Setting:
•Pokémon Center, Violet City, Johto•
•Late February, The Next Morning•
•Amber (Wolfe Alias) POV•
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The Road South
I woke up bright and early the next morning raring to go. Well really, it wasn't exactly bright since the sun wasn't up yet, but it definitely was early. The center's clock showed it to be just past 4:30 in the morning. I stretched, folded the blanket I borrowed from Nurse Joy, woke the sleeping Chika, who protested a little at first, and walked around a bit to get my blood pumping. I had to be ready for a VERY long walk, after all, if I wanted to get to Azalea Town before nightfall.
Sitting down on my respective sofa again, I glanced over to Gold, who was sleeping soundly, his arm dangling off the cushions. Deciding to plot the course in my GPS, I took out my pokegear and viewed the Johto map. According to it, the southern exit in Violet City was our best bet to get to Azalea since we couldn't get there via Goldenrod. From there, we'd have to walk about six miles south in Route 32 until we reached the Union Cave. Luckily, the GPS pointed out another Pokémon center along the way, which sounded absolutely great since I was certain there'd be trainers along the route later in the morning.
If I were to be leaving alone, I would have left without eating breakfast and probably would have made it there by noon at the longest. Since I had Gold accompanying me, though, I knew he didn't do too much walking around since he was a new trainer; that'd slow down the pace just a little. I decided that we'd definitely better get some breakfast, too, since Gold would need it to keep up his pace with me.
Interested in this "Union Cave" that appeared on my map, I touched the icon on my pokegear, which brought up some data about it. Apparently, the cave itself was about another five mile journey—if we didn't get lost, that was; but luckily, that's what a GPS was for. It was also said to have two floors in our route: the top floor and an underground floor containing water which led somewhere else, though I didn't check to see where since really my only concern was Azalea.
After the cave, we'd emerge into Route 33, which really was the shortest part of the journey, being half a mile long. From there, we'd have to walk west into Azalea Town. The Slowpoke Well appeared to be on the eastern outskirts of the town, about 500 yards from the town itself.
Looking at the town in the GPS, it looked pretty average: it had a Pokémon center, a simple poke-mart, a few shops, some houses and residential areas, a small school, and most importantly: the gym. The town itself appeared to be a bit smaller than Violet City, which was just fine by me.
After I checked the clock a second time, I figured it was time to wake Gold and get the ball rolling. Getting off my sofa, I walked over to him and shook his shoulder slightly. He groaned in response.
"Hey Gold, wake up. We've got a lot of walking to do today." I urged quietly.
"Huh?" He replied groggily, not opening his eyes.
"Come on! Open your eyes," I replied a little frustrated.
"Ugh. Wolfe? What time is it?" He replied sleepily, cracking open an eye to take in my impatient face.
"It's a little past five," I replied.
"No wonder I'm still so sleepy," he yawned. "Can't we leave when the sun's up?"
I knew that routine all too well. A lot of people did it, and being a morning person, I could never really figure out why. I did it as a kid, too, but then I grew up and got used to waking up at the crack of dawn. I knew that he'd try his best to get in a few extra hours.
"No, we should get going as soon as possible. We've got a REALLY long walk ahead of us. Like, say about 15 or so miles?" l supplied.
"Fifteen miles!?" He bolted upright. "Please tell me you're kidding!"
"It's a rough estimate, but here," I handed him my pokegear. "See for yourself."
"There's no way we can do all that traveling today!" He groaned, sat up, and stretched.
"Well, we have to. I want to get to Azalea Town as soon as possible--even if it means leaving you behind. And I don't think Professor Elm would be too enthused if I left you," I taunted.
I knew it was a pretty mean thing to say, but with Team Rocket's possible operation going down in Azalea, I absolutely had to get there—and preferably before Silver did since he'd just complicate matters to no end.
While my official mission by my boss, Darrius, was to stop Team Rocket in Johto—and if they really were in Azalea Town, you could bet your ass I would be sure to call Darrius after I put an end to their plots—in all actuality, I also had an ulterior motive up my sleeve: protect Silver. No matter how much he had changed—and really, it pissed me off that all those years of me teaching him apparently flew out the window—I still felt that I needed to fulfill my own personal goal in keeping him safe.
