I thought that I'd receive at least one review about the cliff hanger
I hate being kept in suspense about things, so I feel your pain. Sort of... since I actually know who they are xD. If you haven't guessed, Jean seems to feel some sort of rivalry with Callum because of her easy defeat. Callum is pretty much a nice guy, and so you'll probably see some scenes where Jean's taking his actual kindness as an insult xD. Except he won't be around again until around Chapter 10. Chapter 6 or 7 is when we'll be seeing Hayden up against the first gym leader, which I can imagine your all thinking 'OH ROCK TYPE FOR FIRST GYM EH?'
Well, it might seem typical, but the other types are different from the usual line up. Anyways, enough chitter chatter and let's get on with the chapter and find out who Elise and Alex are!

Enter; Team Rocket!

Jean let out a low grumble as she felt more thorns dig into her ankle through her socks, and swung a stick at a bush in an attempt to vent her anger. She glared up at Hayden's back, but only had a few seconds warning as a branch he had been pushing out of his way swung back and missed the top of her head by inches. "That is IT Hayden Ranner!" she cried, stomping the last few feet out of the dangerous undergrowth and stumbling onto a large dirt path. "If we follow any more of your shortcuts I'm going to get Ash to burn your behind so much that-".

"Oh do be quiet Jean, some of us are trying to look for Pokémon" he smirked over his shoulder. She didn't respond but began to snap her twig into pieces while looking daggers at him. Hayden had thought it would be a good idea to follow his instincts and find shortcuts of his own instead of following the map feature on his Pokedex. The result had been an hour added onto the estimate arrival of the path and a very bad mooded Jean.

Hayden held his hand up against the setting sun's rays as he glanced up and down the path they landed on, checking which direction Hailen Town was. Soon enough he had spotted the few tall buildings from Hailen, and possibly even the gym roof, a square block of rock and cement it looked like. That caused a little somersault in his stomach, and he turned away, scanning the trees for a sign of a wild Pokémon. Ever since Callum had told him that the first gym leader used Rock Pokémon, Hayden had become worried. Something that Jean had apparently caught on. She strode to stand next to him and observed him harshly with narrowed eyes.

"What's wrong Hayden? What's with the sudden rush to find another Pokémon?" she asked, crossing her arms. He looked away before replying.

"Oh you know... I think Volts getting lonely, that's all" he coughed, starting towards some more bushes. Jean shook her head.

"He's got Jade and Ash for company at the moment" she snapped. He had his back to her as he bent down to inspect the bush, but she could still see his ears reddening.

"I just want a new Pokémon, is that alright!" he said acidly as he realised there was no Pokémon lying dormant in the bush and spun round to face her, looking annoyed. She raised an eyebrow, but he shrugged. "Now shall we just start making our way to Hailen again?" Jean opened her mouth to 

say something but he held up a hand. "End of discussion". She glared at him from the corner of her eyes as she followed him through a small opening. Why she was following him she didn't know, since they could easily just have made their way down the dirt path leading directly to Hailen Town.

Hayden sighed to himself, quickly checking over his shoulder to see if Jean was still glaring at him. She was now engrossed in studying something on her Pokedex, he breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't understand, and talking to Jean about what was wrong seemed a little... strange. Besides, he knew she'd poke fun at him nonstop. Sniffing a little, he turned his attention to the surrounding trees.

They were pretty much the same as all the other trees and bushes in the huge woods of Redville, tall and thick and brown. There were a few wild Taillow flying about above the tree tops and some scurrying Spinarak that fled at the sight of him. Hayden sighed again; these Pokémon weren't exactly what he was looking for. He had battled most of these wild Pokémon anyways for experience or training ever since Volt had hatched.

