Chapter Text
I live in Pallet Town with my mom. Pallet Town isn’t a big city at all, we’re more of a farming town. That’s what made my mom decide to stay after she gave birth to me. There are plenty of wild pokemon to eat, lots of land to explore, and there aren’t too many people. Not to mention, Professor Oak’s laboratory offers jobs with pokemon which Mom loves.
“Mary! Get to bed.” Mom orders, on the way to her room. We live in a small house near the border of the forest.
“I’m too excited to sleep!”
My whole body shakes with excitement. Tomorrow I get to choose my starter pokemon! While I’m not much interested in the training part, it’s always nice to have a hunting partner. Besides, training them to be smarter would just be training them to help me catch food, right?
“Lay in bed and count Mareep.” Mom orders. “Don’t make me cut off the electricity again. This is the last time you’ll be able to watch TV before you leave.”
“I’m going, I’m going.” I turn the TV off and curl up in my nest. “Night, Mom.”
“Sleep well.”
The next day, I wake up to the birds chirping and the sun bright on my face. A smile stretches over my face, “It’s time!”
I throw on some clothes and run into the kitchen. Mom's already out with her Vulpix, probably hunting. She might be back by the time I choose my pokemon, maybe not. I take the last chunk of smoked magikarp and stuff it in my mouth. After today, I’ll have to do my own hunting. Mom won’t let me eat any of the food she hunts because I'll need to be independent, to hunt on my own and train a pokemon as my hunting partner. I pack my bag with two spare outfits, a medical kit, and a canteen. Everything else I can find or make on my own. I leave my bag next to the door and snag a handful of pokeberries on my way out.
Professor Oak’s lab is on the opposite side of the town, so I stop by Ash’s house to see if he’s awake and wants to walk with me. Ash and I have been friends since we met in Professor Oak’s training camps. Since then, we’ve stuck together like glue.
I stop by the house and see Ms. Ketchum leaving for work.
“Morning, Ms. Ketchum!” I grin. “Is Ash up yet?”
“Good morning, Mary.” She returns. “No, he was up late last night. I’m sure he’ll wake up soon if you want to wait.”
I shake my head rapidly. “Nah, I don’t wanna be late! I’ll see you later!” I glance up at the sun and take off running. “I’m gonna be late!”
I fight my way through Gary’s crowd of fans and cheerleaders, rush past Gary and Emily, and burst into the lab. “Am I late?”
Professor Oak looks up from the pokemon holders. “Almost, you cut it awfully close, Mary.”
“I stopped to talk to Ms. Ketchum. Are there any pokemon left?” I demand.
Professor Oak reaches into the last holder and pulls out a small Bulbasaur. “He’s the last one left.”
“That’s it?” My hands clench up. How am I supposed to hunt with a plant? Do Bulbasaur even eat meat?
“Next time get here early,” Professor Oak crosses his arms. “It’s small for its age, so make sure it gets plenty of sunlight. It’ll get most of its nutrients from the seed on its back, but it’ll need to eat berries and plants every couple of days. The seed will grow as it does and when the bulbasaur evolves.”
I accept the Bulbasaur and hold it. “Hello, I’m Mary.”
“Bulba!”
It seems happy enough. “I’m going to teach you how to hunt with me,” I tell it. “Even though you don’t eat meat, I promise I won’t eat you or use you as bait. Are you male?”
“Saur!” He nods happily.
“Great!” I smile at him. “I’ll name you Sam.”
“You’re already on the right start.” Professor Oak nods approvingly. “These are your pokedex and you get six pokeballs.” He gives me the pokedex and six balls. “I suppose Ash won’t be coming today, so I’ll walk you out.”
I hold Sam under my arm and follow Professor Oak to the entrance where I see Gary taunting Ash. Instead of sticking around, I head back home to get my pack and say bye to Mom. With any luck, I’ll see Ash on the road later.
“Come on, Sam,” I set him down, away from the crowd. “You need to build up your endurance, alright? I can’t carry you all the time, being a runt is no excuse.”
“Bulba...” Sam mopes.
I eye him. “I’ll carry you when you get tired, but not before. Think of it like training! I’ll train you to get stronger and we’ll hunt together!”
“Saur.”
“You don’t have to eat the meat, I will. Later, I’ll catch a pokemon who eats meat and they can eat it with me. We can still forage to find plants and berries, though. I eat them too. I’ll make sure you get lots of sunlight too, so I won’t put you in your pokeball unless I have to.”
“Saur!”
