-type Pokémon!
As we made our way from shop to shop, I noticed people were giving us a bit of a wide berth. All around us was an ocean of people, but for some reason Erika seemed to remain the eye of the storm. As if on cue, the calm was broken by a young interloper who came crashing out of the crowd and into our small private bubble.
“Who the hell are you and why are you so familiar with Gym Leader Erika?” he demanded. His outburst turned more than a few heads in the crowd, but people continued about their own business. This guy was younger than me, younger than Erika, but he stood his ground firmly.
“My name is Fox,” I stammered.
“Don’t pay him any attention, Fox. He’s just jealous.”
“Damn straight, I’m jealous!” the boy shouted. A few more heads turned, but when they saw Erika was involved they kept walking. “You don’t just get to walk side-by-side with the Princess of Celadon City.”
Erika blushed deeply, her porcelain skin turning bright red. “Don’t call me that!” she snapped. She grabbed me by the wrist and dragged me forward. He nearly jumped out of the way to avoid her crashing into him. The crowd parted around us as she rushed us forward. It was so strange to observe. She was actually being treated like some kind of royalty, now that the kid mentioned it.
We finally stopped at a quiet spot in a less busy area of the plaza. Erika sat down beside a fountain in the shade of a nearby indoor tree planted by the fountain. “I’m sorry about that,” she offered. “Every time I go out something like this happens, so I mostly stay at the gym, surrounded by my girl friends who aren’t so damn aggravating.”
“What was that all about?” I asked cautiously. I stood near her nervously for a moment before deciding I was being an idiot. Then I sat down next to her, but not too close.
“My father is … perhaps was … the most wealthy man in Kanto. He helped build this place,” she said making a sweeping gesture to the grand shopping plaza. “He’s pretty  much the reason Celadon City is such a booming success. So that dumb kid wasn’t wrong when he called me the Princess of Celadon, but I just hate that title.” Her rather soft-spoken demeanor had all but evaporated now that we were fairly isolated and alone.
“Honestly I think Team Rocket runs things, now. Daddy won’t admit it. He’s very proud and stubborn. Still, I think Rocket has all but publicly taken over this town. They operate out of the most successful casino parlor and arcade, and up until recently they’ve been mostly hiding in the shadows. Something changed, though. No one knows what, but now Team Rocket is not just a shady organization operating discreetly behind the scenes. They are committing real crimes right out in the open - like at Mount Moon, Cerulean City and whatever’s going on in Saffron City. It’s as if they feel invulnerable. The police have done almost nothing in the last few months and that’s why we need to stop them. Apparently, no one else will.”
“I didn’t know things had gotten so bad,” I offered.
“It’s understandable. You aren’t from Kanto, but Kanto needs you. We all need you. We need all the help we can get to flush these criminals out of our streets before things get any worse.”
After a moment’s hesitation, I put my hand on hers. She was depending on me and suddenly that felt vastly more important than Professor Oak's research, my dreams of running a sanctuary, or some League challenge. “I’ll do everything I can to help,” I said it with confidence. On the inside I was terrified, but I tried not to let it show. I was terrified of facing Team Rocket. I was terrified of sitting next to a girl as pretty and apparently powerful as Erika. I tried to channel my inner Blue and his tremendous amount of self-confidence and hoped it was working.
Erika looked up at me and smiled a genuine, beautiful smile. I felt true calm and confidence sweep over me briefly. Then bells began ringing and sirens began blaring both inside and outside the plaza. Erika’s smile vanished in a heartbeat and was replaced with stoic determination.
“Let’s go,” she said. “It’s time.”

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.



Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto) & Vesper (Zubat)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

