THE MYSTERY OF MISSINGNO
"I don't know about this ,Ash, sure people have heard about the phantom. But no-one's tried to catch it or even battle it," Brock commented. "I've talked to Blaine and the Jenny in Cinnabar, there are loads of pokémon in the pokémon centre with some really strange illness, even Gary's staying away from there now."
"So, the great Gary is scared of the phantom…"
Brock now realizing what a mistake he made." Oh no you don't Ash," said misty, with Togepi in her arms," I don't care if Gary's steering clear of The phantom, but you aren't going either!"
"Tukki tukki piiiiiiiiiiiiiii." Said Togepi.
"All right then, if you don't want to go, fine, I'll go without you, come on Pikachu." Said Ash as he left the campsite.
"Hey ASH! Wait up!" Brock and Misty said as they ran after him.
"Are you guys sure about this?" Meowth asked his human partners, as the three of them spied on Ash and his friends. "We should head on back to the mainland and look for Pokemon there."
"Hush, Meowth," Jessie said irritably. "If you're going to turning to a scaredy-cat on us, at least do it quietly."
"Do you think the legendary phantom is real?" James asked, ignoring Meowth's growl of anger. "If so, it'd certainly be worth our trying to catch ... why, it could be even more valuable than Mew!"
"HELLO IN THERE!!!" Meowth yelled, rapping on James's head. "That phantom is *bad news! * I want to catch some rare Pokemon just as much as you two do, but this one doesn't count!!"
Jessie and James lowered their binoculars, and turned to look at Meowth. "Then leave the hard work to us," Jessie said. "You can stay here and cower if you want; *we* will follow that twerp and capture the phantom. How does that sound?"
Meowth opened his mouth to reply.
There was a whispering sound from above them. None of them noticed Ash had recalled his Pokemon and left.
"Pika?" Pikachu paused, ears twitching.
"Did you hear something, Pikachu?" Ash looked down at his first Pokemon.
Pikachu stayed quiet for a moment, ears raised to catch any sound it could hear, but there was nothing. "Kachu," it shrugged as it dropped back to all fours.
Ash nodded, and headed on towards the beach. "That researcher in the lab we visited said that the phantom usually appears along the shore...
I guess we might need to ride Lapras around the island some to find it."
"Chuuu ..." Pikachu sounded worried. "Pika pika ..."
"Stop worrying, Pikachu," Ash sighed. "You can't really believe what Misty and Brock were saying, can you?"
"Pika."
"Huh?" Ash looked down and back at Pikachu - who'd pulled out a sleeping bag and was curled in it. "Pikachu, come *on!*" Ash sighed.
"Look, I'm going after that phantom; are you coming or not?"
Pikachu lay still for a moment, then sat up - almost reluctantly, it seemed to Ash. "Pika pikapi."
"Good." Ash nodded, and continued on his way as Pikachu followed behind him.
"Are you sure you can't tell us anything about that phantom?"
Misty asked.
"Nobody who's fought it has ever come back to tell us about it,"
Nurse Joy told the two gym leaders. "But if your friend is really going after it, you'd better go stop him - if not for the sake of his Pokemon, then for his own sake."
"The sake of his Pokemon?" Brock asked. "What could the phantom do to them?"
"You don't want to know," Joy answered with a small shudder. "But if you're sure ..."
Brock and Misty nodded. "We'd better know what Ash is getting himself into," said Brock. "Especially if he's putting his Pokemon in danger too; all of his Pokemon are remarkably skilled and powerful, but he counts on that more than he should, sometimes."
"Well, come on, then." The Pokemon Centre nurse stood up, and headed down the hall to the treatment wards with Brock and Misty following behind.
None of them saw Team Rocket stagger in, to collapse in front of the counter.
There were five Pokemon in the isolation ward: a Jolteon, two Wartortles, a Ninetales and an Onix(which just barely fit on its special, larger-than- normal bed). All five of them were either asleep or unconscious.
"And all of these Pokemon showed up here after their trainers fought that phantom?" Misty gasped.
"Trainer," Joy corrected. "And not just these five ... dozens of others. The five you see here are the only ones still alive since the last trainer before Ash disappeared."
"They're dying?" Brock whispered. "What kind of Pokemon can kill other Pokemon? They don't do that, not even in the wild."
"You haven't seen the worst of it yet," Joy told them soberly as she walked over to the Ninetales' bed. "If any of them wake up, they'll never be the same ... look at this." She administered an injection, and the Ninetales began to stir.
The sleek, multi-tailed fox-like Pokemon made a hissing sound as
it started to open its eyes, then looked up at Joy as its eyes came into
focus. "Missingno ..."
Brock and Misty both gasped in shock. Only a few Pokemon ever learned to speak in human language; Team Rocket's Meowth was one of them. But this ... "That's not even a word," Brock said. "And it sure ain't Ninetales' name - Joy, did the phantom do this?"
"We don't know for sure, but -" Joy was interrupted as the Centre's Chansey came rushing in, squealing in alarm. "What's the matter, Chansey?"
"Chansey chansey!!" Chansey beckoned frantically, then ran back out towards the reception area. Alarmed, the three humans followed - to find Meowth draped over the counter, hanging on with his claws.
"Meowsingno ... gotta ... stop it," Meowth babbled incoherently. "Have to ... miss ... no ..."
"They must've run into the phantom!" Brock realized. "Look, there are Jessie and James, unconscious!"
"Chansey, get that Meowth to the ER, stat!" Joy ordered. "You two, see what you can do to bring them around; I have to do whatever can be done to bring Meowth back to its senses."
"Right!" Misty nodded, grabbing a Pokeball from her belt.
"Starmie, I choose you!" She threw the Pokeball towards Team Rocket; it opened in
mid- flight, and a blaze of energy flowed out to condense into the faceted gray form of Starmie. "Water Gun!" Misty ordered.
With a wordless shout, Starmie complied and hosed down Jessie and James with a spray of water from its uppermost limb.
Sputtering, the two humans woke up and leapt to their feet.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie shouted.
