Raiden and Gary's Squirtle stood in a glaring contest, trying to syke their opponent out. After a few moments, Gary called out a command.
"Squirtle use Water Gun!"
"Rai! Spark!"
Raiden charged through Squirtle's Water Gun and used Spark. The turtle was on its last legs, and Rai tackled him to serve as the end.
Gary sighed in defeat. "Not bad Ashy-boy, I will beat you though."
Ash smiled, "I look forward to it, Gar-bear."
Leaf stepped in between the two. "Girls, girls, you're both pretty. Can we get moving now?"
They all grinned, and soon parted ways for now, for each journey is their own. Ash said goodbye to his friends and family, and headed off towards Viridian City.
He looked to Raiden before they got moving. "You ready to start our journey, Rai?"
The Shinx nodded, trilling loudly.
Ash grinned. "Let's go!"
XxxxX
After a little while on the road, Ash remembered to scan Raiden to find out what he really was capable of.
"Shinx, the Flash Pokémon. The extension and contraction of its muscles generates electricity. It glows when in trouble. All of its fur dazzles if danger is sensed. It flees while the foe is momentarily blinded. This Pokémon is Male. Ability: Guts (hidden) Known moves: Tackle, Leer, Flash, Spark, Bite, Ice Fang (egg), Night Slash (egg)."
Ash whistled in awe. The Shinx in front of him was going to be a monster in battle. The ability also explains a bit of Raiden's behavior.
Abilities affect the personality of a Pokémon sometimes. If Raiden had Intimidate as his ability, he'd have a chance of his personality to be mean-spirited or nasty. If he had Rivalry, there's a chance he wouldn't be able to stand other male Pokémon, going crazy anytime another male was in his vicinity. Luckily, Guts hasn't impacted the Shinx's behavior too much.
Ash smiled at his starter. "Well buddy, looks like you're pretty strong already. We'll have to train your egg moves, and it will be difficult. But that's for later, how about we go find a Pokémon to catch? Find a new member for our team?"
Raiden trilled at Ash, and followed him down the route. Soon enough, they came across a Pidgey.
Ash crouched as they approached, and Raiden followed suit. They stopped when they were a few feet away. Ash quietly, oh so quietly, prepared a pokéball.
Ash whispered a command to Raiden. "Rai, use Spark."
The Shinx nodded slightly and creeped closer to the Pidgey, pouncing a second later.
"Rrrrooowl!"
The Pidgey squawked and was hit before it could fly away. Ash threw the pokéball and it hit the bird spot on. A few seconds later, the ball dinged in a successful capture.
Ash grabbed the ball, with a face-splitting grin on his face. He pumped the ball in the air.
"Yeeeeaah! First catch!" He looked to the proud Shinx prancing about. "Way to go, buddy! Excellent job!" Raiden stopped and preened in Ash's praise.
Once their excitement dialed down, Ash let out the Pidgey and scanned it with the pokédex.
"Pidgey, the Tiny Bird Pokémon. It's a common sight in forests and woods. Pidgey flaps its wings at ground level to kick up blinding sand. Normally docile, but if attacked it can be ferocious. This Pokémon is Female. Ability: Keen Eye. Known Moves: Tackle, Sand Attack, Peck, Gust."
Ash nodded, he could work with that. He looked towards the Pidgey, who was batting away a wandering paw from his electric feline. He snapped, grabbing the attention of both Pokémon.
"Rai, leave our teammate alone." The Shinx sulked away from the bird. Ash glanced at Raiden and shook his head, and returned his gaze to Pidgey. "Hey there, would you like a nickname? Something that stands out?"
Pidgey nodded immediately, wasting no time. Ash chuckled a bit.
"Alright, how about Tempest?"
Pidgey thought, then decided she could respond to that name. She nodded at Ash.
In turn, he grinned.
"Welcome to the team, Tempest. Now we're one step closer to becoming the Pokémon Master!"
They all cheered at that, laughing afterwards. Ash returned Pidgey to rest, and headed off towards Viridian City once more.