Putting a Pin in Lavender Town

Hiking down from the Rock Tunnel, Pokémon Tower juts out above the rocky hills that nestle the Lavender Valley. This prominent feature of Lavender Town was where Pokémon owners came to mourn and often inter their deceased Pokémon. I really didn’t have much of an interest in visiting a Pokémon graveyard, but it was hard not to be awed by the dominating tower as you approach the town. Even after entering the sleepy little town, there wasn’t much else remarkable about Lavender.
Emails from Professor Oak indicated there was a chance the local Pokémon expert had discovered a new type of Pokémon here in Lavender. That was pretty exciting! I had a chance at being a part of something new. There was a problem, of course. This local expert, Mr. Fuji, was nowhere to be found. No one had seen or heard from him in days. I spent an entire day poking around Lavender Town, talking to the locals, but no one had seen or heard anything from Mr. Fuji. The town was quite abuzz about “ghosts” in the tower, however. I wondered if these ghosts be the Pokémon that Professor Oak had sent me to investigate.
Despite having very little interest in wandering around a vertical graveyard, eventually the Pokémon Tower was the last place I had left to search for Mr. Fuji or new Pokémon sightings. It was early evening when I approached the tower. I figured if I was going to find any ghosts lingering about it would be after the sun set. Mind you, I really was skeptical about ghosts in the tower. The locals seemed to be deathly afraid of the place since recent sightings. They rarely left the ground floor if they went to mourn and no one would be caught inside after dark. Apparently, Mr. Fuji wasn’t the only person to go missing in relation to this tower at night. It was certainly mysterious, but I didn’t believe in ghosts.
“Yo.” A voice called out to me as I made my way up the steps to the tower which was settled on a small, rocky hill. I looked up from my feet to see the young trainer I had met many weeks ago in Viridian City outside the Viridian City Gym. “We haven’t been properly introduced,” he said as he made his way down the stairs towards me. “I’m Blue.”
“I’ve heard of you,” I muttered. Blue was one of the trainers competing aboard the S.S. Anne, but I had not seen him in Vermilion City. I had only heard he was doing exceptionally well in the advanced trainer bracket. “I’m Fox,” I offered.
“Yeah. I know. Gramps has you out here working on his Pokédex. Same as me.” Blue pulled a Pokédex out of his pocket with a scowl. I could tell from his look that Pokémon research bored him to tears. “He also sent me to this tower - same as you, I assume.”
“Yeah,” I admitted.
“Well, don’t bother. There’s nothing we can learn here.” He began descending the stairs again, nearly pushing me out of his way with his shoulder as he passed by. “Come on. Let’s battle.”
“Right here? Now?” I asked as I turned to follow after him.
“Yeah. There’s something I need to see for myself.” Blue spoke without turning to look at me. He was singularly focused now.

Official Art of Blue

“I want to do this a bit differently, cause I don’t have a lot of time to waste on rookie trainers like you,” Blue said. “You pick your best Pokémon. We’ll do a one-on-one battle. Your best against… one of mine I think I can beat you with. I need to see how much you’ve improved.”
Wow. I was amazed at his cockiness. I knew Blue was a rising star in Pokémon training in Kanto, but I couldn’t believe the size of his ego even then. I pushed that aside and accepted his challenge. I thought carefully about which Pokémon to choose. Dustin the Hypno was clearly the strongest on my team, but Royal - now a formidable Gyrados - was tempting. I held both Poké Balls in my hands and thought about the pros and cons of each one. Ultimately, I decided on Dustin. He had far fewer weaknesses than a Gyrados, and with Dream Eater had a way to convert the psychic energy of his opponent into his own power.
“Let’s do this,” I said firmly as I tossed out Dustin.
“Interesting,” Blue offered. “I didn’t think you would have such an advanced Pokémon.” He seemed pleased, though it was difficult to tell. “Hmm. Charmeleon.” He flicked a Poké Ball in my direction and a large Charmeleon appeared between us.
Blue’s Charmeleon was fast. It rushed in and slashed at Dustin who was hit hard. Dustin launched a psychic attack aimed to confuse the Charmeleon, but it only inflicted some psychic pain. Charmeleon reared back and spit a ball of fire out of its maw which slammed into Dustin’s chest, scattering embers all around us. All the while Dustin was slowly, methodically swinging his pendulum that he held in his left hand. Before Charmeleon could land another blow, he was lying on the ground sound asleep. Dustin ambled forward and crouched down near Charmeleon to begin devouring his dreams.
“Enough.” Blue was done. “I’ve seen enough.”
“That’s it?” I asked.
“You will win. Your Hypno is well trained. That’s a powerful combination. I don’t need to see any more. Charmeleon doesn’t need to suffer. But now that I know what you’re capable of, I need your help.” Blue withdrew his Charmeleon and matching him I withdrew Dustin.
“What kind of help?” I asked.
“Something big is going down in Celadon City. I need you there.”
“What about the research Professor Oak wants done?” I asked.
“Who cares? Gramps will live. This tower isn’t going anywhere, and besides I told you its pointless right now. Right now, we need you in Celadon City.”
“What’s in Celadon?” I asked out of curiosity.
Blue stepped in close. “Team Rocket,” he stated.
“What?” I took a step back in surprise. At first I thought he was trying to recruit me. I thought that Professor Oak’s grandson was perhaps a member of a criminal organization.
“I want to take them down,” he stated casually. “Not just me. There are other trainers involved. Some gym leaders, too. It’s going to be big and we need all the able trainers we can find to help out. I just need everyone to be in place when we hit them and make it clear they aren’t welcome in Kanto any more.”
“Oh!” I said in surprise. “Wow. That’s … not what I expected.”
“Yeah. No one is going to expect a bunch of kids with their pets to flush out a massive criminal organization, but we’re sick of them and we’re sick of how they treat Pokémon and how they crap all over League rules and traditions. They have to go. Once everyone is in position, we’re going to hit them hard at their base of operations in Celadon, and there are others trying to get into Saffron to see what’s going on there, too. Are you in?” he asked.
Being completely honest, the whole thing felt way out of my league. We were just teenagers! How were we going to stand up to gangsters? What was the plan? What did Blue want me to do? It was pretty overwhelming, but at the same time I thought of losing Nibbles. I thought of Saffron City on a constant lock down. I thought of the trouble caused in Cerulean when I had been passing through. Team Rocket was a Kanto problem, but even so their reach had affected me as well. If Blue thought I could help, shouldn’t I help? I don’t know what I was thinking, but Blue’s confidence was infectious. “I am in. I’ll head to Celadon tomorrow morning.”
“Good,” Blue said and then brushed past me again.
“Smell ya later, Fox.”