A sudden rustling noise brought him to a halt in his steps, and Hayden whirled round to the source of the noise. The small bush shook a little more before a small pink dinosaur looking Pokémon stepped out, its pinkish eyes darting around. Once it saw Hayden staring at it, it hissed and bared its fangs. Its small barbs on its back pricked up and its very large ears straightened. "Whoa! I haven't seen one of those before!" The Pokémon was stepping back slowly, as if retreating back into the bush. "I choose you, Volt" Hayden unclipped Volt's Pokeball and tossed it into the air, releasing him.

Jean had finally caught up with Hayden and stood a little behind him observing the scene. She pulled her baby pink Pokedex out and after pressing a few buttons it began to bleep information to her in a monotonous voice.

Nidoran, Male.

The male Nidoran has developed muscles for moving its ears, which allow free movement. It is small, but its horn is filled with poison. It charges then stabs with the horn to inject poison.

"Alright Volt, this Nidoran is ours. Start off with Quick Attack" In a blur of white Volt shot forwards and collided seconds later with the Nidoran, which flipped up into the air with a cry. As it fell an orangey glow shadowed its eyes briefly and its leg muscles seemed to grow. Landing on its four feet with a thud in front of Volt, it jumped up and struck out twice with its small feet, causing Volt to cascade backwards. Hayden gasped, from such a small Pokémon it was a strong attack.

"According to my Pokedex it used Focus Energy Hayden, it must have concentrated on improving its attack while it was falling" Jean told him.

"Hmm... that was a smart move Nidoran, I'll give you that." Hayden murmured. "You okay Volt? Good, Thundershock!" Light blue sparks burst from his body and bounded towards the Nidoran, striking the wild Pokémon on its horn. It squealed as the attack hit, but still stood its ground. It bared its fangs and bounced forwards to meet Volt. It thrust its horn to strike his shoulder and then began to peck at him.



"Shake him off with a Leer Volt" Volt's eyes grew a menacing red, and the Nidoran seemed to tense up, taking a few steps back. "Now, Thundershock it again." Another burst of electricity jolted into the Nidoran, and once the attack halted it was slightly smoky. Hayden grinned. "One more attack should do it Volt." Hayden readied himself for his first ever catch, excitement coursing through him, and brushed some stray blond hair from his eyes as he yanked a Pokeball off his belt.

However, at that moment an ear splitting crash resounded in the woods, causing Jean, Hayden and Volt to shriek in shock, and for the Nidoran to bound back into the bushes. After getting over the initial shock of what had happened, Hayden let out a few choice words and stamped his foot. "It got away!" he shouted to no one in particular. Volt looked a little annoyed at his possible new team mate escaping, but shrugged it off and strode back over to his trainer's side.

"More importantly, what the hell was that noise?" Jean barked, glancing around nervously. The last time they heard a loud noise it had almost ended up in them being Ursarang meat. She let her fingers drift to the inside of her cardigan, ready to whip out Jade or Ash's Pokeball straight away.

Another loud crash, metal on tree, sounded again. It seemed closer this time, at least thats what Jean thought. The roaring of some sort of engine or motor died away, and a few shouts echoed. Hayden shared a concerned look with Jean. "Who do you think it is?" Hayden muttered quietly.

Jean shrugged. "Beats me. As far as I know there'd be no reason for someone to have something with an engine in the middle of here." Voices could be heard now, on the other side of some trees. Gulping, she tightened her grip on her Pokeballs.

The most strangely dressed pair of people Hayden and Jean had ever seen stepped through the trees. Both were taller than either of them, and adults by the look of them. One was a woman, with a slim build and fair complexion. She had short bright green hair which was styled in a bob, slightly ruffled. There were a few blond streaks in the fringe. She wore a black cardigan which had a large red R blazoned across the chest, a black tank top underneath and black trousers and high boots. It looked to be some sort of uniform. The man standing next to her wore exactly the same thing except had a button up jacket instead of a cardigan. He had bright blue eyes and short purple hair with a spiky fringe that leant to one side. At the sight of Jean, Hayden and Volt they smiled with narrowed eyes.