XxxxX
Ash stumbled into a clearing, and thought it was perfect area to sleep in. It was long into the night, the only thing keeping him awake was his adrenaline and Raiden's flashes from his tail and ears.
"Alright, buddy. We're stopping here for the night. We should be able to get to Viridian tomorrow afternoon."
Raiden meowed in relief, and slumped onto the ground. He didn't fall asleep right away, though; he made sure Ash fell asleep before he did.
Ash, meanwhile, let out Tempest so she could stay out with them. Since she was already well-rested, the Pidgey decided to keep lookout.
Ash nodded, very drowsy, and pulled out his sleeping bag. He laid it down next to Raiden, and fell asleep almost immediately, with his Pokémon watching over him.
XxxxX
"Squaaawk!"
A low growl followed. The sounds pierced through the still mid-morning air. Raiden bolted up from his cat nap, and started nudging Ash, who was miraculously still asleep.
"Buh, wuh? Raiden?"
He blinked, and noticed there was a quite angry Houndour in front of Tempest, who was blocking the way to Ash. That's strange, he thought. Houndour live in Johto, about a hundred miles to the west of his current location. While it wouldn't be impossible for a wild Houndour to be here, it was still very rare. Ash was very cautious. Houndour tended to travel in packs.
That's when he noticed it.
The white foam around the canine's mouth.
"Tempest! Don't let it bite you! Keep a distance!"
This was bad - very, very bad. It reminded him of when he was chased by Pokémon. Thinking back, those Pokémon might have been on the verge of becoming fully rabid and feral.
He now realised how lucky and unlucky he was at the same time.
Shaking the thoughts from his head, he readied a pokéball and shouted commands to his brave Pidgey.
"Tempest! Use Sand Attack!"
The bird responded immediately by kicking up dirt into the Houndour's eyes. It snarled at the offending bird, ready to pounce.
"Tempest, again!"
She duly kicked more dirt into the canine's eyes.
"Again!"
Sensing a pattern, the Pidgey kept kicking dirt over and over into the Houndour's eyes. She kept doing so until Ash issued a different command.
"Use Gust!"
Tempest flew into the air a couple feet, and gathered winds. Once she deemed the winds sufficient, she sent them towards the fumbling canine.
The Houndour was blown into a nearby tree, and let out a loud yell on impact. Ash threw the pokéball afterwards, hitting the dog straight on.
The Houndour struggled for a bit, but eventually Ash and his team heard the telltale "ding" to signify a capture.
Ash couldn't let the canine back out in its condition, and instead turned to his team.
"Great work, Tempest. Without you on lookout, we probably would have been bit."
The Pidgey glowed in Ash's praise, not quite grasping how dire the situation actually was. Raiden pouted, but was glad all the same. He brushed up against Ash, sending tingles up the boy's legs.
Ash laughed and pet the Shinx on the head. Raiden always knew how to lift Ash's spirits. Ash composed himself and looked back towards Tempest.
"Hey, could you find the quickest route to Viridian City?"
The Pidgey cocked her head in confusion. The words made no sense to her, having only limited knowledge of the human language.
Raiden, who was more of an expert, explained to the bird what Ash was trying to convey. This time, Tempest nodded and took off.
Ash sighed. "I hope we get there in time."
XxxxX
After a rush through the last part of the route to town - thanks to Tempest - Ash was quickly stopped by an officer.
"I need to see an ID, kid."
Rather than argue with the impatient officer, Ash complied with her demand. He pulled out his pokédex and handed it to her. She examined it for a second, then nodded in satisfaction.
"Sorry for that, sir. Lately there's been an increase in criminal rates and Pokémon smuggling. I needed to make sure you were a trainer, since you have Pokémon on you." The officer gestured to his belt.
Ash nodded to show he was listening and not about to bolt off in a hurry. He hurriedly excused himself, and rushed towards his real destination: the Pokémon Centre.
Ash briskly strode through the double-door entrance, making his way to the reception desk.
"Nurse! Can you help? I found a canine Pokémon in the wild with rabies."
The nurse took on a serious manner, and asked for information about the Pokémon as she requested for a doctor.
"I'm going to need the type of Pokémon, how it looked, and its state of being, if possible."