Me "dying" protected my parents for the most part, although we did have to flee the region to keep my mom protected since Team Rocket was all about exterminating the whole family, but to my luck, they really did think they killed me. For the time being, at least it gave Silver a reason NOT to join them.
I figured him out well enough that if Team Rocket were to kill me, he would leave them alone at least for a while. He wasn't as rash as I was, so that time I spent in my own special training, it probably gave him ample time for his own plotting. Unfortunately, I did know Silver all too well. He'd go after Team Rocket, all right, but not using any methods I would.
After my training, I was more about stealth while he was more about brute force since that might have been my old tactic, and I guessed he wanted to re-enact the way I handled Team Rocket years ago—that was just a guess, though.
And now, since he was going to Azalea, it only confirmed my suspicions. I was just about certain he'd go there for a little payback. So, if I wanted to succeed in my mission of keeping him AWAY from harm, I had better get my butt to Azalea Town ASAP, like, before Silver found Team Rocket and did something to mess up my own plans, which he was quite oblivious of. And to top it all off, he had a day's worth of traveling on me—not good.
Gold looked at me fully awake, or at least for the most part. "You'd really leave me?" He asked a little hurt. Immediately I wished I had used a different approach, but I knew I couldn't be soft.
"If it came to it, I'd have to, Gold. Orders are orders," I stated the second part quietly, letting him know it wouldn't actually be my decision.
"Oh. I understand. Well, guess we better get a move on, then!" He perked right back up.
"Hold on, tiger! Let's get some breakfast first. We got a lot of walking to do. I don't want you getting tired before we get to the next Pokémon center."
"Oh, right. Breakfast. Uh, Wolfe, not to burst your bubble or anything, but I don't think anyone else is awake yet, much less serving breakfast." He grimaced.
"You'd be surprised, my friend," I brought his attention to my pokegear. That map feature on it really was handy. It located a restaurant that would be serving breakfast right about now. "I'd like to show you the Sprout Café, which opens at 5 am sharp."
He looked at me a bit impressed. "Wow, you sure did your research."
"It's easy when you have the right tools. According to the GPS, it's only a block away, too, so let's get a move on!" I grabbed my bag, placed Chika, who was drowsy, on my shoulder, and headed for the door.
Gold placed the egg, which he had put on the center's table last night, into his bag, zipped it, and followed me. Although it was a little after five, Violet City was already showing signs of life. The sun wasn't up quite yet, but I was certain it'd be up soon. A few people quietly shuffled along the streets, which were lit by the city's old-fashioned lanterns. I glanced over at the gym to see that the lights were already on.
Wow, Falkner is an early riser just like me. Wonder if it's his birds that cause him to wake so early.
After about a five-minute walk, we arrived at the place. It was a medium-sized building with a photo of a Bellsprout next to the café's name. The building was old-fashioned, wooden, with three large glass windowpanes facing outside. I opened the door, which had a bell attached to signify people entering or leaving, and looked around the place.
Scattered about were tables and booths with checkered tablecloths. The place looked pretty empty. The lighting was a bit dim; I guessed to emulate the early morning. In the left hand corner against the back wall of the dining area was the place where I guessed you could order your food. Along the back wall were more tables and three more glass windowpanes, which gave a perfect view of the Sprout Tower.
Of the people eating there, I mostly saw sages from the Sprout Tower, who seemed uninterested in our appearance—probably too focused on other things to really care. I walked to the ordering counter with Gold following in my trail. An elderly lady met us and took our orders, and I paid upfront for mine, Gold paying for his own. The lady told us to have a seat, so we took a seat in a booth facing the Sprout Tower.
From our seat, I could see the sun barely snake over the horizon. Gold put his head in his arms in what I guessed was a small nap; I let it slide. Chika curled up on the booth beside me and fell back asleep, too.
Man, am I the only one awake here?
"Well, well, look who we have here. You sure get up early," a familiar voice caused me to turn my head away from the sunrise and toward the ordering counter. "Sorry to startle you."
It was none other than Falkner.
"Oh hey, yeah. We've got a lot of traveling to do, so I decided to get us up bright and early," I replied casually. He approached the booth; I slid over and gestured for him to sit.
