Introduction: One thing I've realized about this AU recently is that it contains a lot of characters, and I'm not just talking about all the different Pokemon there are. It features a lot of human characters too, some from the franchise and some that are of my own creation. Of all these different characters, the five central characters in this AU have turned out to be Ash and Misty along with my three OCs, Lisa Flare, Marie Dantes/Noir Mask and Bolt Hanson. And while I've focused a good deal on Ash and Misty's story and on Lisa and Marie's story, I've yet to devote any real attention to Bolt's story. I felt like it was about to time rectify that, so after spending the last three days coming up with a rough outline I decided to go ahead and backtrack and tell the story of what happened with Bolt right after the events of Trial of the Phoenix. Those of you reading who haven't read Trial of the Phoenix yet, I suggest you go back now and do that before starting this tale. To those who have read Trial of the Phoenix, this is the story of Bolt's trip through Kanto and the origin of his band, Raging Thunder.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.
Chapter 1: Welcome to Kanto
It was early in the afternoon as fourteen-year-old Bolt Hanson entered Viridian City. As the Sinnoh-born trainer headed for the city's Pokemon Center, he couldn't help but feel pretty excited. It was after the beginning of his very first journey through Kanto, and Bolt felt certain that he could take the region by storm after the personal victory he had a little less than a week ago. After spending a great deal of time in the Johto Region, Bolt had managed to chase down and capture Raikou, the legendary beast of thunder. Soon after that victory though, Bolt ended up facing Team Rocket in Ecruteak City along with some other trainers who had captured Raikou's brethren and the sacred bird, Ho-Oh; and there was something about an ancient prophecy concerning him and the trainers he had fought alongside that day, but Bolt wasn't really concerned about any of that. The important thing was that he was back on top of his game.
Just as Bolt was about to enter the Pokemon Center he stopped in front of the window to do a quick check of his appearance. His spiked blonde hair looked okay and his sunglasses were in place. Satisfied that he looked okay, Bolt entered the building and was greeted by the Nurse Joy that attended the front desk. Bolt was not at all surprised to see that the Nurse Joys of Kanto looked exactly like the ones of Sinnoh and Johto. After giving the only three Pokemon he had with him to the pinkette for treatment, Bolt went over to one of the chairs and began tuning the red electric guitar he always carried around. After a little less than three minutes, Nurse Joy returned with Bolt's Pokemon.
"Your Pokemon are in perfect health." Nurse Joy told Bolt as he took back the pokeballs. "We hope to see you again."
"Thanks." Bolt replied. "Say, do you know where the local gym here is?"
"Of course, but I'm afraid it's closed." Nurse Joy informed him. "The gym leader has been away on business for some time now. There's no telling when he'll come back."
"Seriously?" a disappointed Bolt exclaimed. "Crud! And here I was getting all pumped."
"There is another gym in the next city over, Pewter City." Nurse Joy told him. "I happen to know for a fact that it's original leader has returned to run things."
"Well, I guess I'll have to head out to Pewter City then." Bolt decided.
"It would probably be best if you waited until morning." Nurse Joy suggested. "You'll have to go through Viridian Forest to get there, and that forest isn't easy to navigate. It would probably be nightfall by the time you get even half way through. I suppose you could camp there for night, but there've been reports of a nasty group of trainers ambushing people in there for the past few weeks."
"In that case, I'll do some sightseeing and come back later." Bolt replied. "Thanks for the tip."
With that, Bolt walked out of the Pokemon Center and headed down a random street. As he walked, Bolt pulled out a guidebook on Kanto he had recently got to see if there was anything else in Viridian City besides the gym that would be of interest. Walking towards Bolt at that moment was another young man about his age with olive-green eyes and slightly long straight black hair that covered his right eye. The young man had on a dark-brown pinstripe suit with a blue shirt and red tie, and in his right hand was an open can of soda. Bolt was so engrossed in his guidebook that he didn't notice the young man and ended up bumping into him, causing the suited teen to dump soda onto his suit and curse loudly.
"Oh crap! I'm real sorry 'bout that, dude." Bolt told him. "I totally didn't see you."
"You dumbass!" the young man shot back. "You ruined my favorite suit! Do you have any idea how much it cost? I'm gonna tear your miserable hide!"
"Look, I said I was sorry." Bolt told him. "No need to make a big deal out of it."
The young man glanced down and noticed the pokeballs hanging from Bolt's belt. "So, you're a Pokemon Trainer?"
"Yeah? Why?" Bolt asked.
"I'm challenging you to a battle. Right here, right now." The young man told him as he pulled out his own ball. "I'm going to make sure that a lower-class piece of trash like you remembers to look where he's going in the presence of his betters."
"I don't like your attitude one bit, but I've never turned down a challenge to battle." Bolt replied. "Mind telling me your name though?"
"I guess it's only fair that you know the name of the guy whose about to destroy you." The young man agreed. "The name's Richter Chase. I suppose you're going to tell me who you are now."