"Well... Zack was certainly right Alex, they do seem to have a look of spirit about them, don't they?" the woman asked with a little laugh. Her acquaintance, Alex, nodded with a smirk.

"It always seems so much funnier when they're full of spirit." Alex murmured.

Hayden looked at Jean, who was obviously stifling a laugh at the pairs ridiculous outfits. Coughing back a chuckle himself, Hayden turned to the pair. "Err... who are you?" he asked rather bluntly. A rather annoyed expression flitted across the woman's face for a second.

"Can you not tell by the uniforms?" Alex asked sounding rather scandalized. After a few seconds of Jean and Hayden shaking their heads blankly, he growled. It was a strange noise coming from a man. "Humph! Where have you to been living your whole lives? Were Team Rocket of course!" the woman snapped, pointing to the insignia on her cardigan. Hayden raised an eyebrow.



"I don't think I've ever heard of them. Are they some sort of fancy dress charity?" Hayden could immediately tell he'd done something wrong. The woman snarled and her face twisted with anger, while Alex grabbed a Pokeball off his belt and growled. The two looked very angry now. Jean shot Hayden a glare. If they were acting like this over a simple question... Something didn't seem right about them.

"They might be full of spirit, but it seems Zack forgot to mention that these two brats are also indignant and rude!" the woman hissed, pulling a Pokeball off a thick necklace that had been buried under her clothes.

"Were not brats!" Jean cried as Hayden called "Your the rude ones" angrily.

"We don't even know who this Zack person isORwhy your here!" Jean snapped. She didn't like these two. First they show up in ridiculous outfits, talk about someone they don't know and then get angry very easily. A sudden smug smirk crossed the woman's face.

"So... Zack didn't get himself discovered. Maybe he's not as blundering as that towering Ursaring of his." She tapped her chin with a finger while she spoke, tilting her head to the side curiously. Alex raised an eyebrow and snorted. "I highly doubt that he managed to go completely unseen".

"An Ursaring?... Hayden! We saw an Ursarang back at that clearing, and a man in the trees recalled it" Jean said to Hayden, remembering the incident all too well.

"I told you" Alex muttered. The woman rolled her eyes.

"Oh please Alex, you just can't accept Zack's a Team Rocket Admin, and your not" Alex turned to face the woman angrily, but she coughed deliberately and motioned towards Hayden and Jean. "Zack happened to be on the lookout for new trainers, and obviously accidentally stumbled on you two. He said your Pokémon were worth stealing, and we were the closest grunts in the area. We would have been here sooner... but we had technical difficulties with the Helicopter" she sighed.

Steal our Pokémon? I knew there was something up with these Team Rocket folk! Hayden though, frowning as it dawned on him what the two adults planned on doing. A look of defiance crossed Jean's face as she realised as well. "Forget it, freaks, your not touching our Pokémon" she yelled.

The woman's eye visibly twitched at Jean's remark, and they were reduced to slits. "If you insult me... one more time, you brat I'll not only steal your Pokémon, but leave you in a blubbering mess!" she hissed. Alex side glanced at his partner. "Elise, calm down. We have work to do". Elise took a deep breath and regained herself, a slightly chilling smile spreading across her pretty face.

"It usually comes down to this, battling for your Pokémon. If you wish to be defeated, so be it." Alex said with a shrug. "Mankey, let's go" he called, throwing his Pokeball into the air. Elise mirrored his action. "Poliwhirl, time to fight". The Pokeballs split open and the white light shaped into two round figures.

Hayden whipped out his Pokedex, and pointed it at the Pokémon in front of Alex. It had a round torso, covered in messy tan fur with angry looking eyes and a pig snout. Its arms ended in boxing little paws and its legs were the same dark shade. Its thin tail began thrashing dangerously.


Mankey,

When Mankey starts shaking and its nasal breathing turns rough, it's a sure sign that it is becoming angry. However, because it goes into a towering rage almost instantly, it is impossible for anyone to flee its wrath. If one becomes enraged, the whole colony rampages for no reason.