"It was a Houndour," he set the pokéball down on the desk as he started explaining. "When it found me, it was already foaming at the mouth and it was quite thin, but not starving. The fur was displaced, but not unkempt. It looked like it was just released from a trainer, I can't think of any other reason why a Johto Pokémon would be this far from the border without a pack."
The pink-haired nurse took notes, and when the doctor arrived, the nurse handed the notes over to the doctor.
"Thank you, Joy." She said. After she read the notes, the doctor looked at Ash. "I'm going in the back to check the condition of this Houndour. I'll heal your other Pokémon too, just to make sure they didn't contract the disease." Ash handed her his other Pokémon. "It might be awhile, so I suggest going to the cafeteria to wait and eat your fill. Joy will page you when I'm done."
Ash nodded, still quite shaken. He hadn't even realized his stomach was growling. He headed towards the cafeteria, where many trainers were socializing, or agonizing. Ash made his way toward the buffet and grabbed a sandwich and a drink.
As he sat down and started eating, there seemed to be a commotion to his left.
"Buzz off, Richard. I don't need this."
"Babe, I'm only trying to help."
Ash turned to look and see an older girl pointing at an even older guy accusingly. Ah, he thought, that must be Richard.
"You only wanted me for my family."
"Oh please, your Pokémon are not your family."
"Ugh, I can't believe this, good-bye Richard. May our paths never cross again." She turned away and looked in Ash's direction. Their eyes may have met, but the girl turned away towards the door, dark brown hair flowing behind her.
Ash looked away, left with the feeling that he wanted to punch Richard, but didn't act on it.
He picked at his food for another twenty minutes or so when his name was finally called.
"Ash Ketchum to the front desk."
He practically leaped to the front desk; the anticipation of waiting was killing him. As he arrived, he saw the doctor with a grim look on her face. His heart fell, knowing that bad news was coming.
"Mr. Ketchum-"
"Please, just call me Ash."
"Alright, Ash. We did some scans and bloodwork, with all hands on deck for this one. We found that Houndour is too far gone to save. I'm really sorry."
Ash was crushed. Even if the dog had tried to kill him, he didn't want it to die like this. Then, he thought of his other Pokémon. "What about Raiden and Tempest? My Shinx and Pidgey?"
"They are both fine, a little roughed up, but fine. It's quite a miracle, actually. Houndour ar usually quite aggressive anyway, so both Pokémon managing to not get bit was quite a feat. A job well done, Ash."
Ash gave a small smile. "I'm not the one doing all the work, though."
The doctor looked at Ash. "Ash, for a new trainer to instill loyalty that strong in Pokémon is quite a feat on its own. How long have you been training them?"
"Raiden, the Shinx, for about a year since he was an egg. Tempest, the Pidgey, who also did the fighting, about a day."
The doctor smiled. "That is indeed quite something. You're going to do great things, I can tell." She handed him two pokéballs, and held a third in her hand. "Now, I'm going to give you a choice: do you want to put down Houndour, or should we? Keep in mind that we have to put it down in a contained environment, I'm just giving you the option to "pull the trigger" so to speak."
Ash shook his head. "I don't think I'll be able to go through with it, doctor."
The doctor smiled sadly at Ash. "One day you'll have to deal with mortality, it is a part of being a Pokémon trainer, unfortunately. Let's just hope that day is far into the future."
Ash was silent, and the doctor took this as her cue. "Ash Ketchum, it was a pleasure. I don't believe I told you my name. You can call me Dr. Dawson."
Ash took her hand and shook it firmly. "It was a pleasure, Dr. Dawson."
Although technically it wasn't the greatest time for Ash, he still enjoyed Dawson's personality. He waved goodbye to Nurse Joy and Dr. Dawson, and headed out the doors.
He headed in the direction of the gym in Viridian. Ash wanted to see an inspiring battle before he left to the forest.
He walked up to the gate, and was stopped by a guard. "No one but the challenger is allowed inside, kid. Are you going to challenge the gym?"
Ash sighed. "No, I just wanted to watch a battle before I headed off to Viridian Forest. I'll just leave I guess."