"Ah, I see. Looks like you're the only one really up, though," Falkner sat next to me and eyed Gold sitting across from us, as well as Chika sleeping on my other side.
I grinned. "Yeah, gotta get them used to it, I guess. I'm a morning person, so I'm always up this early. And you?"
"Same here. I learned it from my dad's birds. They'd always wake up at the crack of dawn, ready to fly. I used to fly around with them when I was a kid, so I'd get up just for that. I guess old habits die hard," he laughed.
"Heh, yeah I'd say that. I think it's a good habit, though. What's that saying? Early bed, early rise, makes a person healthy, wealthy, and wise?" I supplied.
"Eh, too true. My dad said that one a lot. So. Big journey, huh? Where you guys headed?" Falkner asked curiously.
"We're planning on getting to Azalea by nightfall. There I'll have my next gym battle." I grinned.
"Oh, cool. The Azalea Gym is pretty interesting. The leader is actually younger than me, too, though he's been a leader far longer. I think it'll be a good match."
"Ah, I see. Yeah, hopefully by the next gym battle, Chika here will be well enough to battle. She was really disappointed that she couldn't battle against you." I smiled at the sleeping Chikorita by my side.
"Hm, well if you do use your Chikorita, just be sure to watch out. The next gym won't be too easy for a grass-type." Falkner warned.
"Oh?"
"As his name implies, Bugsy uses Bug-type Pokémon."
"Oh, I see. Hm, a bug-type gym leader. That's pretty interesting." I commented. That was a first for me.
"I know, huh? I mean, bird users, yeah there's plenty of us. Just look at Winona in Hoenn. She's one of my idols; that Swellow of hers is simply amazing. But as far as bug-users go, you don't really see too many achieve higher than Bug-Catcher status, you know?" Falkner agreed.
"Yeah. A bug-user gym leader sounds pretty cool. I used to be really into bugs when I was younger. Although, I do admit I kinda grew out of them. I did hear that one of the Sinnoh Elite Four uses bug-type Pokémon, though." I admitted.
"Oh yeah, true. Aaron. I heard he's really tough. One day I'd like to fight the Johto Elite Four, know what I mean? Lance the dragon master is a really tough trainer. Most of his Pokémon are also fliers, like his Charizard and Dragonite too, so naturally I'm impressed." He grinned.
"Yeah, Lance is pretty amazing. I'm a dragon fan, myself, and I do love fliers. Although, I guess when it comes down to it, my favorite Pokémon type is the fire type."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Actually, I'm raising a Charmander right now. He just hatched yesterday, but he already shows a lot of promise. If he ever evolves into a Charizard, I'd love to fly around on him and get a bird's eye view of Johto." I smiled.
"If it does evolve into a Charizard, how about we have a rematch?" Falkner asked.
"Really?"
"Sure! I was thinking after you defeated me yesterday, I still have so much to learn about flying Pokémon. I'm thinking of going on a journey to learn more about them, and when I get a really strong team of flyers assembled, you can be certain I'll be an even better gym leader."
"Sounds like a plan to me. What about the gym, though? Who will take care of it if you leave?" I asked curiously.
"Oh, don't worry about that. I'd only be leaving on short vacations. First I want to strengthen my fliers already with me. My dad gave me Pidgeotto and Noctowl when he gave me the gym. I grew up around them, but I still need to figure out their own battle strategies. And as for your Pidgeot, he and I need to do some bonding to better understand each other. He really is a powerful Pokémon, so it's in both of our best interests if I learn how to handle him." Falkner nodded.
"Good point. I'm sure you two will be fine. I wouldn't just entrust any trainer with my old partner, but I can tell you two will make an excellent team. I mean, if Espeon wouldn't have used Yawn yesterday, I'm certain I would have lost in the first place." I admitted.
"True. Who knows what would have happened. So, how about it? Let's both become stronger and have a rematch. And next time, we'll make it a full six-on-six battle, what do you say?"
"Sounds like you have a deal to me, Falkner." I agreed.
He smiled. "Cool."
Just then a waitress brought me and Gold our breakfast. Gold, smelling the food, woke up and looked at Falkner, startled.
"Hey, I guess I'll go get my own booth and let you two eat in peace…" Falkner trailed off. I could tell he felt a little uncomfortable about the disoriented way Gold was staring at him.