"I'm the badass rocker of Sinnoh, Bolt Hanson!" the blonde proudly announced.
"So you're from Sinnoh, huh?" Richter observed. "Just so happens that I'm from there originally as well. Though I was born into a much higher class than you were."
"Jeez, snobby much?" Bolt responded. "Let's just get this show started! You okay with a three-on-three battle?"
"Fine with me." Richter agreed. "I'll probably need only one Pokemon to beat you."
"Okay then!" Bolt replied as he threw his first ball. "Let's rock, Magnezone!"
Flying out of Bolt's thrown ball was a blue-grey machine-like creature that looked like a flying saucer. It had a single large eye with a red iris on the front, and on the sides of its body were what could be considered two extra heads, each with a large eye of its own. Both heads had a large horseshoe magnet on its underside, and on top of the smaller heads was a large screw that pointed back at an angle. A third magnet was on the underside of the main head at the rear, and on top was a large yellow antenna.
"This'll be easier than I thought." Richter remarked before throwing his own ball. "Go, Torterra!"
Bursting out of Richter's ball was a very large tortoise that was green and dirt-brown in color. Each side of its head was a large white spike. Three similar spikes grew from the right side of its moss-covered shell at an upward angle, and growing from the right side of the shell was a large bonsai tree.
"Crud! A ground and grass type?" Bolt exclaimed.
"You're light years out of your league, rockstar." Richter told him. "But even though I'm pissed that you ruined my favorite suit, I'll be nice and let you and that floating toy of yours have the first move."
"Like my Pokemon and I need your charity!" Bolt responded. "Magnezone, rock Torterra's world with Magnet Bomb!"
Magnezone crackled with blue electricity and a ball of blue energy began to form at its right magnet. When the ball got large enough, the mechanical Pokemon fired it at Torterra. The tortoise Pokemon was hit in the face and resulting explosion created a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared though, Torterra looked like it didn't even have a scratch.
"Well that was weak." Richter snidely remarked. "Torterra, wipe Magnezone out with Bulldoze!"
Torterra growled and stomped the ground with its front right leg. Several spikes of earth shot up from the ground in a straight line towards Magnezone. The largest shard shot up right beneath the mechanical Pokemon and hurled it into the air. Magnezone flipped back through the air before crashing to the ground behind Bolt and was unconscious.
With gritted teeth, Bolt called back Magnezone before throwing out another ball. "Let's rock, Luxray!"
Emerging from Bolt's second ball was a blue and black lion-like Pokemon. Its eyes were red with yellow irises and it had a mane of black fur. On the tip of its tail it had what looked like a yellow four-pointed star.
"Another Electric Pokemon?" Richter asked. "I get it. You must be a specialist in that type."
"What, so now you're gonna diss Electric Pokemon?" Bolt assumed.
"Not at all." Richter smirked. "There's nothing wrong with you using electric-types. You're just being yourself. Trainers can't help but make teams using Pokemon they have a fondness for. It reflects their personality. And most trainers usually end up making teams made up of the type they like the most. It's human nature, plain and simple."
"Guess I can't argue with that logic." Bolt admitted.
"But the interesting part about all that is that you can tell how naturally strong or weak a trainer is compared to another based on their preferred type." Richter continued. "For instance, I'm a ground-type specialist, which means an opponent like you could never even come close to someone like me. No matter how much you struggle, I'll always be above you."
"Yeah? We'll see about that!" Bolt declared. "Luxray, use Iron Tail!"
Luxray leapt up and flipped through the air towards Torterra. As the electric lion sped towards Torterra, the star on the end of its tail glowed white and turned to grey metal. Luxray struck the top of Torterra's tail before flipping away, but the attack barely seemed to leave a scratch.
"And thus you've proved my point." Richter remarked. "You and your Pokemon can barely even damage mine. Torterra, counterattack with Seed Bomb!"
The large tortoise opened its jaws and fired a barrage of large balls of white light at Luxray. The electric lion was struck multiple times and was nearly knocked to the ground.
"Finish it!" Richter ordered. "Bulldoze!"
Torterra growled and stomped the ground again, sending another wave of earth at Luxray. Luxray was hurled into the air and crashed to the ground headfirst. When the dust settled, Luxray was out cold.
"I suppose I could be nice and let things end here." Richter spoke as Bolt called back Luxray. "But then watching you struggle is just too amusing."
"I'll admit that you have the edge, but wait until you see my last Pokemon." Bolt told him. "Let's rock, Raikou!"
Bursting from Bolt's final ball with a roar was a yellow saber-toothed cat with black stripes. It had red eyes, and over its nose was something that looked a blue X. A dark-grey crest covered its forehead, and on its back was a purple thundercloud that flowed like a cape. The beast's slender light-blue tail looked like a lightning bolt striking the ground.
Richter was shocked upon seeing the legendary beast. "A Raikou? How the hell did someone like you manage to catch a Pokemon like that?"