The guard said nothing and Ash walked off in disappointment. However, when he heard the door to the gym slam open, he looked to see what was going on.
"This is bullshit! I want a rematch!"
Ash saw an older kid fuming out of the door, the Virdian Gym Leader Giovanni following him.
"You can have a rematch in a week, as is my policy. Maybe next time I'll go easy on you. Or not." He grinned mischievously, amused by the whole situation.
The boy reached for one of his pokéballs in frustration, but an angry Nidoking standing behind Giovanni stopped him. The boy fumed all the way to the Pokémon Centre.
"Sir, someone was watching." A guard said, pointing toward Ash.
Giovanni glanced at Ash. "Indeed, I'll deal with it, don't worry." The gym leader strode over to Ash, wasting no time. "..."
Ash wondered what the problem was. "Uh, can I go? All I wanted to do was watch a battle, but your guards turned me away." More silence met his words. "I'm just gonna go."
As Ash was about to turn away, Giovanni stopped him. "Hey kid, are you a new trainer?"
Ash looked at him. "Yeah, why?"
"Hmmm, how would you feel about testing your skills against my Nidoking here? I could give you pointers. Hell, if you win at your level, I'll give you a badge."
Ash pondered for a moment. Neither of his Pokémon could be able to defeat Nidoking at their current state, Raiden even had a disadvantage.
"I'm not sure, what are the rules to this?"
Giovanni chuckled, he was pretty sure he hooked the kid. "Old Nido here will not use any moves, only his strength. If you and your Pokémon manage to move him at all, you win."
There was no chance he could win, Ash knew that, but he took up the challenge anyway, to test his skills against a - very - experienced opponent.
"Okay, I'll do it."
Giovanni grinned, and gestured to the guards to open the doors to the gym. "Follow me, boy."
Ash did so, marveling at the interior structure of the magnificent gym. By the time he focused on the field, Giovanni was on the other side with his Nidoking in the middle of the battlefield.
"What was your name? I don't believe I asked."
"It's Ash Ketchum, sir."
Giovanni paused. "Hmm. Okay, Ash, send out your Pokémon, all of them."
Ash duly sent out his Pidgey and Shinx, the latter causing a look of confusion to cross the Viridian Gym Leader's face.
Ash, noticing the look, answered his unspoken question. "He was my starter, who was an egg I got from Professor Oak."
Not totally the truth, but it would have been a long story. Luckily, the answer seemed to suffice, and he motioned to the referee to give the signal.
"This is a battle between Viridian Gym Leader Giovanni, and Ash Ketchum of...?" He looked at Ash.
"Pallet Town."
"And Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. The rules have been determined and agreed upon by both challenger and leader. Begin!"
Ash started immediately by calling commands to his Pokémon. "Tempest, use Sand Attack! Raiden, can you try an Ice Fang, buddy?"
Tempest duly started to kick up sand at her opponent, and Raiden tried to gather ice energy into his teeth, but ultimately failed, ending up being a mildly cold bite as he bit down on Nidoking.
Nidoking had not budged from his position, and used his tail to sweep the Shinx away, even with the vaguely irritating sand in his eyes. This knocked Raiden back to Ash's side of the field. He wasn't out yet, though.
"Tempest, use Peck! Go for the base of the neck!"
Ash knew that he couldn't get to the actual weak spot of Nidoking - the jugular - because he didn't want Tempest make an unnecessary sacrifice. Ash knew his Pokémon weren't strong enough for this match. Ash knew a lot of things - surprisingly - and he knew he was going to bring out the best in his Pokémon.
"Rai, go and Tackle Nidoking as hard as you can!"
The Shinx growled in acknowledgment, and started a run from his side of the field, all the way to Nidoking, who was being distracted by an annoying bird. There was a loud smack as Raiden tackled the side of Nidoking, but he still hadn't managed to move him.
That's when Nidoking decided enough was enough. He grabbed the bird and the cat, and threw them to Ash's side of the field. He returned them before they hit the ground.
Ash looked up to the sound of Giovanni clapping, an impressed look on his face.