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.



Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto) & Vesper (Zubat)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

A Wild Side Quest Appears

I spent a few days training on Route 11 with Shakespear, Royal and Dustin. I really wanted Royal to evolve before moving on to my next challenge in the Kanto region. I felt strongly that he and Dustin were about to replace Arnold as my star Pokémon, but they weren’t ready for that yet. Dustin’s only ability when I met him was to put opponents to sleep. As I knew from working with Arnold, that was incredibly useful, but also required you to actually harm your opponent to win a match. Royal could now slap his body into his opponent’s body, but I really needed more than flopping around like a fish out of water before I could rely on him.
My training was interrupted after a few days by one of Professor Oak’s lab technicians. Royal had just finished tackling and scaring off a wild Ekans when I saw him approaching, his lab coat flapping around his waist in the breeze. I stooped down to rub Royal’s scales and watched as the aide approached. He looked utterly exhausted and completely out of his element out on the road and not behind a microscope.
“Fox!” he called out to me. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”
“Here I am,” I smiled weakly.
“Professor Oak hasn’t heard from you in a while. Don’t you check your emails?” The aide had a brief angry look cross his face. “Well, never mind that. I can see you’re busy with training and research. Can I see your Pokédex?” he asked and extended a hand. I stood up and Royal began to flop around aimlessly. I pulled the Pokédex  out of my back pocket and handed it to the lab tech. He pushed a few buttons and nodded to himself while I wondered what this was all about. “I see your work is coming along nicely. The Professor wanted me to make a detailed report on your progress. He also wanted me to give you this.” He handed me back the Pokédex and pulled a strange device out of his lab coat.
“What is this?” I asked as I took the two-pronged instrument from his hands.
“The Professor calls that an Item Finder.” He laughed. “Pretty simple, right? Basically it will light up when you are near a Pokémon enhancing item.” He held out a small technical machine and the lights on the end began to flash brightly. “It’s designed to pick up on the subtle radio waves… well, you don’t need the boring details. The gift comes at a small cost, however. Professor Oak wants you to head to Lavender Town to do some research there. There have been some very strange sightings in that town and we believe Pokémon are involved.”
“I don’t understand,” I admitted. Surely, I could just bike over to Lavender Town and there was no need for this strange contraption.
“The only way into Lavender Town these days is through the Rock Tunnel and to get through the Rock Tunnel, the Professor believes you will need to teach one of your Pokémon the hidden move called Flash. And well, you see, the thing is… the Hidden Machine that will teach Pokémon Flash was lost while doing research at the far end of Diglett Cave.” He stammered to get out the last sentence. I could tell it was his fault the machine was lost and finding me was his penance.
“So let me get this straight,” I began. “I need to use the Item Finder and head through Diglett’s Cave. Once I find the HM Flash, I need to head to the Rock Tunnel and take that path to Lavender Town to investigate something for Professor Oak.” This felt like a real round-about way to get somewhere. Diglett’s Cave would dump me out near Pewter City in western Kanto, and Lavender Town was about as far east as you could get and still be in the Kanto region. Still, I owed the Pokémon Professor a great deal of gratitude and I was out here doing his field testing on the Pokédex. I didn’t feel I had much of a choice. At first I was a bit irritated, but after the aide had dismissed himself I began to think Diglett’s Cave might be a great place to train up Royal. There was some silver lining after all.