"Make it double ..." James trailed off, then elbowed Jessie as she started to go on with the Team Rocket motto. "Jessie, Meowth is missing!"
"To protect -" Jessie stopped, her gaze coming to rest on Misty and Brock. "Where's your friend with the Pikachu?"
Misty slapped a hand to her forehead. "He went off to find the same phantom that apparently attacked you and Meowth; Meowth is already being treated here - if that matters to you guys."
"Well, the Boss would be upset if we lost Meowth ..." James started.
"We don't have time to discuss Meowth!" Brock interrupted brusquely.
"We've gotta find Ash! What's the last thing you two remember?"
James and Jessie looked at each other for a moment.
"A shadow?"James asked.
"A shadow," Jessie nodded. "Floating overhead."
"And where were you when this happened?" Brock inquired.
"In the shrubs on a cliff ... between the edge of town and the sea," James remembered. "I was thinking of how exquisite the breeze from offshore smelled, that hint of salt in the air -" He was interrupted by a smack from Jessie.
"Meaning you were near the shore," Misty nodded. "All right, we've gotta get to the beach and find Ash - now. Are you two coming?"
"What happened to Meowth?" Jessie asked.
"If you mean what did the phantom do to him, go ask Nurse Joy," Brock growled. "You guys are lucky you're all right - better make sure your Pokemon are too."
Jessie nodded. "You're right ... Arbok, come out, you too Lickitung" She tossed her Pokeballs a short distance away, as James did the same with his own; Arbok , Lickitung and Weezing materialized.
"Charbok ..." "Weezing." "Lickiiiii"
"Sounds like they're okay," Misty said. "Now are you guys coming, or do we have to save Ash on our own?"
"First tell us what's going on!" Jessie demanded as she recalled Arbok and Lickitung
"There's a phantom out there that makes trainers disappear and does something to Pokemon that eventually kills them," Brock summarized. "Every trainer who's tried to find and capture it has disappeared, and Ash is out looking for it right now. Coming or staying?"
"I'll just go see how Meowth is doing ..." James started to side away.
Jessie sighed. "I'm coming too," she told Brock and Misty.
"No trying to grab Pikachu," Misty warned the older girl.
Jessie turned away and followed James towards the ER.
"Pika pika?" Pikachu looked up worriedly; clouds were gathering overhead.
"Looks like it's going to rain," Ash mused. "Guess we shouldn't go onto the water with a storm brewing." He started walking up the beach, heading north along the coast. "Come on, Pikachu."
"Pika pi." Pikachu scampered along on all fours, tagging behind Ash.
It started raining.
"Ash!!" Brock shouted as they reached the beach; by now the rain had grown into a full-fledged downpour. "Where are you?!"
"Staryu, Starmie, go find Ash!" Misty threw a pair of PokéBalls, and the two starfish-like Pokemon formed and flew off, spinning through the air.
"I hope we can find him," Brock muttered. "This weather is downright ominous ... huh?" He ran ahead, then crouched to examine the sand.
"Footprints! Ash and Pikachu must have gone this way!"
Misty nodded. "Staryu, Starmie, head north!" she called to her two water Pokemon, and they headed off in response.
"Pika ..." Pikachu looked up. "PIKA!!"
"What is -" Ash looked up as well. "YIKES!" He jumped back a pace, digging in his jacket pocket for Dexter; it took him a second to pull the Pokedex out and flip open the cover panel.
"Scanning," the electronic device reported. "No Pokemon identified."
The display screen stayed blank.
"No Pokemon identified?!" Ash pressed the scan switch, disbelieving.
"Scanning ... no Pokemon identified." Ash wasn't sure whether his Pokedex was malfunctioning or whether the rain was messing up its scanner; either way, there wasn't much he could do. Dexter, as he called his Pokedex, was supposed to be waterproof - but Ash put the device away just to be safe.
"All right, Pikachu, let's do it!"
The shadowy, indistinct form descended to alight on the beach in front of them, folding in extensions that vaguely resembled wings - or might have, if the creature had possessed any kind of solid, recognizable form. Its voice was like hissing thunder as it reared up, and growled, "Missingno ..."
Ash dug out his Pokedex again, flipping it open. "Dexter, access file for Missingno! - Get ready, Pikachu."
"Pika pika ..." Sounding uncertain, Pikachu shifted into a ready position, facing the monster.
Dexter chimed, but the screen continued to remain blank.
"Missingno. This shadowy phantom exists only in rumor, and has never been identified or captured. Also referred to as the 'Trainers' Bane,' it is said that Missingno has ended the careers of many promising young Pokemon trainers."
"Until now." Ash smiled as he put his Pokedex away. "Let's do it! Pikachu, use your Thundershock attack!"
"Pika, pikapika!" Pikachu looked back at Ash, visibly and audibly worried.
"Do it!" Ash ordered. "Quickly, before it gets the first move in!"
"Pika ..." Pikachu's cheeks started sparking as it looked at the unmoving Missingno. "Pika-CHU!!" Bolts of electricity lashed out at the phantom.
"Missingno!!" The phantom seemed to glow with heat as the Thundershock struck, and was absorbed. "Ssing ... !"
Pikachu waved on its feet. "Chuuu ..."
"Hit it again!" Ash shouted. "Thunder Wave!"
"Piskachun ..." Pikachu staggered back, dropping to all fours and shaking its head violently.
"Wha? Pikachu, what's wrong?" Ash knelt in the wet sand, laying his hand on Pikachu's back.
"Kachu ... Piskangno ..." Pikachu shook its head again, its voice slurring. "Pi ... ka ..." Its legs gave out, and Pikachu dropped to the sand, eyelids drooping."Missingno"
"Pikachu ..." Ash stood up, reaching to his belt for a Pokeball.
"All right, Missingno - try this one!" He expanded the Pokeball and threw it.
"Bulbasaur, attack! Razor Leaf!"
The ball opened in mid-flight, and Bulbasaur materialized on the sand. "Bulbasaur! Bulba!!" Leaves flew from the plant on its back.