"You made Nidoking use some more of his strength. At your level, that's pretty good. I assume the Ice Fang was an egg move?" Ash nodded as an answer. "Very impressive. Although, as I'm sure you know, you need to practice egg moves so they become second nature to the Pokémon. Practice will help hone your skills, don't forget that."
"Yes, sir. Thank you for the battle, but I should probably get going, I wanted to get some good headway into Viridian Forest today."
Giovanni quirked a smile. "Very well. If you ever need tips on ground types, you can contact me." He went over to Ash, and gave him his business card. "All my details are on here, don't be a stranger."
Ash nodded. "Thank you, sir. I'll be sure to contact you if I need it. I'll see you for my eighth badge." Giovanni waved in goodbye and Ash waved back, slightly confused. Ash heard rumours that the Viridian Gym Leader was a shady guy, but he was nice to Ash. He shrugged, maybe there was more to people than meets the eye.
XxxxX
Ash sat down, weary from his adventure through the bug-infested forest. It was dusk, and while the forest looked beautiful, Ash just wanted to sleep.
Of course, nothing is that simple.
In the middle of the night, Ash was woken up by a concerned Tempest and a growling Raiden. In front of the trio, a large Pinsir was towering over the group.
Ash, still blinking sleep out of his eyes, returned Tempest, quickly grabbed his stuff, and started running. Raiden growled in warning at Pinsir, and followed Ash deeper into the wood. The Pinsir huffed and turned away, too tired to deal with trespassers.
Ash panted his wispy breath into the air, Raiden close behind, keeping a lookout and being the faint lightsource for Ash.
Raiden jumped in surprise when Ash threw his bag on the ground and laid down with the bag as a pillow. He was too tired to do anything else, and Raiden curled into Ash, keeping both of them warm.
The next morning, Ash woke up to someone shaking him awake.
"Hnng, go away. Five more minutes."
The shaking only intensified, and both Raiden and Ash were grumpy when they got up. Ash's grumpiness faded when he saw that it was Leaf who was shaking him awake. It was still dark, but Raiden provided all the light he needed.
"Ash, tell your glowstick to turn it off, this is serious."
"Leaf?" After Raiden turned off his flash, Leaf responded.
"Ash, you're lucky I'm here. While you were still sleeping, I fended off some Weedle who were trying to make you a midnight snack." She pointed upwards, and Ash saw a faint white in the trees, only visible by moonlight.
"Wow, I can't believe I chose the worst spot in the whole forest to sleep, never mind that Pinsir."
Leaf held out a hand to Ash, which he took. She hoisted the boy up, after which Ash dusted himself off and grabbed his bag.
"I don't know, Pinsir are dangerous. But let's get out of here before they try to make both of us snacks."
They took off running, throwing caution to the wind. Weedle were dangerous; they could poison their targets and eventually wrap their prey in silk so they can suck the nutrients out of the prey's body. They are especially dangerous in numbers, but its uncommon to find a nest so close to human civilization. Ash must have been deep in the forest, or the wild Pokémon are acting weird. Ash wondered what the truth was.
"We should be far enough now, are you good to go to Pewter City? Or should we stop and make camp?"
Ash, who was no longer able to go back to sleep, responded. "Let's keep going. That is, if you're up to it, Leaf." Ash grinned.
Leaf smirked. "You're on, Ketchum."
They goaded each other on, through the night to the early morning, helping each other forget the events that happened - and what could have happened - during the night.
XxxxX
Eventually, they both made it to Pewter City, and what a gracious sight that was to the weary travelers. Ash clumsily returned his Shinx, turning to Leaf afterward.
"Do you see the Pokémon Centre, Leaf?"
She nodded and Ash followed Leaf through the gray city, so tired. So, so tired.
"Ash."
He jerked his head up to look at Leaf, noticing that she held two keys in her hands. When had they made it to the Centre?
"You look exhausted, Ash. Here follow me to the rooms." Ash duly did so, all he wanted was a bed.
"Here, take this room and get some rest." Leaf held open a door for Ash, and he all but collapsed on the bed. He remembered to let out Tempest and Raiden, then promptly fell asleep. Leaf chuckled at the events and went to her own room, just as tired as Ash.