I had been given what you might call a side quest. At the risk of being too brief, I don’t want to bore you with all the details. I biked over to Diglett’s Cave and began my trek through with Royal tackling any curious Diglett or Dugtrio that came to protect their territory. I affixed the Item Finder to the handlebars of my bike and carefully and slowly walked the bicycle from one end of this narrow little tunnel to the other. Along the way, something equal parts amazing and claustrophobia inducing happened - Royal evolved from a silly, little Magikarp into a massive, intimidating Gyrados. Digletts, beware! This massive monster filled up the entirety of the tunnel! It was spectacular. Now,  Royal was the master and he would take Dustin under his wing and guide his training alongside me.
I found HM Flash as well as a surprise Technical Machine (TM) that taught Pokémon the move Dream Eater. While Hidden Machines had the capacity to teach moves repeatedly, Technical Machines at the time did not. Dustin was the easy and obvious choice for Dream Eater. After lulling Pokémon to sleep with his powers of Hypnosis, he could then feed on their hopes and fears with this devastating psychic attack. Unfortunately, he was also the only Pokémon on my roster who was able to learn Flash and so Flash he would learn - a move I would come to regret.
I emerged from Diglett’s Cave on the Pewter City side. I spent a day there recovering. I had a nice visit with Rascal Sr. at the Pewter City Pokémon Gym where he was thriving. I can’t believe a month has passed since I was last in Pewter saying goodbye to Rascal Sr. So much had changed since then! I was tempted to challenge him to a battle against Rascal Jr., but I really didn’t want to waste too much time in Pewter City when Professor Oak was counting on me to head to Lavender Town. So the next day, I biked over to Cerulean City. I left a small food offering for Nibbles as I passed Mount Moon, but I’ll never know if he found it. I really missed that guy. Beyond Cerulean City was the rocky path up to the Rock Tunnel. I didn’t see any wild Pokémon as I quickly pedaled through, but I would be set upon by non-stop Zubats as soon as I set foot inside the pitch black caverns of Rock Tunnel.

Now, I need to get this off my chest. I hate Rock Tunnel. This very moment of this very day all these years later, I still absolutely hate it. I hate that I was in Kanto at a time it was nearly mandatory to pass through to get to Lavender Town - thanks to the Saffron City lockdown and a couple of tremendously frustrating Snorlax. Like Mount Moon, the Rock Tunnel is absolutely infested with Zubat. I love all Pokémon, but my tremendously bad experiences with trying to desperately train Vesper to be worth using in a battle had left me pretty jaded. I couldn’t even bring myself to catch another Zubat because Vesper was such a disappointment.
I also want to say that the darkness of Rock Tunnel is the worst. Mount Moon had enough light filtering in from outside combined with lights set up by fossil hunters at famous dig sites that there really weren’t many issues finding your way through the twisty tunnels. Rock Tunnel is absolute darkness. Without a Pokémon capable of lighting up like a Christmas tree, you can’t see your hand in front of your face. For such a well traversed passage, much like Mount Moon, I couldn’t understand why someone didn’t think to set up lights along the trail to guide you through this senseless labyrinth of stone.

Which brings me to Hidden Move Flash itself - what a worthless waste of Pokémon talent. No one told me that I wouldn’t be able to remove this obstacle from my Pokémon’s arsenal of abilities. I was a fresh, young trainer and I didn’t know any better. Techniques to delete these hard-wired moves wouldn’t be developed for several years yet and so now my Dustin was going to be stuck with Flash for the rest of his days. Hypnosis and Dream Eater were so powerful a combination that there really wasn’t much of a need for my tried and true method of lowering accuracy - something Flash actually did better than Kiwi ever could with all his sand attacks. As long as a Pokémon could be hypnotized, Dustin would prevail regardless of their accuracy. And as a result of his tremendous successes, Dustin evolved into a Hypno on our journey through Rock Cave.
I guess all those Zubat were good for something after all.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.




Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto) & Vesper (Zubat)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

The Team Surges Forward

My second morning in Vermilion City was a bit more somber than that first day trying to get aboard the S.S. Anne. I took Douglas out to Diglett’s Cave and said farewell to him. I had high hopes for him, but it wasn’t in the cards. I was comforted that I could at least bring him back to his home and release him back to his Diglett friends and family. It was a better send off than poor Nibbles got back on Mount Moon. We had a good run, Douglas. We beat all those trainers aboard the S.S. Anne together. Farewell, friend.

I filled Douglas’s spot on my team with Royal, the Magikarp I caught down at the Vermilion docks. I decided to take him with me to train in the Vermilion City Gym. I know what you’re thinking! Fox, are you crazy? Why would you train the weakest of all possible water-type Pokémon in a gym dedicated to the raising and training of electric-type Pokémon? It was a calculated risk. Basically, Arnold put everything to sleep. Then Royal would come in and flop around aimlessly for a minute. Then someone else would swoop in and clean up. The only time I didn’t mess around with Royal was when face-to-face with Lt. Surge himself. That was no time for training the weak, but a time to challenge the strong.
Arnold was proving to be my MVP since we met and the Vermilion Gym was no different. The same technique we used against Misty and every other decent challenge proved no less effective against Lt. Surge. His Voltorb fell sound asleep and was chopped down by Arnold’s new “Cut” technique in  three simple slashes. Lt. Surge’s Pikachu resisted the sleep powder at first, but eventually fell into a deep slumber and was cut down. Raichu was the final obstacle between my team and a shiny new badge. Arnold put him to sleep, but he was awake within an instant. Raichu was fast. He hit hard, but the second time Arnold lulled him to sleep would be his last time in our battle. It took a considerable amount of cutting, but Arnold soundly defeated Lt. Surge without any assistance from the rest of the team.

As I emerged victorious from the Vermilion City Gym, it was just after lunch and I was hungry. I headed into town to find some food, but stopped dead in my tracks when I saw Reginald across the street. I owed him a great deal of thanks for getting me aboard the S.S. Anne yesterday, but I wasn’t sure I could listen to another minute of him talk about Rapidash. I really hoped he didn’t see me, but no such luck. He came rushing across the street within moments.
“There you are, old sport!” he shouted as he slapped a hand across my back. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you! You were the talk of the town last night! I can’t believe it. You know, I told everyone that I sponsored you aboard and helped you get into the tournament! I’ve been receiving people at the Fan Club all day long thanks to you! We’ve never had this much exposure! I really owe you a great service, old sport.”
“I thought there was another trainer who did better,” I asked. Chairman Reginald had his arm around me and was now leading me down the street.
“Of course! Of course! There will always be another trainer who does things better or has a stronger team than you. That’s just the way of the Pokémon world, old sport, but let’s not undersell what you did! You only lost one point! It was incredible. Even against that Wolf chap? Everyone had their sights on him and you came out hard to starboard and took him down - sponsored by none other than the Pokémon Fan Club!”
“Yes, I suppose that’s all true,” I offered mildly. I was wondering where he was taking me and if they had food there. We stopped a few blocks away from the Pokémon Center in front of a small building with a discreet little sign claiming to be the Pokémon Fan Club HQ. There was a small crowd gathered outside and each of their faces lit up to see me coming down the street with Reginald.

Official Ponyta & Rapidash Art!

“Now look, I know it isn’t much, but I’d like to offer you a little something for the fantastic advertising you did for the club yesterday. All these people heard we were friends and wanted to meet you, so I have a bit of a proposition! You hang out at the Fan Club for little bit, shake some hands, sign some autographs, show off your badges - OH! You gave Lt. Surge the old lights out,  today? Congratulations. These folks will love it. Anyway, after all that, I’ll hand over my bicycle in exchange. It’s quite sturdy, I assure you, but - you see - I simply don’t have a need for it anymore. Now that my beautiful Rapidash has stopped burning me when I try to touch him, we’ll be galloping through the countryside in no time! Oh, I can’t wait for you to meet my Rapidash.”
So I shook hands. I smiled. I endorsed the Pokémon Fan Club. I listened to at least thirty different stories about Rapidash down to the most meticulous detail. Then when I thought I couldn’t take a minute more, the crowd at the Fan Club HQ dispersed and Reginald saw everyone off. He showed me some pictures of Rapidash that he had in his wallet, then handed me the key to his bike lock. I was exhausted and starving, but I had a new way to cruise around the Kanto region. Was it worth it? Well, I felt a bit like a celebrity in Vermilion City, so yeah - it was worth it. I fell asleep that night smiling.