The attack must have stung; Missingno roared, rearing up. "MISSINGNO!!" A blast of water rushed at Bulbasaur, knocking the half- plant Pokemon from its feet.
"Bulbasaur!" Ash cried, rushing to the fallen Pokemon's side. "Return!" he commanded, holding out the Pokeball. The beam struck Bulbasaur ... and nothing happened! "Bulbasaur, return!" Ash repeated the command.
Bulbasaur failed to dematerialize, its own eyes glazing over. "Bulbissingno ..."
"What??" Ash dropped to his knees. "Bulbasaur, are you all right?"
"Missingno," Bulbasaur repeated, and Ash's heart skipped a beat.
(This isn't possible!) Ash's mind screamed. (Pokemon usually only say their name, unless they learn to talk like humans! What's happened to Bulbasaur ... and Pikachu?)
Ash didn't see Staryu and Starmie spin past over his head, and hardly heard the noise as they collided with Missingno, forcing the monster back with their combined Tackle attack.
"Ash!!" Brock and Misty climbed over the ridge, jumping back down to the beach. "Ash, get up!" Brock shouted as the two gym leaders ran over to Ash and his two fallen Pokemon.
"We've got to get out of here!" Misty yelled as she hauled Ash to his feet. "Hurry!"
"I'm not leaving without Pikachu and Bulbasaur," Ash growled as he turned to face the shadowy phantom. "And this monster is going to pay for the damage it's done!" He plucked all four of his remaining PokéBalls from his belt, expanding two in each hand. "Wartortle, Charizard, Muk, Pidgeot: GO!! Mass attack!"
"NO!!" Brock tackled Ash, forcing him to the sand before the younger boy could throw the PokéBalls and release the rest of his team. "We have to get you, Bulbasaur, and Pikachu back to the Pokemon Centre while there's still a chance to save all of you! Missingno is dangerous - *too* dangerous!"
Misty was already picking Pikachu up off the sand. "Staryu, Starmie, stay high and don't let it attack you!" she shouted up to the two flying starfish. "Staryu, use Swift from a distance!"
With an answering grunt, Staryu hovered and released its Swift attack, sending showers of glowing energy-stars down at Missingno. Starmie flew back and forth, trying to distract the phantom from a counterattack.
"MISSINGNO!!" The enraged monster lumbered towards Ash, raising an indistinct arm and spreading a set of *very* distinct claws.
"Pika pika ..." Pikachu broke loose from Misty's arms, then slowly got up, standing on its hind legs. "Pikapika Chu!" It stood directly in Missingno's path.
The phantom actually paused, looking down at the electric mouse. "Missingno ... !"
Pikachu shook its head violently, dropping to all fours. "Pikano ..."
Ash swallowed hard. "Pikachu ... fight it! Don't let it get you!"
"Pimissingno." Pikachu looked up at the phantom. "Missingno!"
"NO!!" screamed Ash, breaking free of Brock's restraining hold and running to Pikachu's side. "Pikachu, fight it! Don't let it destroy you!"
"Missingno." Pikachu's voice was flat and unwavering.
"Pikachu ...!" moaned Ash in despair. "Please, come back to me!"
"Missingno ..." The shadowy phantom advanced towards Ash again.
"I'll get you!!" Ash ran towards Missingno in turn, expanding an empty Pokeball as he ran. "Pokeball ..."
"Starmie, stop that Pokeball!!" Misty shouted. "Don't let Ash capture that monster!"
"GO!!" Ash threw the Pokeball at Missingno with all his strength.
Starmie shot down as though flung from the clouds above, skimming past Missingno to clip the Pokeball with a turning limb; the deflected Pokeball bounced into the sand, untriggered.
Pikachu struggled as Misty picked it up again. "Missingno!" it squealed, squirming violently in the girl's arms.
"Starmie, tackle Ash!" Misty ordered reluctantly. "We've got to snap him out of this ..."
With a grunt, Starmie reversed course and slammed into the young trainer, hurling him to the ground.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"Make it double!"
Lightning flashed, a boom of thunder echoing as two more figures leapt to the beach from the ridge.
"To protect the world from devastation -"
"To unite all peoples within our nation -"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above -"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"It's not that we don't appreciate your help," Brock shouted over another crack of thunder, "but we really need help right now more than speeches!"
"Arbok, Glare attack!" Jessie released her Pokemon, and it speared Missingno with a paralyzing look.
"Weezing, Smoke Screen!" James's own Pokemon released a dense, greenish vapor cloud that obscured vision.
"C'mon!" Ash coughed, scooping Bulbasaur up in his arms. "Let's get out of here!"
"Staryu, Starmie, meet us back at the Pokemon Centre!" Misty shouted as they all started running, leaving the phantom behind.
"So Missingno is the name of that phantom?" Nurse Joy asked as they sat together in the isolation ward.
"Uh-huh," Ash nodded. "I can't even remember clearly what it looked like ..."
"I would just call it 'horrible' and leave it at that, Ash,"
Misty suggested. "No way was that even a Pokemon; it's just a monster."
"And now Pikachu and Bulbasaur are ..." Ash looked up at the two beds occupied by his wounded Pokemon. "Nurse, isn't there *anything* we can do?"
"I have no idea," Joy sighed. "But none of the Pokemon who've been attacked by Missingno have ever recovered; you're the first trainer who's ever encountered Missingno and returned to talk about it."
"What are we going to do about Meowth?" Jessie fretted. "If the Boss finds out what happened, we're history!"
"Missingno," Meowth murmured in his sleep. Jessie and James both flinched.
"There's nothing we can do," Brock finally said, setting down his teacup. "Ash, would you like us to leave while you say goodbye to your Pokemon?"
"Say goodbye?!" Ash looked up. "I'm not going to leave Pikachu and Bulbasaur here!"
"Ash," Joy said gently, "the chances that they'll ever recover are ..." She paused, glancing around the room. "... practically nonexistent," she finished in a resigned tone. "They'll probably be dead in a couple of months, at the most. There's nothing you can do for them now."