XxxxX
Ash got up and yawned, confused at why he was still in dirty clothes. It was dark outside, that much he could tell. The events that happened during the day - or yesterday, he didn't know what time it was - were recalled, although they were a bit hazy.
He noticed his Pokémon in the room, Tempest sleeping on a perch bolted in the wall, and Raiden, who was curled by Ash's feet, yawning and getting up with Ash. In turn, Tempest slowly woke up, softly chirping in greeting to Ash.
Ash smiled. "I'm going to head to the cafeteria, guys. Would you like something?"
Both mewled/chirped in confirmation. Raiden wanted to go with Ash though. He chuckled as the Shinx rubbed against his legs and purred like a motor.
"Alright, Raiden you can come. Tempest, do you want to come too?" The Pidgey responded by staying put, nestling on the perch, and chirped at Ash.
Ash chuckled again at another headbutt from the purring cat. "Okay, Tempest can hold the fort while Raiden and I grab some food."
As he opened the door, he noticed a key with a note attached on the lock.
"Ash, since you were so tired, I left the key on the door. I'm fairly certain if anyone tried to get in, they would be met with an angry electric-type. Make sure you grab this key, and pay me back for the room!
-Leaf"
Ash made a mental note to pay back Leaf, and thank her. But for now, the cafeteria awaits.
When he arrived in the cafeteria, he noticed a few other night owls, and, surprisingly, not only Leaf, but Gary at a table in the front.
Gary, who was facing Ash's direction, smirked. "Looks like Ashy-boy the sleepy head finally gets to join us, Leaf was worried, you know."
Ash waved him off, and sat next to both of them at the circular table, Raiden laying beside his feet. "Thank you, Leaf. For the room and key."
Leaf turned to look at him. "Don't worry about it Ash. But you slept for a long time, Ash. Longer than a Snorlax."
Gary turned to Ash. "Sounded like one, too."
Ash playfully punched Gary in the arm, a bit harder than necessary. "And how would you know, Gar-bear? Do you stalk people when they sleep?"
Gary crossed his arms and looked mildy offended. "Ash," he started, taken aback. "You know I only stalk people when they're changing, that's the best time."
Both boys laughed, while Leaf rolled her eyes. "Please Gary, don't lie. I know you stalk people anytime they are in the bathroom."
The boys laughed harder, and Leaf joined in for a few snickers. As they all calmed down, Ash looked somewhat serious.
"What kind of food do they serve here? I'm famished, absolutely starving."
Gary turned away. "Quick, hide the Ponyta! Ashy-boy could go on a rampage any minute! Find some sustenance for the boy!"
As Gary turned back to cheeky smile at his friends, Ash punched him again. Leaf rolled her eyes once more.
"Ash, they have some good subs here. Back in the deli section, there's a whole variety."
Ash nodded toward Leaf and looked pointedly at Gary. "Thanks, Leaf. You are such a great help. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Leaf put a hand to her chest. "I know, darling. You couldn't survive without my helpful and useful skills and guidance."
It was Gary's turn to roll his eyes, but they all laughed again anyway.
After Ash was suitably fed and so was Raiden, he grabbed some seeds for Tempest, and went to go feed her. Both Gary and Leaf stayed in the cafeteria, and Ash eventually returned, with both his Pokémon in their pokéballs.
He smirked at both of his childhood friends. "Who's up for a battle?"
Gary and Leaf glanced at each other, grinned, then turned back to Ash.
In unison, they both replied. "You're on!"
That's the end to Chapter 1, folks! Featuring Ash, the unwilling insomniac. Guest starring Leaf, the savior, and Gary, the jester. No real gym battles yet, but the kids will get there eventually. Once they stop having battles between themselves, but whatever.
Hope you liked today's Chapter! I kind of powered through at the end here, so if you notice any mistakes, don't hesitate to let me know. Also, if you liked, disliked, are confused about anything, let me know!
I'm always open to suggestions, and if it doesn't spoil anything in my flexible plot, I'll clarify stuff about the story. Thanks for reading and have a nice day/evening/whatever time it is, Ciao!