"Just a little time, effort and skill." Bolt smugly replied. "Maybe this battle isn't as one-sided as you thought, huh?"
After a moment, Richter's arrogant smirk returned. "Okay, I'll admit that being able to catch one of the legendary beasts of Johto is impressive. But in the end, Raikou's just another electric-type. Against a ground-type like my Torterra, he's no better than a pathetic Magikarp."
"We'll see about that!" Bolt declared. "Raikou! Hit Torterra with Extrasensory!"
Raikou's eyes glowed yellow and it fired a beam of yellow light from its forehead crest. Torterra was hit in the face by the beam and stumbled back a bit.
"Use Bulldoze again!" Richter commanded.
Torterra quickly recovered from Raikou's attack and stomped the ground. A wave of earth came at the electric feline and hurled it high into the air.
"Now use Razor Leaf!" Richter ordered.
With Raikou still in the air, Torterra fired several razor-sharp leafs from the tree on its shell. Raikou was struck by several of the sharp projectiles, but managed to land on the ground on its feet. The tiger of thunder looked at Torterra and growled.
"Well, well. It seems Raikou has a lot of endurance." Richter observed. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised, considering how legendary it is. Still, in the end this battle can only end in defeat. Torterra! Finish it with Seed Bomb!"
"Extrasensory one more time!" Bolt ordered.
Raikou roared and fired another beam of light from its forehead crest, striking the tortoise in the face. Torterra stumbled back but quickly recovered. Opening its jaws, Torterra pelted Raikou with another barrage of glowing white balls. The barrage created a small explosion, and when the smoke cleared, Raikou was passed out on its side. With the battle finally at an end, Bolt and Richter called back their respective Pokemon.
"Hanson, wasn't it?" Richter spoke. "I'm sure that this battle has burned the true meaning to status into your brain. Always remember that no matter how hard you struggle or fight, someone like you will never be better than someone like me. Compared to me, you'll always be a peasant groveling at my feet, wishing to have everything that I have but never getting it. That is a fundamental law of the universe. Remember that, and pray that we never cross paths again."
With that, Richter calmly walked past Bolt in the opposite direction. As Richter left, Bolt's hands balled into fists at his side. After a few moments, Bolt headed back to the Pokemon Center to patch up his Pokemon's wounds. Having totally lost any desire for sightseeing, Bolt decided to spend the remainder of his time in Viridian City at the Pokemon Center. So far his trip through Kanto was turning into a disaster. Before he had been feeling on top of the world, but his recent defeat had brought him crashing back down.
Hours later, night had finally fallen and Bolt had gone up to the roof of the Pokemon Center to think. The light from the city had made it impossible to see the stars, but he could still look out at the city. Cities at night had always been an impressive sight to Bolt. After sending out his three Pokemon, Bolt put down his guitar and plugged in a black cord that had an adapter that could be attached to one of Magnezone's magnets. Bolt attached the cord to the saucer Pokemon's left magnet, and Magnazone began giving off a soft electrical charge into the cord to recharge the guitar's battery.
With his guitar being seen to, Bolt reached into his bag and pulled out two water dishes and some cans of soda. He put down the bowls before Raikou and Luxay and poured them soda from the cans. The two electric felines began to lap up the liquid as Bolt turned to look back at the luminescent cityscape.
"Well guys, I'm sorry I let you down." Bolt told his three Pokemon. "This is worse than when I lost to Bertha of the Sinnoh Elite Four. At least she was nice. That Richter guy has some nerve. He's the one who better pray we don't bump into each other again."
Bolt's three Pokemon remained silent to his remarks. He looked back and watched Raikou continuing to drink from his bowl.
"Guess I'm not doing so hot as a chosen one, huh?" Bolt asked the tiger. "Not sure what it is that you and Ho-Oh ever saw in me."
At this, Raikou suddenly stopped drinking and looked at Bolt. The blonde rocker saw a kind of intensity in the feline's eyes that seemed to speak to him somehow. Raikou growled softly, and though he didn't know how, Bolt seemed to understand what Raikou seemed to be telling him.
"Okay, I hear ya." Bolt chuckled. "Looking at me gettin' all down on myself just because I got my ass handed to me by a trainer who's a total dick. I can't let a creep like that get to me. He may have won today, but sooner or later I'll pay him back double."
Seeming to be satisfied with Bolt's answer, Raikou nodded and went back to drinking from his bowl. Bolt turned back to look out at the lights of Viridian City.
"Look out, Kanto!" Bolt spoke. "Bolt Hanson's gonna rock your world!"
Author's Note: I apologize if this chapter wasn't a very good beginning to this story. Hopefully things will get better as they continue on. The primary purpose of this chapter was to introduce Bolt's nemesis, Richter. Those familiar with my Best Wishes Revised story may recall seeing Richter's name pop up in a couple of the chapters. I can say now that Bolt and Richter's rivalry will grow into something pretty ugly.
Please review and let me know what you think.