On my third day in Vermilion City, I ventured out to Route 11 to begin training Royal earnestly. Kiwi had done a lot of great work for me, but I sent him over to Bill’s Storage and brought out Shakespear to keep him up to speed. My plan was to have Lucky put wild Pokémon to sleep and then let Royal flop around while it was safe to do so. Then Shakespear would come in and clean up. Everyone would get some decent training in. As I was riding through the tall grass, I spotted something rare and special. For the first time in a long time it wasn’t a Pidgey or a Rattata. I spotted a Drowzee. He would be a formidable addition to my small team.
Royal had developed a newly awakened knack for tackling his opponents as opposed to flopping around aimlessly, and he did exactly what I needed him to do. Lucky managed to put Drowzee to sleep before he could do the same to my entire team. Royal weakened him significantly without causing him to faint and within a few minutes, Dustin was destined to be my new rising star. There was a huge sigh of relief when that Poké Ball snapped shut on the Drowsee and Dustin was now my newest friend. I would happily - eagerly! - bench Vesper for Dustin because Vesper hadn’t helped me in any fight ever, honestly. Sorry, Vesper, but it’s true. No amount of training could help make Vesper as formidable as a single member of my new and improved roster. Things were definitely looking up in Kanto, now.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.




Bill's Storage: Kiwi (Pidgeotto) & Vesper (Zubat)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

A Tremendous Chop to the Team

That tournament aboard the S.S. Anne went well into the evening and I remained undefeated. Between matches, I wandered the promenade deck sizing up the competition. The entire ship was buzzing about a rising star trainer aboard the ship. He was competing in a higher bracket than mine, so we wouldn’t face each other here, but I really wanted to see one of his matches. Unfortunately, we never crossed paths but I would be on the lookout for this trainer named Red. It wasn’t terribly surprising when I stumbled into Wolf. I assumed he wouldn’t miss a chance to show off for a crowd of Pokémon enthusiasts. I caught sight of him just as he was soundly defeating an opponent in a few decisive seconds after the match had started. I quickly checked to see which bracket he was in because I relished the idea of soundly defeating him in front of spectators. And as luck would have it, the next time I trounced Wolf would be in front of a live audience.
When our numbers were finally called, Wolf was calm and collected as he stood across from me. We both had the confidence of a trainer who hadn’t lost a single point yet. We exchanged casual, semi-friendly greetings and then chose our first Pokémon to battle. I opened with Douglas and he opened with his Pidgeotto. It was a predictable move. My tiny, ground-type Pokémon was at a disadvantage, but Douglas needed the training and I was over-confident. I let Douglas intimidate his opponent with fierce growls, but as soon as Pidgeotto landed a small hit, I withdrew Douglas and tossed out my own Pidgeotto, Kiwi.
“We’ve done this dance before,” Wolf said across the arena.
“How did that work out for you?” I said with a sneer. Kiwi began kicking up dust and dirt. It was our traditional opening move, but it was much harder to pull off on a freshly swabbed deck. As Kiwi continued to harass the accuracy of his opponent, he took quite a few hits from Wolf’s Pidgeotto. Restorative items were not prohibited in the tournament, so a Super Potion ensured Kiwi would be able to stay in the fight. Wolf looked annoyed, but he made no objection. As his Pidgeotto continued to flounder and land only the luckiest and lightest of attacks on Kiwi, Kiwi was able to swiftly put an end to Wolf’s Pidgeotto. The crowd cheered.
Wolf tossed out his Raticate and I withdrew Kiwi and replaced him with Lucky who hadn’t seen much action aboard the S.S. Anne. The Raticate was naturally faster and landed some quick attacks on Lucky. When it moved in close, Lucky showered the Raticate with a comforting sleep powder from its wings and it was lulled into a deep sleep. Lucky took a second point from Wolf when he used a psychic assault to knock out the Raticate without ever waking it up. The crowd was slightly less impressed with this boring victory, but Wolf was frowning. That was just as good for my morale as a cheering crowd.