"Oh, no worries, you can sit and eat with us if you'd like. Right, Gold?" I grinned at Gold.
"Uh, sure," Gold replied, taking his eyes off Falkner and moving on to his plate. He began digging in immediately.
Chika, who also smelled the food, sat on my lap and snuck a bite off my plate.
"Hey! You could ask first, you know," I scolded as she gulped down a bite of egg. I had to grin, since really, she was too cute to stay mad at for long.
Falkner laughed. "So you're Chika, huh?" He addressed my Pokémon, who walked over to him. She sniffed him before rubbing her leaf against his chest, which released a pleasant aroma.
"Hey, Chika. Falkner said he's going to have a rematch with us sometime. Looks like you'll get your shot to battle him when we're both stronger. Sound good, buddy?" I asked.
"Chika!" Replied Chika happily with a nod. A waitress returned with a bowl of food for her, and Chika immediately began chowing down.
I began to eat as well, but slowly since I didn't want to be rude to Falkner who was still waiting on his food.
"So, you guys are planning on taking on Route 32, Union Cave, and Route 33 in one day, huh? Sounds pretty tenacious for someone who's walking," Falkner continued.
"Wait, we're doing ALL of that today?!" Gold asked shocked with a mouth full of food.
I glared at him, which forced him to swallow. "Yeah, that's how we'll get to Azalea." I then addressed Falkner, "We tried going through Goldenrod yesterday, but it was blocked by a swarm of Sudowoodo. You see, we need to get Gold an Everstone since his Cyndaquil, Hino, is refusing to evolve, but every time he is out of his pokeball, he has to put up a struggle which takes all the strength out of him."
"Hm, that's not good. I wish you guys the best of luck with that. I remember when my father's Hoothoot evolved into Noctowl; man, did he have problems with it for a while. Evolution certainly seems like a tricky business at times."
"Yeah, it can change a Pokémon's disposition. It's no wonder Hino is scared of evolving." I replied.
"I don't think neither Hino nor I are ready for him to evolve yet, either," Gold added.
A waitress returned to pick up Gold's plate as well as deliver Falkner's breakfast. After that, we all sat in silence for some time: Falkner, Chika, and I still finishing off our own breakfasts. Finally, when we were all finished, I put a tip on the table from the three of us, and we all stood up.
"Well, I guess this is where we part ways. I wish you both luck in your journeys, Wolfe and Gold." Falkner smiled warmly.
"Thanks Falkner. Good luck to you, too." I smiled back.
"Thanks! Drop by Violet sometime; you know where the gym is. I'll be there getting stronger for our rematch, Wolfe." He grinned determinedly.
"Will do, and next time, neither of us will be relying on a sleeping Pokémon to determine the outcome!" It felt nice making friends with a gym leader, but then again, after giving him Pigeon, it was no wonder we became friends.
"Sure. Farewell, you guys! Have fun!" Falkner walked out the door in front of us, let his Noctowl out, hopped on its back, and flew off into the cool morning. The sun was out, and more people started crowding the street.
"Well, I guess we'd better get a move on if we gotta walk all that way," Gold replied a little uneasily.
"Good idea. Don't worry about the walking, Gold. You won't even realize how far we're traveling. I heard Route 32 has a great lakeside view," I added.
"Well, whatever, let's get going." He sighed.
Gold's attitude threw me a bit off, but we set off anyway. Gold let Zuku out, who perched on his shoulder. Perched on my own shoulder was Chika. We left Violet City behind us as we walked south.
Along the way, I spotted an Apricorn tree and picked a few since I read on the GPS that the custom pokeball maker, Kurt, was supposed to live in Azalea Town. We continued walking until a man stopped us. "May I see your Violet City badge please?"
"Um, okay," I fished out my badge case and showed the guy the badge.
"Okay, you may pass. Sorry to have stopped you; its obvious you have a strong Pokémon from the training you did in Violet City. And since you have a grass type, I'd like to give you this Miracle Seed; it strengthens grass-type moves." The guy handed me a necklace with a green seed attached. After thanking him, I placed it on Chika, whom it fit well.
"Looking good. You may continue. Have a safe trip," the guy waved us passed, and without any more words, Gold and I continued walking.