"There *has* to be!" Ash shouted, bringing his fists down on the table that they'd brought in. "Pikachu was my first Pokemon; I'm not going to abandon him! Not Bulbasaur, either!"
Brock laid a hand over one of Ash's fists. "Take it easy ..."
Ash jerked his hand away, shaking his head defiantly. "Even if Pikachu and Bulbasaur *are* gonna die, I'm going to stay here with them until the end."
He looked down. "It's my fault they're hurt ... the least I can do is be with them, until they die."
"Ash ..." Misty looked up at him gently, her voice soft.
"Psyduck!" A flare of energy forced its way out of Misty's duffel bag, solidifying into a familiar form.
Misty groaned. "Not *now,* Psyduck ..."
"Wait a minute," Brock thought out loud. "Whatever happened to these Pokemon is basically psychic in nature, right?"
"So maybe Psyduck's powerful enough to undo it?" Ash asked.
In disbelief, Misty looked down at her Psyduck, which was holding its head in its flippers. "I guess we haven't got anything to lose ... all right, Psyduck, try to wake Pikachu up."
"Psy!" Psyduck waddled over, and hauled itself up onto Pikachu's bed.
"Psyduck! Psyyyy ..."
The six humans watched as Psyduck's gaze bored into the nearly comatose Pikachu. A vein started throbbing on the side of Psyduck's forehead as it concentrated harder, and harder ...
"Psy!!" The psychic water Pokemon toppled over, falling backwards off the bed and hitting the floor headfirst. "Psy-yie-yie!"
"Psyduck ...!!" Misty clenched a fist, a vein throbbing on her own forehead now.
"Wait a minute," Ash said as he stood up. "Maybe Psyduck can't do this itself."
"What are you suggesting?" Brock wondered.
"Well, all of the sick Pokemon are repeating Missingno's name instead of their own," Ash pointed out. "Maybe if Psyduck tries to wake Pikachu while I'm there, concentrating on Pikachu's name ..."
The other four Pokemon trainers exchanged looks. "It might just work,"
James commented.
"It might," Jessie agreed. "Let's try it on Meowth first."
Ash was about to argue, but Joy cut him off. "Meowth was attacked first out of this group," she pointed out. "If Psyduck gets tired, I've got some Elixer that'll restore its energy. Let's try it."
A moment or so later, Jessie and James were sitting on Meowth's bed with the Pokemon between them; Psyduck was facing them from the next bed over.
"Psy ..."
"Time to wake up, Meowth," whispered Jessie. "Giovanni is worried about you."
"Let's go, Meowth!" urged James. "We have lots of Pokemon to capture!"
"Psy-yie ..." Psyduck was beginning to glow now.
"Come on, Psyduck," Misty whispered from behind her Pokemon. "If anyone can do this, you can."
Ash was sitting on Bulbasaur's bed, with Pikachu in his arms; Brock and Nurse Joy were standing out of the way, next to Chansey.
"Psyyyyyyyyyy ..." Psyduck wasn't just glowing with an aura now, but practically vibrating with its effort. "Psyyyyyyy-*duck!!*" It sat down abruptly, the light flaring, Psyduck's eyes going bright blue.
Every other being in the room, human and Pokemon, awake or asleep, winced as a wave of psychic energy blasted through all of their minds at once. All of the comatose Pokemon cried out, and started to wake up.
"Meowth ..." Meowth's eyes slowly opened, his gaze focusing on Jessie and James. "Wha? What happened?"
"Bulbasaur ..." "Pika-chu!" Ash's Pokemon roused as well, shaking off the unnatural sleep they'd been plunged into.
"All right!!" Brock cheered as the other Pokemon started to wake up.
"It worked! They're all getting back to normal!"
"Psyduck, what's wrong?" Misty looked worriedly at her still- glowing Pokemon.
"Chansey chansey!" Chansey bounded over to Psyduck, looking at it, then looked up at Misty. "Chaaaansey!"
Nurse Joy smiled. "Chansey means that Psyduck is ..."
"... evolving!" Misty finished in a whisper as Psyduck's outline began to blur and change. "The exertion of bringing all of the Pokemon back must have triggered its evolution!"
"Golduck!" The glow faded as Psyduck, now a full Golduck, hopped off of the bed and looked at Misty.
Grinning, Ash flipped open his Pokedex and activated the readout.
"Golduck: the evolved form of Psyduck. Possessing psychic abilities similar to those of a Psyduck, Golduck is an agile and powerful combatant both in and out of water. Its perpetual headache has also gone away, leaving no obstacles to its use of psychic attacks."
"All right!" Misty cheered, jumping for joy. "Congratulations, Golduck!"
"Gol, gol," Golduck chuckled, looking relatively smug.
Ash closed his Pokedex and put it away. "How do you feel, Pikachu?"
"Pi-ka-chu!" Pikachu jumped, doing a backflip in the air, then rubbed against Ash's side. "Pika, pikachu!"
"Bulbasaur, bulba-Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur added. "Bulbasaur, saur!"
"Thanks for your help, Golduck," Joy told the newly evolved Pokemon.
She then turned to look at Ash. "These other Pokemon will have to find new trainers now, or return to the wild; I'll pass the message along that any trainers who come to Cinnabar Island need to be careful of Missingno."
"About that phantom," Meowth said as he sat up. "I don't think it's going to trouble your average trainer ..."
"Why is that, Meowth?" James asked as the others gathered around.
"Don't ask me how I know this, but I think that thing only appears if someone's out looking for it. It's kind of like bait for overeager trainers,"
Meowth opined. "Bait, and trap all in one."
"But what happens to trainers who capture it?" Ash wondered.
"Nothing's happened to me ..."
"Count yourself lucky you didn't find out," Joy told Ash, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Nearly losing two of your Pokemon is bad enough ... now, you take really good care of all of your Pokemon, all right?"
"Don't worry," Ash smiled up at her. "I will!"