“That’s the spirit! Let’s start off at a run!” I take off east, in the direction of home. Maybe Mom and Vulpix will be back.
We make it back home in record time. I skid to a halt just before hitting the door and spin to face Sam. Sam is on the ground, his legs twitching.
“Eh! Sam, are you okay?” I pick him up scanning for injuries.
“You went too fast.” Mom says from the doorway.
“It was a light run.” I argue.
“When I started training you, I didn’t start with sprints, did I?” Her brow went up.
“Oh...I’m sorry, Sam!” I hug him tight to my chest. “I’ll make it up to you! I’ll carry you to the forest and when you’re better we can find some tasty berries.”
“Bulba.” He agrees flatly. I guess he wasn’t very impressed with my efforts, but I’ll do better.
“I take it, it's your starter pokemon?” Mom asks, handing me my bag from the doorway. “Vulpix is exploring, so she’ll have to meet him later.”
“Yep!” I hold Sam up to her so she can see him clearly. “His name is Sam and he’s a runt and a plant-eater, so I have to feed him lots of fruits and leaves so he can grow big and strong!”
“An omnivore would have been best, but I suppose an herbivore will do. See if you can catch yourself an omnivore and a carnivore to round out your team.” Mom comments. “Don’t feed him any pokechow, Mary. That stuff is mass processed and can’t be good for any of your pokemon. Only feed him what you trust and what you forage from the forest or make. Got it?”
“Yes, Mom.”
“That goes for you too.” Mom glares at Sam. “Don’t go eating anything that Mary doesn’t improve. You’ll make yourself sick.”
“Saur!”
Mom hands me my pack. “Ms. Ketchum is planning a farewell at the entrance of the lab. Happy hunting, I expect you to visit in at least two years.”
“Happy hunting!” I put on my backpack and jog back to the entrance.
I arrive just in time to see Ash and the crowd around him get electrocuted.
“How’d you get a Pikachu?” I ask him as strat down the road.
“I was too late and he’s the only one left!” Ash yells after he’s through tying the Pikachu up and pulling on a pair of rubber gloves.
“I’m glad I got Sam.” I show him my sleeping Bulbasaur. “I get the feeling he’ll be much easier to train to hunt than Pikachu. Even though he’s an herbivore.”
“I’m not training Pikachu to hunt, Mary!” Fires blazes in his eyes. “We’re going to compete and win every battle, and catch every pokemon there is!”
I’m not sure why competing in battles is better than hunting, but oh well. “If you say so.” I shrug.
Meanwhile, Pikachu mutters what I assume are insults, until Ash finally gets annoyed. I would have eaten Pikachu by now, or at least knocked him out.
“Are you going to act like this the whole time?” Ash demands.
“Pi.”
“Is it because you don’t like me?” I don’t need Pikachu’s response to know that the answer is yes.
“Well, then you should tell me why.”
I stop paying attention to them and wake Sam up. “Alright, Sam, it’s time for your first lesson.”
“Saur!” He shouts.
“No!” I scold him. “We need to be quiet so the prey isn’t scared off.” I put him on my shoulder and pointed at the brown bird pokemon hopping near us. “That’s a Pidgey. They mostly hide, but when catching them you have to bind their wings otherwise you get blown away.”
“Bulba.” Sam nods. I'm glad he’s taking his first lesson seriously.
“They don’t always fly in a flock, but usually when there’s one there are more. Most prey animals and birds stay close to others because groups are stronger than just one.” I notice Ash getting ready to capture the Pidgee. “Now watch Ash.” The pokeball captures the Pidgey, but the Pidgey’s strength allows it to break free and run. “Before capturing a pokemon in a pokeball, the pokemon needs to be weak. That’s what you’ll do, Sam. I’ll teach you what you need to know. We’ll start with Growl, then move on to Tackle and Vine Whip. After you learn Vine Whip, you should be able to hunt a Pidgey all on your own! When you get stronger, we’ll work on some poison attacks too!”
“Saur!” Excitement gleams in his eyes.
“Now watch me.” I set Sam down on a rock, high enough that he should be able to see me through the grass.
I find another Pidgey and crawl through the grass, keeping slow and steady and using the bushes as cover, until I’m within lunging distance. I watch the gathering, taking note of the Pidgey that are watching me, the Pidgey that are distracted, and the size of each bird. Then, I lunge. The Pidgey tweet and rise into the sky, creating a big sand cloud, but I caught the Pidgey I was after. When the sandstorm died away, I went back to Sam with the Pidgey still alive in my hands
“Did you see that, Sam?” I ask.