Finally, the grass began getting taller and thicker, and we had to navigate carefully as to not step on any Pokémon hiding in it. We passed a few rocky ledges, and after a couple hours of leisure walking, we made it to a clearing with a vast expanse of water.
"So, that must be the lake," Gold observed.
"Oh look! A bridge!" I was about as enthused as a kid finding a coin on the ground. "Let's take it. It'll be a nice change of scenery!" I rushed forward excitedly.
"Okay, sure." Gold replied a little unenthused as he walked to catch up.
What's his problem?
We continued till we got to the bridge, where we started walking. The bridge looked to be a few miles long and made of sturdy wood; various fishermen were scattered about it, working on getting a day's catch.
After another hour or so of walking and me observing Pokémon swimming passed in the clear water below, a man's voice interrupted my own train of thought. "Well, well, looks like we have two trainers coming down our bridge here."
The voice belonged to a fisherman. He looked young, wore a life jacket and baseball cap, and toted a Pokémon fishing pole. "Hey, Ralph, what do you say we have a battle with these youngsters?"
Another fisherman, who was dressed in similar attire but wore a fishing hat and looked to be in his mid-thirties, walked up to him and replied, "Hm, I guess. If they're up to it. Hey kids, wanna have a double battle with my friend Henry and me? The fish aren't biting today, but I'm raring to go in a battle."
I turned to Gold, who looked startled. "So? Wanna team up?"
"Uh, I guess…" He said uneasily.
"Cool then! Let's go!" I grinned excitedly.
"Hahah, I like your spirit, little lady. Uncle Ralph here will teach you kids a thing or two about Pokémon battling. I'm not only an expert angler, but a good battler as well." The older man grinned.
"Oh, be quiet, Ralph. You know I'm better than you at both!" Henry laughed.
"Shut yer yap, Henry! I can win against you any day!" Ralph chuckled.
"Right, that's why you lost that bet the other day in a fishing contest," the other man darted back as he waved a dollar bill in the air.
I stared at Gold, who stared back at me. Finally, I cleared my voice. "Um, hey. You guys. You do want to battle us, right?"
"Of course. Uncle Ralph here will show you how a battle's done. Don't mind Henry there. He's just a little hot headed."
"Hot headed?! You started it!"
"Guys, guys! Please! Can we just battle?" Gold asked.
"Sure kid, let's go." Ralph agreed as he grabbed a ball on his belt.
"My name's Gold—not kid," Gold replied, his face showed that he was determined.
"And while you're at it, my name's Wolfe. Gold and I are about to show you how a real battle's done, right Gold?" I grinned to my friend.
"Sure!" Gold replied enthusiastically.
Now he's starting to sound like himself again… Weird.
"Well, Wolfe and Gold nice words, but let's just see from our actions, shall we? Poliwag, I choose you!" Henry called.
A blue bipedal aquatic Pokémon appeared on the bridge. It was round shaped except for its legs, which were large enough to hold it upright. It had a long tail that was white and had a black line dividing it down the middle from the base. The tail itself was flat: perfect for use as a paddle in the water. The Pokémon's belly was white and had a black spiral pattern on it. It had big pink lips and two large eyes with black irises.
"Poliwag!" Cried the Pokémon in a high-pitched voice.
"Alright, Goldeen, show 'em how it's done!" Ralph replied, sending out a fish into the water.
The fish was a nice size, being about a foot long. It had fancy fins, an orange and white pattern—orange on top and white underneath--and a fancy looking tail. It looked like a goldfish but with a really long, sharp horn attached to the head. It had pink lips with tiny teeth protruding through them.
"Goldeen!" The Pokémon cried from the water.
"Alright, Zuku! Let's do this!" The owl flew off Gold's shoulder and landed onto the bridge.
"Chika!" Chika gave a war cry from my shoulder.
"Not so fast, pal. You still should take it easy; besides, I have someone who needs some battle experience. That okay?" I asked my partner delicately.
"Chik?" She sounded a little downtrodden as her leaf sagged sadly.
"I promise you'll get to battle some other time." I said softly.
"Chikori," she complied. I could tell she was getting tired of not being able to battle, but she listened and was trusting me to keep my word.
"Alright, I know that this defies type advantage, but it's a perfect opportunity; Let's go, Lizardus!"