"I don't know about this ,Ash, sure people have heard about the phantom. But no-one's tried to catch it or even battle it," Brock commented. "I've talked to Blaine and the Jenny in Cinnabar, there are loads of pokémon in the pokémon centre with some really strange illness, even Gary's staying away from there now."
"So, the great Gary is scared of the phantom…"
Brock now realizing what a mistake he made." Oh no you don't Ash," said misty, with Togepi in her arms," I don't care if Gary's steering clear of The phantom, but you aren't going either!"
"Tukki tukki piiiiiiiiiiiiiii." Said Togepi.
"All right then, if you don't want to go, fine, I'll go without you, come on Pikachu." Said Ash as he left the campsite.
"Hey ASH! Wait up!" Brock and Misty said as they ran after him.
"Are you guys sure about this?" Meowth asked his human partners, as the three of them spied on Ash and his friends. "We should head on back to the mainland and look for Pokemon there."
"Hush, Meowth," Jessie said irritably. "If you're going to turning to a scaredy-cat on us, at least do it quietly."
"Do you think the legendary phantom is real?" James asked, ignoring Meowth's growl of anger. "If so, it'd certainly be worth our trying to catch ... why, it could be even more valuable than Mew!"
"HELLO IN THERE!!!" Meowth yelled, rapping on James's head. "That phantom is *bad news! * I want to catch some rare Pokemon just as much as you two do, but this one doesn't count!!"
Jessie and James lowered their binoculars, and turned to look at Meowth. "Then leave the hard work to us," Jessie said. "You can stay here and cower if you want; *we* will follow that twerp and capture the phantom. How does that sound?"
Meowth opened his mouth to reply.
There was a whispering sound from above them. None of them noticed Ash had recalled his Pokemon and left.
"Pika?" Pikachu paused, ears twitching.
"Did you hear something, Pikachu?" Ash looked down at his first Pokemon.
Pikachu stayed quiet for a moment, ears raised to catch any sound it could hear, but there was nothing. "Kachu," it shrugged as it dropped back to all fours.
Ash nodded, and headed on towards the beach. "That researcher in the lab we visited said that the phantom usually appears along the shore...
I guess we might need to ride Lapras around the island some to find it."
"Chuuu ..." Pikachu sounded worried. "Pika pika ..."
"Stop worrying, Pikachu," Ash sighed. "You can't really believe what Misty and Brock were saying, can you?"
"Pika."
"Huh?" Ash looked down and back at Pikachu - who'd pulled out a sleeping bag and was curled in it. "Pikachu, come *on!*" Ash sighed.
"Look, I'm going after that phantom; are you coming or not?"
Pikachu lay still for a moment, then sat up - almost reluctantly, it seemed to Ash. "Pika pikapi."
"Good." Ash nodded, and continued on his way as Pikachu followed behind him.
"Are you sure you can't tell us anything about that phantom?"
Misty asked.
"Nobody who's fought it has ever come back to tell us about it,"
Nurse Joy told the two gym leaders. "But if your friend is really going after it, you'd better go stop him - if not for the sake of his Pokemon, then for his own sake."
"The sake of his Pokemon?" Brock asked. "What could the phantom do to them?"
"You don't want to know," Joy answered with a small shudder. "But if you're sure ..."
Brock and Misty nodded. "We'd better know what Ash is getting himself into," said Brock. "Especially if he's putting his Pokemon in danger too; all of his Pokemon are remarkably skilled and powerful, but he counts on that more than he should, sometimes."
"Well, come on, then." The Pokemon Centre nurse stood up, and headed down the hall to the treatment wards with Brock and Misty following behind.
None of them saw Team Rocket stagger in, to collapse in front of the counter.
There were five Pokemon in the isolation ward: a Jolteon, two Wartortles, a Ninetales and an Onix(which just barely fit on its special, larger-than- normal bed). All five of them were either asleep or unconscious.
"And all of these Pokemon showed up here after their trainers fought that phantom?" Misty gasped.
"Trainer," Joy corrected. "And not just these five ... dozens of others. The five you see here are the only ones still alive since the last trainer before Ash disappeared."
"They're dying?" Brock whispered. "What kind of Pokemon can kill other Pokemon? They don't do that, not even in the wild."
"You haven't seen the worst of it yet," Joy told them soberly as she walked over to the Ninetales' bed. "If any of them wake up, they'll never be the same ... look at this." She administered an injection, and the Ninetales began to stir.
The sleek, multi-tailed fox-like Pokemon made a hissing sound as
it started to open its eyes, then looked up at Joy as its eyes came into
focus. "Missingno ..."
Brock and Misty both gasped in shock. Only a few Pokemon ever learned to speak in human language; Team Rocket's Meowth was one of them. But this ... "That's not even a word," Brock said. "And it sure ain't Ninetales' name - Joy, did the phantom do this?"
"We don't know for sure, but -" Joy was interrupted as the Centre's Chansey came rushing in, squealing in alarm. "What's the matter, Chansey?"
"Chansey chansey!!" Chansey beckoned frantically, then ran back out towards the reception area. Alarmed, the three humans followed - to find Meowth draped over the counter, hanging on with his claws.
"Meowsingno ... gotta ... stop it," Meowth babbled incoherently. "Have to ... miss ... no ..."
"They must've run into the phantom!" Brock realized. "Look, there are Jessie and James, unconscious!"
"Chansey, get that Meowth to the ER, stat!" Joy ordered. "You two, see what you can do to bring them around; I have to do whatever can be done to bring Meowth back to its senses."
"Right!" Misty nodded, grabbing a Pokeball from her belt.
"Starmie, I choose you!" She threw the Pokeball towards Team Rocket; it opened in
mid- flight, and a blaze of energy flowed out to condense into the faceted gray form of Starmie. "Water Gun!" Misty ordered.
With a wordless shout, Starmie complied and hosed down Jessie and James with a spray of water from its uppermost limb.
Sputtering, the two humans woke up and leapt to their feet.
