Since splitting up to have a better chance at finding the three Kanto starters, Ash teamed up with Gary and Brock teamed up with Misty. Ash and Gary went left while Brock and Misty went right. The two teams working together would then end up making a circle and return back to the lab with the hopes of successfully finding Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander.
Brock and Misty stopped by the edge of a stream. They haven't seen anything except for some Pidgey, Caterpie, and Weedle much to Misty's disgust. Misty kneeled down and swirled her hand in the cool water. "I hope we find them, Brock," she sighed.
Brock nodded. "If my guess is right, those three probably stayed together." Brock stood confident in his guess. Just from seeing the three back at the lab, he had a feeling that the three of them had a close friendship with each other.
Misty stood up and felt much better about looking for them. "You're right." She put her hand over her forehead, narrowed her eyes, and slowly scanned the area. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "Brock, look!" She ran over to an apple tree whose branches had been shaken by some sort of Pokémon.
Brock ran up to where Misty stood as she pointed to three apple cores lying in the grass at the base of the tree. "Hey!" Brock exclaimed. "I wonder if the Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander left these here."
Misty bent over to examine one of the eaten apples. "Well, if they did, at least they're not hungry."
Brock examined one of the apples as well. "And it looks like they were eaten not all that long ago which means they might still be in the area. Let's see if Ash and Gary found anything!"
Just a short distance away in the opposite direction, Ash and Gary continued the search for the three missing Pokémon. Pikachu hopped toward some bushes calling out for Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander. "Pika – pi!"
Ash stepped over to where Pikachu was. "See anything, buddy?" he asked hopeful.
Pikachu shook his head a bit disappointed as Gary walked over to them.
"Any luck, Ash?"
"No, we haven't found anything yet." Ash looked up at Noctowl who had followed them and was perched on a branch. "Noctowl, fly overhead and see if you can find anything." Without another thought, Ash's Noctowl soared through the sky in search of the three Kanto starters.
Ash noticed Gary bent down looking closely at the dirt. "What are you doing?" Ash asked.
"Looking for any tracks those three might have left," Gary explained not taking his eyes off the ground. "I'm hoping they decided to stay together. If we find any, that will help us out a great deal! Especially if we can find three sets of footprints!"
Ash nodded as he joined Gary in looking for footprints. "So, would you recognize Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander's tracks if you did find them?"
Gary looked up at Ash and raised an eyebrow. "Well, I am a Pokémon Researcher, aren't I? Hmm, I mean I at least would know how to identify Pokémon footprints."
Ash sighed, "Whatever you say, Gary. I wonder if Brock and Misty –"
"Hey, Ash! Gary!" Ash whipped around at the sound of Brock's voice. Brock and Misty were running up to them with Misty holding on to something cupped in her hands.
"Did you guys find anything?" asked Gary as he tried to see what Misty was holding.
Misty stepped forward and held out her two hands showing Ash and Gary the three apples that were eaten down to their cores. "We found these not too far from here under an apple tree."
"We think that Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander had a little snack. These apples look like they've been eaten not all that long ago." Brock said.
Ash's eyes lit up when he saw the eaten apples. "Hey, this may be a lead! What do you think, Gary?"
Gary took an apple core from Misty and looked it over. His facial expression showed that he wasn't all that impressed. He handed the apple core back to Misty. "Hmm. This could be a clue but I wouldn't hold my breath just yet. A number of other Pokémon that have similar bite marks compared to Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander could have eaten these apples."
Ash, Brock, and Misty were a bit disappointed with Gary's theory. They all thought it was a good lead but apparently, Gary did not. "So do you think we should continue looking for better clues?" Ash questioned.
Gary stood firm with fire in his eyes. "Well, of course we're going to keep looking! I don't know about you guys, but, at least I am! I'm not going to stop looking for those three until I find all three of them safe!" Gary turned and walked ahead towards where the trees met a green and spacious field. He just stared off into the field for what seemed like the longest time.
He sighed. "When my grandpa asked me to take over the lab for today, I wasn't too sure about it at first." Ash, Misty, and Brock nodded understandingly.
Gary continued. "And then I realized just how far I had come as a Pokémon Researcher working under the guidance of Professor Rowan. Since arriving in Pallet town, I've been working really hard to run the Oak lab just as my grandpa would want it to be run. I know that someday, I'll be the one taking over the lab. I just didn't think something crazy like this would happen. You know with the three starters escaping. I just want my grandpa to be proud of me."