"Charman!" My Charmander appeared from the pokeball. "Char?" He looked nervously at the water on both sides of the bridge, and more importantly, the water Pokémon he was supposed to be battling.
"Don't worry, Lizardus. I know it's your first battle, but you've got this, okay?" I encouraged.
"Char!" He nodded bravely.
"Well, well, a fire type, huh? This ought to be easy. Poliwag, Bubble!"
"Poli!" The blue Pokémon sprung into action as a foam of bubbles escaped its mouth and was directed straight for Lizardus.
"Lizardus, fight back with Flamethrower!" I called hoping to overpower the bubbles.
"Charr!" A jet stream of flame erupted from the small lizard's mouth, evaporated the bubbles, and directly hit the Poliwag, which cried out in pain.
"Hey, Gold," I turned to him.
"Yeah?"
"You get Goldeen; I'll get Poliwag. That okay?" I asked.
"Sure! Zuku, Peck on Goldeen!" The owl quickly swooped downward at the fish Pokémon.
"Not so fast! Use your Peck, too, Goldeen!" The fish leapt out of the water and struck the bird directly in the abdomen with its horn, causing the Hoothoot to falter and splash into the water.
"Zuku! No!" Gold cried. I could tell he probably was reliving a few days ago when Silver's Totodile knocked Hino into that pond.
"Hoot!!" Replied the startled bird as he tried to stay afloat and flapped his wings wildly.
"Okay, Lizardus, use your Dragon Claw attack!" I called hoping to keep Poliwag distracted so it wouldn't gang up on the floundering bird in the water.
"Char!" He raced toward the Poliwag.
"Not so fast! Water Gun!" Henry called.
"Poli!" A strong spray of water hit Lizardus head-on, knocking him back on the bridge.
"Charr!" Cried my Pokémon. I knew just how much that must have bothered him; fire types HATED water types usually.
"Hang in there! Fight back with Flamethrower!!" I hoped to counter.
Lizardus regained his footing and let loose another powerful Flamethrower, which was an even match for the Water Gun.
Meanwhile…
"Goldeen, use your Horn Attack!" The fish rammed Zuku hard with its horn as the bird tried to swim.
"Zuku! Use the opportunity to get air-borne!" Gold called.
"Hoot!" Just as Gold predicted, the attack sent the bird flying out of the water. Shaking off the water from his wings, Zuku regained altitude.
"Alright! That's it! Now, use Tackle!" The bird charged at the fish again.
"I see how it is. Use Horn Attack out of the water!" Ralph commanded.
"Dodge it!" Zuku pulled off a successful dodge, and the fish plopped back into the water.
"Fine, then! Water Gun, Goldeen!" A spray of water knocked Zuku out of the air and back into the lake again.
Meanwhile, on my side of the battle, Lizardus and Poliwag were still going strong with their respective Flamethrower and Water Gun attacks, though both showed signs of weakening.
"Hang in there, Lizardus!" I encouraged.
"Charr!" Replied my Pokémon, showing obvious signs that he was tired.
"You too, Poliwag!" Henry cheered.
"Poli!" The blue Pokémon looked equally as tired as Lizardus.
"Enough of this! Jump up, Lizardus, and aim a Crunch on it!" Lizardus replied, ending the Flamethrower. Poliwag's Water Gun was still going.
"Aim up, Poliwag!"
"You can do it!" I encouraged.
Lizardus landed on the blue Pokémon as it aimed upward, getting sprayed in the process, but his fangs held—for a split second.
My Pokedex, chimed in from my bag as if somehow it was recording this entire battle: "Poliwag has a very thin skin. It is possible to see the Pokémon's spiral innards right through the skin. Despite its thinness, however, the skin is also very flexible. Even sharp fangs bounce right off it."
I had completely forgotten about that.
"Oh, just great…" I groaned.
The Water Gun knocked Lizardus flying backwards. Luckily, with quick reflexes, I recalled him to his pokeball before he hit the water.
"Hahah! Nice work, Poliwag! Now, let's go ahead and help out Goldeen!" Henry cheered. I had actually lost my round…
"No need for help here, bud. This battle is just about over," Ralph indicated the flailing bird in the water.