Wolf called out Kadabra next. We were both underwhelmed by Abra’s performance in our last match, so I had no doubt that Wolf had been training him into an impressive Kadabra since we last battled. I didn’t quite know what to expect from this creature, so I went with my current powerhouse, Rascal Jr. A solid hyper fang instantly downed the Kadabra and all my worries instantly disappeared. The crowd went wild at this turn of events as Kadabra was apparently the star member of Wolf’s team today.
I knew what was next and I knew how to handle it. I knew the crowd was more excited by tremendously powerful, fast-paced biting Raticates, but I was here to win. Wolf tossed out a Pokéball that released his Wartortle into the arena. I withdrew Rascal Jr. and brought out Arnold. He took a solid headbutt from the Wartortle, but managed to burst a puff of sleep spores into its face.  Then Arnold proceeded to absorb Wartortle’s energy, replenishing its own, until Wartortle was forced to submit.
Wolf actually looked impressed. “Well, I made it this far undefeated. I thought I had a chance this time. I guess you’re still one step ahead of me,” he said casually. He crossed the arena and extended a hand toward me. I felt a sneer crawl across my face as I took his hand and shook it in front of the cheering crowd. “You’re still too serious, man,” he laughed, cocking his head at me. “But I guess your seriousness is paying off. Until next time, Fox.” Wolf waved one last time to the crowd overhead and then disappeared into the crowd around us.

After my very public victory over Wolf, I felt like I was living in a dream. Since knocking him down a few pegs, I was leading the tournament at our amateur level. It felt incredible. I battled well into the night and maintained my undefeated status. The talk of Red faded away and now there was a buzz around the young out-of-towner named Fox! Basking in these successes, I felt a deeper connection to the world of Pokémon training and competitive battling. The pride I felt I shared with my Pokémon and in return they fought harder for me.

Unfortunately, this euphoria was not going to last the night. My final match aboard the S.S. Anne was against a member of the crew. He was just a few points behind me, meaning he’d only let two of his team faint throughout the day. I knew the risks using Douglas against a sailor, but so far Douglas had grown considerably stronger and faster with our in-and-out techniques to get potshots on our opponents. This time, however, the sailor opened with a Machop. This small fighting-type Pokémon was not the typical water-type that sailors usually carried around. It should have been no problem for Douglas to get in a quick hit and then rest, but Machop was not fooling around. A critical Karate Chop came down on Douglas’s head and Douglas was completely done.
As good as I had been feeling all day was instantly shattered. I had only known Douglas for 24-hours but he was going to be my ace in the hole against Lt.Surge tomorrow. I’d been meticulously training him and keeping him going all day and now in the final showdown it was all over, all for nothing. It felt like that critical chop went straight to my heart. Kiwi easily took care of the rest of the sailor’s Pokémon - and I went on to win this level of the tournament. I graciously accepted access to the Hidden Machine which taught Arnold how to slice through excessive overgrowth, but inside I was deeply wounded that I had failed yet another Pokémon.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.



Bill's Storage: Shakespear (Spearow) & Royal (Magikarp)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)

All Aboard the S.S. Anne!