“Bulba!”
“Great! That’s what you'll learn how to do and you’ll be even better than me because you already blend in!”
“Bulba!”
“Now after you catch one,” I turn back to the struggling Pidgey. “You need to keep the wings pinned to its body and with the other hand just grab its head and twist.” I demonstrate using the Pidgey.
“Saur?”
“If you do it right, it doesn’t hurt at all.” I reassure Sam. “But now, I’ve got lunch and maybe dinner!”
“Bulba!”
I lead us back to Ash just in time to see him attack a Spearow.
“Ash, no!” The Spearow launches itself at Ash, grazing him with its wings.
“Unlike Pidgey, Spearow has a terrible attitude. It will sometimes attack other pokemon and humans.” Ash’s pokedex announces.
Proving the pokedex right, after the Spearow tires of swiping at Ash, it heads right for Pikachu.
“Hey!” Ash waves his bag around. “Leave Pikachu alone! He didn’t throw the rock!”
“Wild pokemon tend to be jealous of human trained pokemon.” Pokedex chimes.
The Spearow knocks Pikachu until Pikachu is barely holding on to the branch.
“Chuu!” Pikachu uses Thundershock to take down the Spearow.
“You got it!” Ash cheers.
“Great job!” I tell Pikachu. “That’s definitely enough for dinner.” I eye the charred bird.
My words were enough to frighten the Spearow into calling for help. Dozens of Spearow flew into the sky, forming a cloud of Spearow.
“You think we should run?” He looks at me, Pikachu takes off.
I glance at the rapidly advancing cloud and snatch Sam into my arms. “Yeah!” And I run after Pikachu.
We sprint down the path with the cloud of Spearow getting closer and closer.
“Don’t run ahead, Pikachu!” Ash pants. “I’ll protect you!” Ash’s words only make Pikachu run faster. I don’t think Pikachu wants to be helped.
“Don’t ever do that, Sam.” I tell the Bulbasaur clutched protectively in my arms. “If there’s trouble and I’m there, I’ll grab you and run. Otherwise, hide and I’ll find you.”
“Saur!”
The Spearows take advantage of Pikachu’s distance from us and attack him, raking their talons across his back.
“Leave him alone!” Ash lunges at Pikachu. He beats them off, then keeps running.
“We need cover!” I shout, ducking a couple of low-flying Spearow. “Trees or long grass, or something!”
“This way!” Ash grabs my arm and pulls me towards a cluster of rocks.
As a hunter, I’m good at a steady jog or a run, but I’m not meant to be sprinting. Hunters don’t typically run from their prey! I put all my energy into reaching the rocks before the cloud reaches us.
As we get closer to the rocks, the sound of rushing water gets louder and louder. “That’s a cliff!” I shriek. If the cloud hadn’t been so close, I would have stopped there, as it was more and more of them were catching up.
“Do you trust me?” He looks at me. His eyes pierce me, holding as much authority as Mom during a hunt. So I nod.
He takes my wrist and we jump.
We’re immediately sucked into the waterfall. Cold water rushes over me, I tighten my grip on Sam, and duck my head closer to his pod. I swear a couple of Magicarp hit me on the way down, but I refuse to open my eyes to check. It’s only Ash’s grip on my arm that keeps us together when we finally hit the river. It’s too early in spring to enjoy the cold temperature of the water, but breaking through to the surface, the air is sweeter than it ever was in summer. I drag us to the shore and layout on the sand for a bit, letting Sam free before I roll in the sand to dry off a bit.
“We’ve only been traveling for an hour, Ash, and already we’ve been attacked!” I growl.
“You’re the one who talked about eating it!” He argues.
“But I’m not the one who attacked it!” I glare. “I know better!” Though I probably should have kept my greedy mouth shut.
“Are you alright?” There’s a red-haired girl crouched in front of Ash.
“I’m okay.” Ash looks at her. “Thanks for asking.”
“Not you!” The girl looks close to slapping him. “Your pokemon! It’s passed out! You need to get it to a Pokemon Center right away!”
I glance over at Pikachu, laying limp in Ash’s arms. He doesn’t look great. I can’t see any electricity coming from his cheeks and his yellow is closer to a lemon than his usual golden color. I look over to Sam to compare them. Unlike Pikachu, Sam is in much better shape. He’s resting on the sandbank shivering a bit from the water, but not weakened like Pikachu. The difference between their pokemon types is clear. As an electric-type, Pikachu is very weak in the water while for Sam, primarily a grass-type pokemon until he evolves, water doesn’t affect him very much.