"Come on, Zuku! You can do it! Get out of the water!" Gold encouraged.
"Hoot!" The bird flailed tiredly. His tiny wings weren't meant for swimming, after all. What happened next saved us from losing: Zuku's form glowed white as the process of evolution occurred, turning Zuku into a majestic Noctowl.
"Awesome!" Gold replied, smiling once the bird quit glowing. "Alright, Zuku, get out of that water!"
The bird hooted in reply, flapping his large wings to get out of the water and just out of range of another Horn Attack.
"So it evolved, eh? Now this is fun! Still, let's show this kid the ropes, Goldeen!" Ralph replied. "Use Supersonic!"
"Poliwag! Bubble!" Henry chimed in.
Goldeen sent pulsating sound waves in the air directed at Zuku while Poliwag's Bubble, aimed from a different angle, left Gold and Zuku both unsure of where to turn.
"I know! Zuku! Flap your wings really hard!" The bird complied, sending both attacks back to their senders. The Supersonic was all it took for Goldeen to go down. In its confusion, it jumped onto the bridge and started flailing wildly until it tired out.
"No! Goldeen!" Ralph cried as he returned it to its ball.
"Hah, looks like its up to us. Right, Poliwag? Let's use Water Gun!"
"Zuku! Tackle!" The bird swooped out of the way of the jet of water and landed a solid tackle on the tadpole Pokémon, knocking it into the water.
"Water Gun again!" The Pokémon, who had perfect aim of the bird as he was flying away, used Water Gun a second time. Right before it hit Zuku, the water bent around and was returned to the sender, however.
"What's that?!" Gold asked, astonished.
"Looks like Zuku learned Confusion! Go for it, Gold!" I grinned excitedly.
"Mm, alright! Zuku! Confusion on Poliwag! Bring it up to your level!!" Gold commanded enthusiastically.
Zuku swooped back around, his red eyes glowing as the Poliwag began to float in the air, which started to freak it out.
"Poliwag! Water Gun!" Henry called.
"Poli?" The Pokémon looked dazed.
"Awesome, Confusion confused it, too!" I chimed in.
"Now, Peck!" Holding the Poliwag in the air with his psychic powers, Zuku swooped in with a powerful Peck attack—his beak was glowing a brilliant white. He let go of the Confusion right before making contact, so the end result was Poliwag flying backwards through the air and landing with a large splash and Zuku swooping down, landing gracefully on the bridge.
Yards away from the bridge, Poliwag surfaced knocked out, floating on its back.
"Yeah! We did it, Zuku!" Gold ran up to the bird and hugged him, while the bird hooted indignantly in return.
"Well, well, looks like the kid won. Great battle, kids. I guess I'm heading back to fishin'. Whatta you say, Ralphie?" Henry praised.
"It's Ralph. And sure. I've had my share of battling for the day. Great battle, you guys, and congrats on your Pokémon evolving, Gold." Ralph smiled.
"Thanks," Gold replied. The two fishermen then headed back to their fishing equipment, already on to a different conversation.
I stared at Gold, who was admiring his newly evolved Pokémon. "Great battling you did there!" I was pretty impressed. Gold caught Zuku just a few nights ago, and already he was a pretty strong, fully evolved Pokémon.
Chika, in the meantime, was acquainting herself with the newly evolved Zuku, who was hooting with much dignity.
"Thanks, Wolfe! You and Lizardus were pretty good, too. I'm just so happy Zuku evolved!" Gold said happily.
"Heh. I can tell. Well, ready to hit the road again?" I grinned.
"Sure," Gold agreed. We began walking down the bridge again. Luckily other fishermen and women ignored us as we walked.
After some time, Gold spoke up, "You know, that was my first ever real trainer battle, if you don't count Silver. I was pretty nervous, but I guess Zuku and I didn't do too bad."
"Yeah, I gotta say, I'm impressed. That was some good teamwork with Zuku back there." I agreed truthfully.
"I just wish," Gold sighed, "that Hino could be back to normal and battle too. That was my first win, and I like Zuku, but it should've been Hino's win since he's my first Pokémon."
"That's what's been bothering you, huh, Gold?" I asked seriously.
"Yeah… I just think, you know, we're going to Azalea Town, and Hino can't enjoy any of the sights or anything because he's trapped in his ball. It just sucks." He sighed heavily.