My first morning in Vermilion City, I found myself down at the docks pushing my way through the crowds. Vermilion Port was easily the busiest place I’d ever been in my life up to that point. The sheer number of ships and trucks moving goods in and out of the Kanto region was overwhelming. Even still, the S.S. Anne stood out of the crowd as a majestic ocean liner built for luxurious and excessive lifestyles. It’s glorious, gleaming white hull was a beacon you could see almost anywhere in Vermilion City. I’d had my eye on her since I came into town the night before and I had no trouble finding my way to the pier at which she was docked. Getting on to that pier without a ticket or an invitation to the tournament was a trial all its own. I spent most of the morning looking for a way past security.
The story of how I got aboard the S.S. Anne is a story of chance encounters and dumb luck. The first of which was a man fishing off the end of an unused pier. I was attempting to get a better vantage point of the S.S. Anne at the time, but I was also curious about the old fisherman. I sat with him a moment and he showed me how he supported himself just fishing up Pokémon out of the Vermilion Bay. After spending perhaps half an hour watching and listening to his old fish tales, he offered me one of his old rods that he wasn’t too attached to. I was surprised at his generosity and thanked him graciously. He said the old rod wasn’t great at pulling up any big catches, but it was a good starter rod to learn how to handle myself. I was eager to try it out.
There didn’t seem to be any restrictions posted on where you were allowed to fish in Vermilion Port, so I plopped myself down right at the edge of the S.S.Anne pier. I cast my line into the waters and waited. Patiently. For a long time. As I sat there on the edge of the dock, I could hear battles going on the deck above me. I could hear the whoops and cheers of the gathered crowds as local trainers, decadent cruise passengers, and members of the crew fought for fun and money. I knew that as long as there were trainers ready to battle, the registration for this exhibition would be open, but I had to get aboard soon.
There was a tug on the line! A new type of Pokémon battle had begun. It was my strength and determination against that of whatever was on the other end of that line. I struggled for several minutes, worried that this old rod would snap clear in half at the tension on the line. Finally, a red scaled fish Pokémon lurched out of the water and flopped on to the pier. I frowned slightly. It was a Magikarp. I should have known. It was too weak to weaken, so I had Arnold put it to sleep and I carefully tried to get it into a Pokéball. The damn thing casually slapped 4 of my balls into the ocean in its fitful slumber before finally being secured in the 5th ball. I named him Royal, and although he was weak now, I had some big dreams for Royal in the distant future.
I had no idea at the time, but the entire Magikarp episode was being watched by a gentleman nearby. I called out Royal to get a good look at him and size up his potential - which admittedly was limited right now. As I was gazing down at him, a firm hand clasped my shoulder.
“I say, good show, old sport. Good show.”
“Thank you,” I managed to sputter in sudden confusion.
“Oh, I daresay, where are my manners? My name is Reginald and I’m the Chairman of the Pokémon Fan Club. We are headquartered right here in Vermilion City! I have personally collected over 100 Pokémon and I’m very fussy when it comes to Pokémon. I see you are less fussy and I admire your spirit, old sport.” He motioned to Royal. “I could never bother myself with Pokémon like that, but there is something special about you. Come now, join me aboard the S.S. Anne, would you? I can see you are itching to join the tournament. Meanwhile, let me tell you all about my favorite Pokémon, Rapidash. It is the most spectacular and ravishing of all the Pokémon, don’t you agree?”
All I really heard was “join me aboard the S.S. Anne” and I was packing up my belongings as quickly as I could. While Chairman Reginald prattled on and on about Rapidash, my attention was mainly focused on shoving the old rod into my backpack, and making sure my Boulder and Cascade Badges were clearly visible. I wanted everyone to know how far I’d come as we made our way on board the cruise ship.

Once aboard, I listened to Chairmain Reginald talk about Rapidash for what felt like an eternity a polite amount of time considering the great favor he’d just done for me. Eventually I excused myself and I found my way to the registration desk. I showed off my two badges and was put into a mid-level bracket. The tournament was scored on a point system where trainers lost the most points when their Pokémon fainted, and since I was determined not to allow them to faint I was sure to score very highly in the preliminary matches.
All the matches were happening along the promenade deck with spectators above able to look down into most of the arenas that were setup. As I stood along the promenade, it was crowded and difficult to see much, but I managed to push my way toward my first match-up near the aft of the ship. I was going to face off against an older gentlemen who happened to be a passenger aboard the cruise wanting to test his skill against the Kanto trainers. I was nervous, but also excited. He opened with a Growlithe - a Pokémon I’d never seen before. It was obviously a fire-type and so Douglas was the right choice. He needed the battle experience, as well.
Growlithe was faster than I anticipated! He landed a desperate attack on Douglas’s head which nearly incapacitated him. I was shocked. I’d almost lost a Pokémon due to my overconfidence in type match-ups. I switched out Douglas for Rascal Jr. hoping to get the edge in speed. My swap paid off because Rascal Jr. landed a monstrous hyper fang on this Growlithe and knocked it completely out. The crowd went wild at this turn around and I remember how uplifting it made me feel. I couldn’t help from smiling like a fool.
The passenger tossed out another Growlithe who met the same OHKO fate to the power of Rascal Jr. To punctuate just how amazing Rascal’s victory over the Growlithe duo actually was, Rascal Jr. evolved into a Raticate in front of the entire crowd. It generated some hushed awe from the spectators, but I was just ecstatic to see Rascal Jr. grow in power. Rascal and I were victorious in our first match, but there were still several more ahead of us before we’d meet with the captain.

Current Team:
Attacks in Blue are recently learned.

Bill's Storage: Shakespear (Spearow) & Royal (Magikarp)

Old Man Daycare: Charlie (Pidgey)