“Which way is the Pokemon Center?” He leaps to his feet.
“That way.” The girl is shocked by the speed of his recovery, but that’s just the way Ash is built. She points in the direction of the forest.
“Saur!” Sam cries out, looking at the sky. I follow his gaze and see that the Spearow cloud is coming closer. I thought they had given up!
“Ash, the Spearows are back!” I warn.
“They’ve caught up!” He runs to the forest, climbing up the rocks. I run after him with the girl on my heels and Sam back in my arms, but we both stop when we see him get on the bike, and put Pikachu in the basket.
“That’s my bike!” The girl screeches, sounding just like the Spearow chasing us.
“I’m just borrowing it!” Ash shouts, peddling in the direction of the Pokemon Center.
I can hear the calls of the Spearows getting louder. “Forget the bike!” I grab the girl’s arm and pull her into the cover of a bush. “They’re almost here.”
We wait until the Spearow cloud passes over before sighing in relief.
The girl climbs out of the bush. “Hey! You’re brother just stole my bike!”
After making sure Sam is alright and releasing him, I turn back to the girl. “He isn’t my brother, he’s my friend. What does that have to do with me?”
“That’s my bike! You’re coming with me to get it.” She demands.
“If you can’t protect your bike, it isn’t my problem.” Honestly, if she has a problem with Ash, that wasn’t my problem. “I’ll go with you to find Ash, but that’s it.”
“How rude!” She storms into the forest.
We didn’t get far before a storm broke out, forcing us to take cover under a trap she had been using earlier when she was fishing.
“How did you guys fall into the river anyway?” The girl asks me.
“We just got our starter pokemon today and started our journey a few hours ago.”
“And you just happened to get attacked by Spearow?” She looks at me, frowning.
“No,” I admit. “Ash threw a rock at it and I said that I would eat it.” That was probably the turning point. “With all this rain, Pikachu’s going to get worse.” The rain isn’t letting up, but since there isn’t any thunder or lightning I hope the rain won’t last too long.
“I’m sure they’ll be fine.” She nudges my arm. “He can always put Pikachu in his pokeball right?”
“If Pikachu wants to go in. He doesn’t like them.”
“There’s no use worrying about it now.” She tells me. “My name’s Misty, what’s yours?”
“I’m Mary and that’s Sam, my Bulbasaur.”
By the time the storm dies away a few hours later, I’ve already wrung the water from my spare outfits and Sam has woken up from his nap. With nothing to do, Misty’s mood decreased rapidly.
“Let’s go!” She folds up the tarp violently, shoving it into her bag. “We’re getting my bike back.”
“Give me a second,” I tell her. I do a quick full-body stretch. Sitting under a tarp for hours after sprinting and swimming left me with sore aching muscles. If I don’t stretch now, it will feel even worse tomorrow.
“Are you ready to go?” I ask Sam.
“Bulba.” He nods.
“Come on!” Misty starts marching down the forest path.
“I bet they caught up to him eventually.” I comment. The area has plenty of trees, but the path is open and clear. “After following us off a cliff and downstream, they couldn’t have given up due to the storm.”
“I’m not giving up either!” Misty scowls. “I’ll find my bike if it's the last thing I do.” She’s obsessed with that bike.
About halfway through the forest, we found the bike or the charred skeleton of it.
“My bike!” Misty knelt by the remains, having enough sense not to attempt to pick it up. “What happened to you?”
“Look around, Sam. This can be our second lesson, always be aware of your surroundings. You see all the scorch marks on the ground and the burns on the trees around us?”
“Bulba!”
“That’s all from Pikachu’s Thunder Shock. You see the feathers in the mud and the scratches on the rocks? They prove that the Spearow cloud caught up to Ash after all.”
“Saur!”
“I’m going to kill him!” Misty tries to pick the bike up, but it snaps in two. “Here.” She gives me half. “You carry this one and I’ll take the other.”
We reach Viridian City within thirty minutes and we arrive just in time to catch the smog from an Officer Jenny’s police bike. The close call made Misty’s mood even worse.
“We’re going after them!” She prepares to run after the car, but I grab her.
“They’re going by car, you aren’t as fast as a car.” I scowl at her. “Hire a taxi to take you.”
“What about you?” She demands.
In response, I point to the setting sun and pull the Pidgey carcass from my bag. “I’m going to eat. It’s almost night time and the only thing I’ve eaten today is breakfast! I’ll meet you at the Pokemon Center afterward.” Besides that, I’m not using my money unless I have to.