"Gold, listen. As soon as I take care of what I have to take care of in Azalea, we're going to Goldenrod to help Hino, okay?" I asked seriously.
"But what about your badge?"
"I can get it later," I grinned. "Hino is more important."
"Well, alright. Thanks, Wolfe." He smiled.
"Don't mention it."
We continued walking until finally we came to the end of the bridge, and to our delight, a Pokémon Center within eyesight. "Race ya to the Center?" Gold asked.
"You're on!"
We both took off, and I was in the lead until some large guy out of nowhere called us out.
Now what?
"You two look like a lovely young couple," the guy started off.
At this Gold and I stared at each other, then back at the guy incredulously.
That was definitely not the way to introduce yourself to someone.
"Uh, we're not a couple, but hi," I replied.
"Of course, of course. Hey kids, listen, I got this really rare treat that I'm willing to sell to ya for just $100." The guy said quietly.
"Rare treat?" Gold asked skeptically.
"Yeah, it's a Slowpoke Tail." The man continued.
"Slowpoke Tail?! As in the tail of an actual Pokémon?!" I was pretty disturbed right there and felt sick.
"Yeah, yeah. Not to worry Miss. We chop off the tails humanely. The critters don't even feel it, and they grow back within weeks. They're a delicacy. Wanna buy some?" The shady salesman asked.
"Hell no we don't! That's just cruel and wrong!" Gold blurted out angrily.
At that I smirked. I'd never heard Gold come near to cursing before—he even normally used "heck" instead of "hell".
"Well then scram, shoo!" The salesman tried to shoo us away.
"Wait! Wait! Gold, maybe I want to buy one. Thought of that?" An idea formed in my mind.
Gold looked at me like I was insane. "What?! Are you crazy?! Wolfe, they are tails. Of. Pokémon. POKÉMON!"
"Yeah, I get it. Look, sir, could you tell me more about these tails?" I asked very much curious what info I could get.
"Sure, sure. You see, these tails come straight from the Slowpoke from Azalea Town. Our business, TR Industries, chops the tails off at just the right spot so they are the most plump and juicy around. You know how Slowpoke always fish with their tails, right?" He asked, clearly trying to pitch this tail to me. I'd be buying it—but for different reasons.
"Uh-huh." I nodded.
"And you know how if a Shellder latches on, it becomes a Slowbro, right?" The guy continued.
"Yeah…"
"It's because the tails secrete a honey-like substance. I promise you haven't tasted anything so sweet and succulent in your entire life! It's almost like a honey-glazed ham--but better!" He bragged.
"And how do you prepare the tail for eating?" I could see Gold glaring at me out of the corner of my eye, but I needed to seem invested.
"You can eat them as is! That's the beauty of it! And it's very filling and nutritious, too. So, wanna buy one?" He offered.
"Hmm, alright. I'll buy one!" I handed the guy the money, which earned me a look of hate from Gold. "Can you wrap it up for me? I want to snack on it later, if that's okay."
"Sure, sure." The man took a foot-long tail out of his insulated bag and wrapped it in aluminum foil before handing it to me. It took a lot in me not to puke on the spot.
"Thanks sir, have a nice day. Come on, Gold! Let's go to Union Cave!" I cheered with the tail clutched in my hand. It felt surprisingly stiff yet springy even wrapped in the cold foil.
"But the Pokémon Center is right there!" Gold caught up to me as I started briskly walking away.
Once I was out of eye and earshot of the shady guy, I unwrapped the tail from the foil and showed it to Gold. It was stiff, pink with a white tip, and liquid oozed out of it. It smelled wretched, and the liquid coming from it was kinda sticky.
"True, the center is back there, but TR Industries, AKA TeamRocket is ahead! Now I know what they are up to, so do you really want to stick around and let them continue doing this?!" I waved the tail in the air and plopped it in my hand forcefully to prove a point.
"No way! That was Team—" Gold gasped before I glared.
"Shush!" I quieted him. "Yeah, it was. Now you see why I must stop them?"
"Hell yeah! That's just sick and wrong! Let's go, Wolfe! Those Slowpoke need to be saved!"
With that, we hurried off into the darkness of the Union Cave.