Meanwhile, Jean already had her Pokedex pointing at the round blue Pokémon Elise had released. It had two small eyes on top of its round body, and its underbelly was a black swirl that looked like it was moving a little. Its hands were covered in small white gloves.

Poliwhirl,

The surface of Poliwhirl's body is always wet and slick with an oily fluid. Because of this greasy covering, it can easily slip and slide out of the clutches of any enemy in battle. The swirl on its belly subtly undulates. Staring at it may gradually cause drowsiness.

"Finished yet?" Elise barked, tapping her foot with a raised eyebrow. Hayden didn't respond but nodded to Volt, who had been standing by his side the whole time. He leaped forwards to face the Poliwhirl. Jean tossed her own Pokeball into the air. "Ash, were up". Mankey began to beat its chest as Ash appeared to face him.

"They look relatively weak at the moment... but Magby and Elekid are worth it I suppose" Elise shrugged. "Poliwhirl, Water Gun". "Mankey, charge and use Fury Swipes on that Magby".

Mankey bounded forwards, screeching and beating its chest. Once it had closed the distance with surprising speed, it barred its claws and began to swipe at Ash, leaving scratch marks. Meanwhile, Poliwhirl had released a blast of water at Volt from its strange mouth/belly. Hayden called for Volt to raise its arm quickly, the water pushed him back a little, but the attack didn't seem to be doing much. "Now, Thundershock into that stream of water" he smirked. When Elise had first released the water Pokémon he had formed that little technique in his mind straight away.

With the water still spraying on his body, Volt released a large shock of electricity that coursed through the stream, surging through Poliwhirl. It cried in pain and immediately stopped the attack, shaking it off, but looking slightly annoyed. "So, your a smart brat?... Poliwhirl, close the distance, and use Bubble".

"Use Ember to get it off" Jean quickly called to Ash, who was still under the Fury Swipes onslaught. That Mankey is strong... I need to be careful about its close range attacks. Ash managed to spew a large fireball straight in Mankey's face. It fell backwards; Ash took the opportunity to move back a little. A second later, Mankey was back on its feet, and looking severely enraged. "Use Scratch, Mankey" Alex commanded.

"Jump out of the way and fire off Ember again" As Mankey dove to scratch at Ash with its claws, Ash jumped to the left and released a small storm of fireballs. They struck Mankey's side, and it let out a cry of pain and anger. It dived again, missing Ash by inches, and once again Ash released more fireballs. Mankey was looking very angry by now. Hmm... the more it misses the angrier it seems to 

get. And the angrier it gets, the more it misses, a vicious circle I guess. I should be okay if Ash sticks with long range attacks... I guess. Jean though.

"Now, Poliwhirl, use Double Slap" Elise commanded. Poliwhirl ceased its Bubble Attack that had been pretty much useless, and as it approached Volt, began to strike out with its gloved hands. The blows struck Volt's body hard. "Charge forwards with Quick Attack" Volt managed to focus enough to burst forwards into Poliwhirl in a blur of white, knocking it to the floor and halting its attack. Volt skidded to a halt and turned to face its opponent. Elise let out a snarl and opened her mouth to call a command, but Hayden was quicker.

"Thundershock it while its down" Volt lowered its head as another bolt of yellow electricity struck Poliwhirl as it was getting back up. It scrunched its eyes up and let out cried of pain as the attack hit it. Finally it rolled to the left, leaving the attack hitting the grass. "Two can play the smart game, brat. Poliwhirl, Hypnosis!" Hayden's eyes suddenly widened as she called the attack.

Suddenly the swirl on Poliwhirl's stomach began to twist and turn, and glow a light purple. Volt couldn't help but stare, and a few seconds later, his eyelids drooped and he collapsed to his bottom fast asleep. Hayden let out a strangled gasp. Elise glanced over at him with a smug smile. "Now Poliwhirl, Double Slap it into submission!" she growled. Poliwhirl complied and began to ruthlessly slap the sleeping form of Volt. Hayden winced.