Ash smiled sympathetically as he put an arm around his former rival's shoulder. "Hey, now. I think you've done an awesome job running the lab just from what I've seen. Professor Oak would be incredibly proud of you. Ha! You did go a bit over the top in helping Ember choose a starter. Huh, Gary?"
Gary looked over at Ash and gave a soft laugh yet remained serious. "Thanks, Ash."
"And it's like you said," Misty added. "You're not going to stop looking for them. And we're not going to stop looking for them either!"
The four of them stepped out into the open field. They took in the sights and scents that Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander had experienced moments earlier. A Pidgey hopped in the grass and suddenly pounced as it stalked a Caterpie. The Caterpie dodged and defended itself with a string shot. Misty noticed and closed her eyes in slight disgust as she walked on through the field. The field was the exact same field that the three starters had crossed through. Unfortunately, their searchers were in a different area of the field looking for them.
There was a small island of scraggly trees amongst the grassy field. On the other side of the small island in the other part of the field, the Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander continued. Bulbasaur took the lead with Squirtle and Charmander close behind. Charmander looked to the left and to the right with wide eyes being alert as possible.
"Char! Char! Are we still going in the right direction?"
The other two paused. "Bulba! Bulbasaur. Sure we are! All we have to do is back track. Come on! It's just a little bit further." Bulbasaur urged.
"Squirtle! Squirtle! I hope so! I can't wait to go for a swim back at the lab." Squirtle sighed. Being a water Pokémon, he didn't feel like himself without water to splash around in.
Just several yards ahead of them, Team Rocket lay in the tall grass carefully watching the three Pokémon as they unknowingly inched closer to them. "They're getting closer," Jessie whispered excitedly. "Come on, just a little closer…"
"So, do you think our plans going to work this time, Jessie?" James asked feeling a bit doubtful about their trap.
Jessie gave James an annoyed look. "Of course it's going to work! We thought this plan out down to the last detail, didn't we?"
Meowth swiped his claws at Jessie and James in frustration. "Hey! Quiet, you two! They're almost at our trap." Meowth kept his voice just above a loud whisper.
All three starters froze in their tracks. Bulbasaur and Squirtle took a few steps forward. Charmander kept a few steps behind being the ever-cautious Pokémon that he was. All three of them could see something in the grass by a tree. It looked like something to eat but they weren't sure until they got a closer look. As the other two inched closer, Charmander stopped in his tracks and focused his eyesight on the mysterious object on the ground. Something didn't seem right, but Charmander couldn't place why.
"Char! Char! Charmander. Hey, guys! Maybe we should leave whatever that is alone. Besides, I have a feeling someone's watching us."
Bulbasaur and Squirtle stopped but only to laugh at the fire Pokémon. "Squirtle. Squirtle. Charmander! Don't be ridiculous. There's nobody else here. You worry way too much. It looks like food that must have gotten dropped." Squirtle laughed.
The three of them were just about on top of the mysterious object. Bulbasaur sniffed.
"Bulba. Bulba. It is food. It's like the Pokémon food Professor Oak feeds us." Bulbasaur happily bounded towards the Pokémon food in the grass. Right on cue, was Squirtle. They both jumped with joy.
"Food! Charmander, food!" they both called out to the fire Pokémon. Charmander wasn't really all that hungry but he could eat a little snack. Maybe he was over reacting. He went to join them when all of a sudden Bulbasaur and Squirtle were whipped up in the air in a net. Charmander had barely dodged the net in time as it nicked his tail.
"Charmander! Oh no! Bulbasaur! Squirtle!" was all the little Charmander could get out.
Bulbasaur and Squirtle squirmed in the net that was now hanging in the tree that was above the food. All three of them knew there was no time to waste. There was only one of them that would be able to get help and that was Charmander.
"Bulba! Bulba! Charmander, you have to go find Gary and the others and get help!" Bulbasaur pleaded.
Charmander started to shake his head. Until now, he had Bulbasaur and Squirtle to protect him. They protected each other. Now he was the one that had to be brave.
Charmander noticed the island made of the scraggly trees. It was just a few yards away. If that was a short cut, it could be his best chance at finding help. With a burst, he ran through the small island and into the other part of the field. He kept running even though his legs were tired and his tail flame was weakening. Gratefully, he could see the Oak lab in view, as he exited the field.
Just then, he heard a voice. He looked around frantically. It sounded familiar.
"Oh, my goodness! Charmander!" Charmander was quickly swooped up in Ember's arms. She looked the little fire Pokémon right in the eye with concern. "What happened to you? Where's Bulbasaur and Squirtle?"