"Prepare for trouble!" Jessie shouted.
"Make it double ..." James trailed off, then elbowed Jessie as she started to go on with the Team Rocket motto. "Jessie, Meowth is missing!"
"To protect -" Jessie stopped, her gaze coming to rest on Misty and Brock. "Where's your friend with the Pikachu?"
Misty slapped a hand to her forehead. "He went off to find the same phantom that apparently attacked you and Meowth; Meowth is already being treated here - if that matters to you guys."
"Well, the Boss would be upset if we lost Meowth ..." James started.
"We don't have time to discuss Meowth!" Brock interrupted brusquely.
"We've gotta find Ash! What's the last thing you two remember?"
James and Jessie looked at each other for a moment.
"A shadow?"James asked.
"A shadow," Jessie nodded. "Floating overhead."
"And where were you when this happened?" Brock inquired.
"In the shrubs on a cliff ... between the edge of town and the sea," James remembered. "I was thinking of how exquisite the breeze from offshore smelled, that hint of salt in the air -" He was interrupted by a smack from Jessie.
"Meaning you were near the shore," Misty nodded. "All right, we've gotta get to the beach and find Ash - now. Are you two coming?"
"What happened to Meowth?" Jessie asked.
"If you mean what did the phantom do to him, go ask Nurse Joy," Brock growled. "You guys are lucky you're all right - better make sure your Pokemon are too."
Jessie nodded. "You're right ... Arbok, come out, you too Lickitung" She tossed her Pokeballs a short distance away, as James did the same with his own; Arbok , Lickitung and Weezing materialized.
"Charbok ..." "Weezing." "Lickiiiii"
"Sounds like they're okay," Misty said. "Now are you guys coming, or do we have to save Ash on our own?"
"First tell us what's going on!" Jessie demanded as she recalled Arbok and Lickitung
"There's a phantom out there that makes trainers disappear and does something to Pokemon that eventually kills them," Brock summarized. "Every trainer who's tried to find and capture it has disappeared, and Ash is out looking for it right now. Coming or staying?"
"I'll just go see how Meowth is doing ..." James started to side away.
Jessie sighed. "I'm coming too," she told Brock and Misty.
"No trying to grab Pikachu," Misty warned the older girl.
Jessie turned away and followed James towards the ER.
"Pika pika?" Pikachu looked up worriedly; clouds were gathering overhead.
"Looks like it's going to rain," Ash mused. "Guess we shouldn't go onto the water with a storm brewing." He started walking up the beach, heading north along the coast. "Come on, Pikachu."
"Pika pi." Pikachu scampered along on all fours, tagging behind Ash.
It started raining.
"Ash!!" Brock shouted as they reached the beach; by now the rain had grown into a full-fledged downpour. "Where are you?!"
"Staryu, Starmie, go find Ash!" Misty threw a pair of PokéBalls, and the two starfish-like Pokemon formed and flew off, spinning through the air.
"I hope we can find him," Brock muttered. "This weather is downright ominous ... huh?" He ran ahead, then crouched to examine the sand.
"Footprints! Ash and Pikachu must have gone this way!"
Misty nodded. "Staryu, Starmie, head north!" she called to her two water Pokemon, and they headed off in response.
"Pika ..." Pikachu looked up. "PIKA!!"
"What is -" Ash looked up as well. "YIKES!" He jumped back a pace, digging in his jacket pocket for Dexter; it took him a second to pull the Pokedex out and flip open the cover panel.
"Scanning," the electronic device reported. "No Pokemon identified."
The display screen stayed blank.
"No Pokemon identified?!" Ash pressed the scan switch, disbelieving.
"Scanning ... no Pokemon identified." Ash wasn't sure whether his Pokedex was malfunctioning or whether the rain was messing up its scanner; either way, there wasn't much he could do. Dexter, as he called his Pokedex, was supposed to be waterproof - but Ash put the device away just to be safe.
"All right, Pikachu, let's do it!"
The shadowy, indistinct form descended to alight on the beach in front of them, folding in extensions that vaguely resembled wings - or might have, if the creature had possessed any kind of solid, recognizable form. Its voice was like hissing thunder as it reared up, and growled, "Missingno ..."
Ash dug out his Pokedex again, flipping it open. "Dexter, access file for Missingno! - Get ready, Pikachu."
"Pika pika ..." Sounding uncertain, Pikachu shifted into a ready position, facing the monster.
Dexter chimed, but the screen continued to remain blank.
"Missingno. This shadowy phantom exists only in rumor, and has never been identified or captured. Also referred to as the 'Trainers' Bane,' it is said that Missingno has ended the careers of many promising young Pokemon trainers."
"Until now." Ash smiled as he put his Pokedex away. "Let's do it! Pikachu, use your Thundershock attack!"
"Pika, pikapika!" Pikachu looked back at Ash, visibly and audibly worried.
"Do it!" Ash ordered. "Quickly, before it gets the first move in!"
"Pika ..." Pikachu's cheeks started sparking as it looked at the unmoving Missingno. "Pika-CHU!!" Bolts of electricity lashed out at the phantom.
"Missingno!!" The phantom seemed to glow with heat as the Thundershock struck, and was absorbed. "Ssing ... !"
Pikachu waved on its feet. "Chuuu ..."
"Hit it again!" Ash shouted. "Thunder Wave!"
"Piskachun ..." Pikachu staggered back, dropping to all fours and shaking its head violently.
"Wha? Pikachu, what's wrong?" Ash knelt in the wet sand, laying his hand on Pikachu's back.
"Kachu ... Piskangno ..." Pikachu shook its head again, its voice slurring. "Pi ... ka ..." Its legs gave out, and Pikachu dropped to the sand, eyelids drooping."Missingno"
"Pikachu ..." Ash stood up, reaching to his belt for a Pokeball.
"All right, Missingno - try this one!" He expanded the Pokeball and threw it.
"Bulbasaur, attack! Razor Leaf!"
The ball opened in mid-flight, and Bulbasaur materialized on the sand. "Bulbasaur! Bulba!!" Leaves flew from the plant on its back.