With Volt asleep I can't do anything!. I don't have any Awakens either... I knew they're was something I forgot at the Pokémon Store. I'm just going to have to hope that Volt can hold out until he wakes up... Hayden considered. "Excellent Poliwhirl, now, Body Slam." As Poliwhirl readied himself to jump up, it was shoved harshly sideways by Mankey who had been trying to land a hit on Ash. Poliwhirl shoved it off and began to shout in Pokémon talk, raising its fist.

"Watch where that filthy monkey is going Alex!" Elise shouted. Alex frowned angrily and opened his mouth to retort, but Jean called out a command.

"Ash, while those Pokémon are together use Smog" Ash took a deep breath, and then thrust its head forward as a thick black/purple cloud bellowed forwards. It enveloped the squabbling Poliwhirl and Mankey, but looked slightly different. Not only were poisonous fumes enveloping them, but an even thicker black cloud that took longer to disperse. "A Smokescreen too?. Well done Ash" Jean told her Pokémon, who smiled proudly.

"Oh just be quiet Alex!" Elise hissed. Alex's jaw dropped, he was taking the blame even though Elise had started the argument. "Poliwhirl, finish that Elekid off with a Body Slam" Poliwhirl blinked several times and look slightly disorientated as it approached Volt who still sat asleep. It tensed its legs and leaped into the air, throwing its weight down. Its attack missed, only scathing Volt's shoulder, even though Volt hadn't moved. "Poliwhirl, what are you doing!" Elise shrieked.

"Smokescreen lowers a Pokémon's accuracy a little" Jean told her.

"Mankey, use Low Kick" Mankey leaped forwards, and swooped low, striking Ash's balance from underneath him. As he collided with the floor Mankey struck out with its foot, sending Ash sprawling. He slowly rose back up. "Strike again" Alex commanded. Mankey gathered it footing and launched itself at Ash.



"Ash, Smokescreen around yourself" Ash nodded and puffed out his chest as thick black smoke billowed around him, which Mankey dived into. Both Pokémon were shielded from view. Ash should be able to strike a few finishing blows now. "Ash, spin around and use Ember" Jean called into the smoke. There was motion in the smoke, and then a shriek of pain obviously from Mankey. The fireballs punctured the smoke and it dispersed quickly, revealing a fainted Mankey.,

"What! Mankey, get up!" Alex cried, eyes bulging. Mankey was unconscious, and after several attempts of verbally forcing his fainted Pokémon to rise, Alex accepted it was useless. He raised his Pokeball looking worried, and pressed the middle button. The red light absorbed Mankey back into the sphere. Elise glanced over at Alex and her fists immediately curled.

"You stupid, wool-headed idiot!" she shouted. "You let your Pokémon get beat!. Why did I EVER get teamed with you!" she shrieked. Alex didn't reply but simply glared at her. "Your finally awake Volt!" Hayden cried, quickly drawing Elise's attention. Volt yawned and stretched his arms before turning to face Poliwhirl.

A confident grin was painted across Hayden's face now, and a spark of excitement was alive in his blue eyes. "Alright Volt, lets finish these annoying jokes off with a full power Thunderbolt" Elise let out a wail as Poliwhirl was struck by a large thunder bolt. It fell to the floor, smoking slightly. She quickly recalled her Pokémon and reached for the other Pokeball on her belt. "You really don't want us to beat your other Pokémon do you?" Hayden asked with a well deserved sneer. Her hand hesitated.

"Don't bother trying to get all bad ass with me brat, your talking to the master. As much of a cliché it is, next time will be different. I assure you" she put a cold emphasis on the last three words. With that, her and Alex gave the two one last cold look before turning on they're heels and running back the way they came. "Volt after the-" Jean shook her head.