I walk with her to the transportation building before I head back to the forest with Sam.
We settle on a slightly damp log just off the path.
“Sam, you stay here and guard the log, okay?”
“Saur!” He agrees.
“I’m going to go find some dry wood for a fire. If you see any people hide, but if there’s another pokemon you can try Growl.”
“Bulba!”
With Sam settled, I go deeper off the path for wood. It just rained, so the sticks on the ground are too wet to light a fire with, but if I can’t find dry wood, I can use them to smoke the Pidgey. Smoked bird was better than no bird after all. A bit deeper in, I find a tree with a couple of dead branches that were protected from the rain by the thick leaves of the trees around it.
“Perfect!”
I climb the tree and cling to the trunk, making my way to the first dead branch. It’s the lowest branch on the tree, sheltered by the others, so it’s dry. I ram my foot into the branch until it falls off, then I go down after it. I grab a couple of stones, then I carry everything back to Sam.
“Bulba!” Sam greets me, huddling as close to the log as possible. I don’t blame him though, it’s still early spring and the nights are chilly.
I dig in the mud until the ground is semi-dry, then I place the stones in a circle around the pit.
“Watch, Sam. This is how you start a fire.” I place the twigs in a tent formation and strike two rocks until a spark catches and a small fire forms. “After it’s built for a while, add a bigger log.”
“Bulba!”
Then, I pluck and gut the Pidgey. I should have gutted it earlier, but I was a bit busy. Leaving the feathers on, though, helps keep the meat fresh. I put a stick through the Pidgey and leave it to roast for a while.
“Are you going to be alright without food?” I ask Sam. Professor Oak said that the bulb and the Sun provide most of his food, but he’s still a runt. Sam needs the extra help.
“Bulba.” He’s determined that he’ll be fine.
“I’ll take you foraging tomorrow.” I promise him.
It’s too wet to lay my spares out to dry on the surrounding logs, but I get close to the fire to warm myself up and to help the clothes I’m wearing dry out. The Pidgey cooks quickly and finishes sooner than I expected. I eat half and save the rest for Ash, who knows if he managed to eat while on the way to the Pokemon Center. Does the Pokemon Center offer food for humans?
We’re too far away from the river to get fresh water to put the fire out and I refuse to use the water in my cantine, so I scoop mud over the fire until it’s gone out.
“Time to go, Sam.” I stand up. “I’ll carry you, because I’m going to go fast and you’ve done a lot today, but eventually you’ll be able to make it on your own.”
“Bulba!”
It’s easy to follow the road to the Pokemon Center. At a brisk jog, I get there just after nightfall.
“Oh, hello there!” Nurse Joy greets. “Are you coming for a check-up?”
“No,” I shake my head. “I’m here to meet my friend, Ash Ketchum? A girl named Misty should be here too?”
She nods, “That’s right. They’re in the waiting room.”
I barely say thanks, before following the signs to the waiting room.
“Mary!” Ash cries when I burst through the doors. “Pikachu’s going to be alright! He just needs to stay in the recovery room for the night!”
“That’s good. I cooked the Pidgey if you want some.” I offer.
Before he can reply, the announcements come on. Your attention please! An aircraft belonging to a gang of pokemon thieves. If you possess a pokemon, be extremely cautious!
Of course, the first place attacked is the Pokemon Center. The skylights break and two pokeballs fall, releasing an Ekans and a Koffing.
“Who are they?” I demand, pointing to the two figures emerging from the smoke.
“Allow us to introduce ourselves, little girl.” A male voice purrs.
“To protect the world from devastation...”
“To reunite all peoples within our nation...”
“To denounce the evils of truth and love...”
“To extend our reach to the stars and above...”
“Jessie!”
“James!”
“Team Rocket! Blasts off at the speed of light!”
“Surrender now, or prepare to fight!” The smoke clears enough to see that the man is holding a rose and they have a Meowth with them as well.
“That’s right!” The Meowth sneers.
“They can speak?” I stare.
“What are they talking about?” Ash asks me.
I give him a sharp look. “They’re pokemon thieves! What do you think?”
“You’re not getting Pikachu!” Ash shouts, clutching the railings of Pikachu’s hospital bed.
“We’re not after your electric rat.” Jessie sneers.
“We seek only rare and valuable pokemon.” James continues.
“You’re wasting your time!” Nurse Joy declares. “This is a center for weak and injured pokemon.”
“That may be so,” Jessie admits. “But I wouldn’t be surprised to find a few gems among all the junk. Let’s get to it, shall we? Ekans, attack!”