The attack must have stung; Missingno roared, rearing up. "MISSINGNO!!" A blast of water rushed at Bulbasaur, knocking the half- plant Pokemon from its feet.
"Bulbasaur!" Ash cried, rushing to the fallen Pokemon's side. "Return!" he commanded, holding out the Pokeball. The beam struck Bulbasaur ... and nothing happened! "Bulbasaur, return!" Ash repeated the command.
Bulbasaur failed to dematerialize, its own eyes glazing over. "Bulbissingno ..."
"What??" Ash dropped to his knees. "Bulbasaur, are you all right?"
"Missingno," Bulbasaur repeated, and Ash's heart skipped a beat.
(This isn't possible!) Ash's mind screamed. (Pokemon usually only say their name, unless they learn to talk like humans! What's happened to Bulbasaur ... and Pikachu?)
Ash didn't see Staryu and Starmie spin past over his head, and hardly heard the noise as they collided with Missingno, forcing the monster back with their combined Tackle attack.
"Ash!!" Brock and Misty climbed over the ridge, jumping back down to the beach. "Ash, get up!" Brock shouted as the two gym leaders ran over to Ash and his two fallen Pokemon.
"We've got to get out of here!" Misty yelled as she hauled Ash to his feet. "Hurry!"
"I'm not leaving without Pikachu and Bulbasaur," Ash growled as he turned to face the shadowy phantom. "And this monster is going to pay for the damage it's done!" He plucked all four of his remaining PokéBalls from his belt, expanding two in each hand. "Wartortle, Charizard, Muk, Pidgeot: GO!! Mass attack!"
"NO!!" Brock tackled Ash, forcing him to the sand before the younger boy could throw the PokéBalls and release the rest of his team. "We have to get you, Bulbasaur, and Pikachu back to the Pokemon Centre while there's still a chance to save all of you! Missingno is dangerous - *too* dangerous!"
Misty was already picking Pikachu up off the sand. "Staryu, Starmie, stay high and don't let it attack you!" she shouted up to the two flying starfish. "Staryu, use Swift from a distance!"
With an answering grunt, Staryu hovered and released its Swift attack, sending showers of glowing energy-stars down at Missingno. Starmie flew back and forth, trying to distract the phantom from a counterattack.
"MISSINGNO!!" The enraged monster lumbered towards Ash, raising an indistinct arm and spreading a set of *very* distinct claws.
"Pika pika ..." Pikachu broke loose from Misty's arms, then slowly got up, standing on its hind legs. "Pikapika Chu!" It stood directly in Missingno's path.
The phantom actually paused, looking down at the electric mouse. "Missingno ... !"
Pikachu shook its head violently, dropping to all fours. "Pikano ..."
Ash swallowed hard. "Pikachu ... fight it! Don't let it get you!"
"Pimissingno." Pikachu looked up at the phantom. "Missingno!"
"NO!!" screamed Ash, breaking free of Brock's restraining hold and running to Pikachu's side. "Pikachu, fight it! Don't let it destroy you!"
"Missingno." Pikachu's voice was flat and unwavering.
"Pikachu ...!" moaned Ash in despair. "Please, come back to me!"
"Missingno ..." The shadowy phantom advanced towards Ash again.
"I'll get you!!" Ash ran towards Missingno in turn, expanding an empty Pokeball as he ran. "Pokeball ..."
"Starmie, stop that Pokeball!!" Misty shouted. "Don't let Ash capture that monster!"
"GO!!" Ash threw the Pokeball at Missingno with all his strength.
Starmie shot down as though flung from the clouds above, skimming past Missingno to clip the Pokeball with a turning limb; the deflected Pokeball bounced into the sand, untriggered.
Pikachu struggled as Misty picked it up again. "Missingno!" it squealed, squirming violently in the girl's arms.
"Starmie, tackle Ash!" Misty ordered reluctantly. "We've got to snap him out of this ..."
With a grunt, Starmie reversed course and slammed into the young trainer, hurling him to the ground.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"Make it double!"
Lightning flashed, a boom of thunder echoing as two more figures leapt to the beach from the ridge.
"To protect the world from devastation -"
"To unite all peoples within our nation -"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above -"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"It's not that we don't appreciate your help," Brock shouted over another crack of thunder, "but we really need help right now more than speeches!"
"Arbok, Glare attack!" Jessie released her Pokemon, and it speared Missingno with a paralyzing look.
"Weezing, Smoke Screen!" James's own Pokemon released a dense, greenish vapor cloud that obscured vision.
"C'mon!" Ash coughed, scooping Bulbasaur up in his arms. "Let's get out of here!"
"Staryu, Starmie, meet us back at the Pokemon Centre!" Misty shouted as they all started running, leaving the phantom behind.
"So Missingno is the name of that phantom?" Nurse Joy asked as they sat together in the isolation ward.
"Uh-huh," Ash nodded. "I can't even remember clearly what it looked like ..."
"I would just call it 'horrible' and leave it at that, Ash,"
Misty suggested. "No way was that even a Pokemon; it's just a monster."
"And now Pikachu and Bulbasaur are ..." Ash looked up at the two beds occupied by his wounded Pokemon. "Nurse, isn't there *anything* we can do?"
"I have no idea," Joy sighed. "But none of the Pokemon who've been attacked by Missingno have ever recovered; you're the first trainer who's ever encountered Missingno and returned to talk about it."
"What are we going to do about Meowth?" Jessie fretted. "If the Boss finds out what happened, we're history!"
"Missingno," Meowth murmured in his sleep. Jessie and James both flinched.
"There's nothing we can do," Brock finally said, setting down his teacup. "Ash, would you like us to leave while you say goodbye to your Pokemon?"
"Say goodbye?!" Ash looked up. "I'm not going to leave Pikachu and Bulbasaur here!"
"Ash," Joy said gently, "the chances that they'll ever recover are ..." She paused, glancing around the room. "... practically nonexistent," she finished in a resigned tone. "They'll probably be dead in a couple of months, at the most. There's nothing you can do for them now."