"Theres no point Hayden. They didn't get our Pokémon and it doesn't look like they'll be trying again for a while." Hayden decided this was right and nodded in agreement before sitting down. Jean rolled her eyes. "What happened to be being determined in catching a new Pokémon then?" she said with a sigh.

Hayden didn't reply for a while but stared at the ground. He let out his own sigh, his shoulders sagging. "I've got no chance at the first gym Jean." Jean frowned. "I don't understand"

"Callum said the first gym uses Rock Pokémon. Volt is an Electric type, and he's got no moves that'll cause any damage. I need a new Pokémon that'll be able to do something! I'm going to loose!" Hayden said dejectedly. Jean crossed her arms and glanced at Volt, who shrugged.

"And I thought you were the one that planned ahead" she said acidly. Hayden looked up at her tone and frowned confused. "Your actually going to let something small like a type advantage get to you?. Even I know that a battle isn't outweighed by type advantages, there are techniques and ways you can get around things like that. Instead of looking for a new Pokémon, you and Volt should be training even harder" Hayden considered it for a few seconds before sighing. "I 'spose" Volt frowned, and laid a hand on his trainer's arm. Hayden looked up just in time to see the sparks dancing between his prong ears.



"OWWWWWWWWWWW" Hayden shouted as the electricity surged through his body. Volt finally removed his hand and joined in Jean's laughter. Hayden jumped up and glared down at Volt, who was rolling around in hoots of laughter. His blond hair was on end, making him look even more ridiculous. "Well, if you hadn't have been so ridiculous, Volt wouldn't have had to shock you" Jean giggled and Volt nodded in agreement. He simply sniffed and turned away from his Pokémon and friend.

Jean rolled her eyes and turned towards the way they'd come. "Are you two going to start training or what?. The sooner you hurry up, the sooner we can get to Hailen. I want a proper meal" Hayden stayed looking away for a few more seconds before finally giving up on his attempted defiance. "Time to start." As if on cue, a familiar pink Pokémon appeared from the bushes, sniffing the ground in search of food. Hayden smirked.

"Let's go!". The Pokémon's loud ears twitched at the sound of Hayden's voice, and it looked up at its opponent. Eager to fight, the Nidoran began to kick the ground behind it before charging forwards. Volt grinned confidently as the Nidoran leaped into the air, channelling its small mass towards him. Volt tensed his legs a little, and then jumped up to meet Nidoran, swinging its left leg up. Nidoran was thrown backwards and rolled in the grass coming to a halt with a thud.

"Hmmm... that was Low Kick huh... Well done Volt, now we got this one wrapped. Thundershock" Hayden told Volt. As the Nidoran stood up weakly, Volt tensed its body and released a thick thunderbolt which bounced towards the Pokémon before shocking it. Once the attack stopped Nidoran looked in pretty bad shape.

It threw back its head and let out a cry, its eyes flickering orange again. It certainly was the same Pokémon they had battled earlier; it was using the same technique. Then, it bounded forwards and spun on the spot, striking Volt twice with its legs causing him to stumble back a little. "Quick, grab its foot and toss it" As the Nidoran landed facing away from Volt, Volt quickly recovered from the Double Kick and grabbed its leg. Nidoran let out a yelp of surprise as Volt grunted and threw it behind it. Nidoran collided with the ground hard.

"Alright, now's the time to catch it" Hayden cheered happily as he unclipped a spare Pokeball from his belt and threw it at Nidoran, who was slowly gaining its footing. The Pokeball opened on contact and a red light covered the form of Nidoran completely, withdrawing it into the sphere. It began to shake as the Nidoran tried to break free, but finally locked shut. Volt let out a cheer and punched the air, sparks fizzing from his ears, happy on helping Hayden catch his first Pokémon. Hayden beamed as he bent down to pick up the Pokeball, clipping it to his belt. "The first of many to come!"