I put Sam on the hospital bed with Pikachu. “Run!” Nurse Joy leads the way with Ash and I pushing the bed and Misty on our heels. We barely manage to get around the corner and dodge Ekans’ attack. Nurse Joy leads us down the hallway to another room and shuts the door after us. Just as the door shuts, the power goes out.
“What do we do?” Misty cries. I look over and she’s shaking. I don’t blame her either, Ekans are strong and the Koffing didn’t look edible.
“They must have cut the power.” Nurse Joys announces. “But Pokemon Centers always have a backup source.” She releases a team of Pikachu from their pokeballs. “Pika power!” The pikachu hop on the treadmill in the middle of the room and start running. Mom and I have something similar as our source of power, we aren’t connected to the main grid. We use a bike and store the energy made for when it’s needed.
The pikachu manage to build enough power for the computer to activate. “I need you three to help me get these pokeballs transported.”
“Right!” We agree.
While we work with a metal arm to put all the pokeballs on the conveyor belt, Nurse Joy tries contacting other Pokemon Centers outside of the city.
“This is the Viridian City Pokemon Center. We have an emergency situation and are transferring pokeballs.”
“This is the Pewter City Pokemon Center,” the other line says. “The transporter is activated and ready to receive pokeballs.”
The transporter only manages to transport a few pokeballs before smoke pours through the cracks in the door frame and the door explodes.
“Koffing!”
“Sam, try Vine Whip!” I snap. The Koffing is a poison type, so Sam won’t be very effective but I need to buy time for the pokeballs to be transferred.
“Saur!” Vines whip out from Sam’s bulb and lash out around Koffing, driving it towards the door.
The pokemon thieves step in. “Koffing use Sludge!” Jessie orders.
Sam dodges but the purple slime hits the transporter instead, causing it to blow up.
“Get those pokeballs!” Nurse Joy cries as pokeballs clatter off the belt.
“Right!” Ash starts piling them in his arms.
“This is war!” Misty regains her confidence. “Don’t hold them, throw ‘em!”
The first pokeball he tries releases a Pidgey that freaks out and runs when the Ekans hisses at it.
“Was that your best shot?” The Meowth sniggers.
“Try this one!” Ash snaps. The pokeball opens and releases...nothing.
“We’re never going to beat them this way!” Misty cries in disbelief.
“Some of the pokeballs are empty.” Nurse Joy says.
“Now you tell us?” I snap. “What are they even here for?”
Ash continues on and throws another that releases a Rattata.
“Finally,” I sigh. “A pokemon that can actually attack something!” Only for the Ekans to scare it off like the Pidgey.
“I’ll do it myself!” Misty declares. “Ash, you take Pikachu and run. Mary and I will take care of the jokers.”
Misty draws her own pokeball, “Goldine, go!” The poor Goldine flops on the floor. As the pokemon thieves stare at the Goldine, I realize that Misty was trying to provide a distraction for Ash and Pikachu to escape.
“Ash, get going!” I hiss.
“Right!” Our distraction is lost as the Ekans and Koffing follow right after Ash.
“Misty, I’m going after Ash! Sam, use Vine Whip, get them out of the way!”
“Suar!” Sam’s vines whip out and herd the pokemon thieves away from the door, giving me enough space to follow Ash.
Along the way, I’m overtaken by a horde of pikachu, but I arrive in time to witness Ekans and Koffing get fried.
“Good job!”
“Do I have to do everything?” The Meowth comes from around the corner with the battered thieves.
“Where’s my Bulbasuar?” I distract them from Ash and Pikachu.
“If I had my way, that thing wouldn’t still be alive!” James sneers. “You should work on your training, we were able to escape.”
“What’s that?” Meowth points behind me.
Ash managed to put Misty’s bike back in order and was using it to give Pikachu more power.
“Uh oh...” All four of us mutter.
“PIKACHU!!!”
I barely dodge away from the main blast as Pikachu sends out a tower of electricity. Just as quickly as it began, it ends.
“Are we finished?” I cautiously stand, wary of any stray bolts.
“He destroyed the whole building.” Misty mumbles in shock, handing me Sam.
I glance around, and Misty’s right. Only a third of the building, at most, was still standing.
Officer Jenny runs in a minute later and takes our statements. Then, she directs us to a nearby hotel and tells us it’s free for the night. As soon as I touch the bed, I’m out. With Ash and Pikachu to my left, Sam on my right, and Misty in the other bed.