"There *has* to be!" Ash shouted, bringing his fists down on the table that they'd brought in. "Pikachu was my first Pokemon; I'm not going to abandon him! Not Bulbasaur, either!"
Brock laid a hand over one of Ash's fists. "Take it easy ..."
Ash jerked his hand away, shaking his head defiantly. "Even if Pikachu and Bulbasaur *are* gonna die, I'm going to stay here with them until the end."
He looked down. "It's my fault they're hurt ... the least I can do is be with them, until they die."
"Ash ..." Misty looked up at him gently, her voice soft.
"Psyduck!" A flare of energy forced its way out of Misty's duffel bag, solidifying into a familiar form.
Misty groaned. "Not *now,* Psyduck ..."
"Wait a minute," Brock thought out loud. "Whatever happened to these Pokemon is basically psychic in nature, right?"
"So maybe Psyduck's powerful enough to undo it?" Ash asked.
In disbelief, Misty looked down at her Psyduck, which was holding its head in its flippers. "I guess we haven't got anything to lose ... all right, Psyduck, try to wake Pikachu up."
"Psy!" Psyduck waddled over, and hauled itself up onto Pikachu's bed.
"Psyduck! Psyyyy ..."
The six humans watched as Psyduck's gaze bored into the nearly comatose Pikachu. A vein started throbbing on the side of Psyduck's forehead as it concentrated harder, and harder ...
"Psy!!" The psychic water Pokemon toppled over, falling backwards off the bed and hitting the floor headfirst. "Psy-yie-yie!"
"Psyduck ...!!" Misty clenched a fist, a vein throbbing on her own forehead now.
"Wait a minute," Ash said as he stood up. "Maybe Psyduck can't do this itself."
"What are you suggesting?" Brock wondered.
"Well, all of the sick Pokemon are repeating Missingno's name instead of their own," Ash pointed out. "Maybe if Psyduck tries to wake Pikachu while I'm there, concentrating on Pikachu's name ..."
The other four Pokemon trainers exchanged looks. "It might just work,"
James commented.
"It might," Jessie agreed. "Let's try it on Meowth first."
Ash was about to argue, but Joy cut him off. "Meowth was attacked first out of this group," she pointed out. "If Psyduck gets tired, I've got some Elixer that'll restore its energy. Let's try it."
A moment or so later, Jessie and James were sitting on Meowth's bed with the Pokemon between them; Psyduck was facing them from the next bed over.
"Psy ..."
"Time to wake up, Meowth," whispered Jessie. "Giovanni is worried about you."
"Let's go, Meowth!" urged James. "We have lots of Pokemon to capture!"
"Psy-yie ..." Psyduck was beginning to glow now.
"Come on, Psyduck," Misty whispered from behind her Pokemon. "If anyone can do this, you can."
Ash was sitting on Bulbasaur's bed, with Pikachu in his arms; Brock and Nurse Joy were standing out of the way, next to Chansey.
"Psyyyyyyyyyy ..." Psyduck wasn't just glowing with an aura now, but practically vibrating with its effort. "Psyyyyyyy-*duck!!*" It sat down abruptly, the light flaring, Psyduck's eyes going bright blue.
Every other being in the room, human and Pokemon, awake or asleep, winced as a wave of psychic energy blasted through all of their minds at once. All of the comatose Pokemon cried out, and started to wake up.
"Meowth ..." Meowth's eyes slowly opened, his gaze focusing on Jessie and James. "Wha? What happened?"
"Bulbasaur ..." "Pika-chu!" Ash's Pokemon roused as well, shaking off the unnatural sleep they'd been plunged into.
"All right!!" Brock cheered as the other Pokemon started to wake up.
"It worked! They're all getting back to normal!"
"Psyduck, what's wrong?" Misty looked worriedly at her still- glowing Pokemon.
"Chansey chansey!" Chansey bounded over to Psyduck, looking at it, then looked up at Misty. "Chaaaansey!"
Nurse Joy smiled. "Chansey means that Psyduck is ..."
"... evolving!" Misty finished in a whisper as Psyduck's outline began to blur and change. "The exertion of bringing all of the Pokemon back must have triggered its evolution!"
"Golduck!" The glow faded as Psyduck, now a full Golduck, hopped off of the bed and looked at Misty.
Grinning, Ash flipped open his Pokedex and activated the readout.
"Golduck: the evolved form of Psyduck. Possessing psychic abilities similar to those of a Psyduck, Golduck is an agile and powerful combatant both in and out of water. Its perpetual headache has also gone away, leaving no obstacles to its use of psychic attacks."
"All right!" Misty cheered, jumping for joy. "Congratulations, Golduck!"
"Gol, gol," Golduck chuckled, looking relatively smug.
Ash closed his Pokedex and put it away. "How do you feel, Pikachu?"
"Pi-ka-chu!" Pikachu jumped, doing a backflip in the air, then rubbed against Ash's side. "Pika, pikachu!"
"Bulbasaur, bulba-Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur added. "Bulbasaur, saur!"
"Thanks for your help, Golduck," Joy told the newly evolved Pokemon.
She then turned to look at Ash. "These other Pokemon will have to find new trainers now, or return to the wild; I'll pass the message along that any trainers who come to Cinnabar Island need to be careful of Missingno."
"About that phantom," Meowth said as he sat up. "I don't think it's going to trouble your average trainer ..."
"Why is that, Meowth?" James asked as the others gathered around.
"Don't ask me how I know this, but I think that thing only appears if someone's out looking for it. It's kind of like bait for overeager trainers,"
Meowth opined. "Bait, and trap all in one."
"But what happens to trainers who capture it?" Ash wondered.
"Nothing's happened to me ..."
"Count yourself lucky you didn't find out," Joy told Ash, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Nearly losing two of your Pokemon is bad enough ... now, you take really good care of all of your Pokemon, all right?"
"Don't worry," Ash smiled up at her. "I will!"