Well, I'm back and ready to continue the story! Things have cleared up a bit more, and my inspiration remains intact! So, let's continue on with Red's adventure throughout the Kanto region!
Red continued along the route toward Cerulean City, thinking about how far he'd come, not only from Pallet Town, but from his origins, Orre. Through it all, he couldn't help but wonder if this was by some design of a higher power. It wasn't long before he pushed the thought away as ludicrous, however, and continued on. He'd only walked for ten minutes before hearing a loud argument, and rushed forward to see what was going on.
Upon reaching the apex of the noise, he spotted to strangely robed fighters arguing with each other. They both looked like they belonged to a dojo of sorts, but if that was the case, why were they arguing so intensely? As Red approached, the two men spotted him, and the first one dashed over, telling him louder than was necessary
"Hey kid, how'd you like to learn a powerful move, Mega Punch?!" Red was trying to process this, but the other guy came in with a flying kick to his apparent opponent's jaw. He landed and confidently told him
"You don't want that, kid. As you just saw, kicks are much more powerful, and I offer the move Mega Kick. It may be a little less reliable in terms of accuracy, but nothing will get the job done better!" Red wondered why he would admit to a move's poor accuracy, but the first guy came in, launching a rather impressive punch into the kicker's ribs.
"Kicks aren't nearly as dependable as punches! Plus, they can be used more frequently! I don't see how you could safely launch a double kick without flying!" The kicker replied heatedly
"With the sheer power shown in kicks, I only need one to break your flimsy fists!" Red was getting tired of this, so he walked up to the two men, both of whom were at this point in each other's faces, and both looked at him hopefully, thinking he'd chosen one of them. However, he knocked them both powerfully on the head, glaring at them. They were both cowed by the effect the contact lenses Michael wore had, turning his eyes a menacing shade of red to match his style.
Both men fell to their knees in front of him, shutting up wisely. Red looked for a moment, then pointed to a raised ledge. Both men looked over and nodded, running over to it. Red smirked at the effect he was having without having to speak a word, and walked over to give the final directions. He looked at the still-cowering men, and observed the ledge they were on. After a moment, Red made his decision and pointed to the man on his left. The man stuttered
"W-whattya want w-with m-me?" Red pointed at him, then to the left side of the ledge. The man looked for a moment at it, then back to Red's eyes, and nodded quickly. He stumbled up and ran over, taking his place and standing stock still. Red looked down on the other man and directed him to the other side, which he made no argument to. Nodding his head once, he pointed to both men in their respective spots, then to the ground, indicating they were to stay there so they couldn't fight anymore. With that done, he continued on his way.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Red entered Cerulean City with a set mind, intending to find out whether or not there was a gym here, and if not, if there was anything that needed attending to before heading out for the next city. He checked a local map with a color key guide, and as it turned out, there was a gym within the city. He quickly searched for it and eventually found it, but when he went inside, the guide at the front halted him, asking
"Hold up, did you beat the Golden Bridge Challenge yet?" Red frowned slightly, confused, and the guide explained
"There's a bridge up north, called the Golden Bridge, with five challengers you must take on before your challenge will be accepted at the Cerulean City Gym. That's the way it is, so until you beat the challenge, you won't be welcome here." Red scowled for a moment, but figuring he wouldn't get anywhere by arguing, and it would be in his best interest to train anyway, he left peaceably and angled north.
The bridge the gym guide had talked about, the Golden Bridge, soon came into sight. It was hardly inconspicuous, so Red walked toward it, and was suddenly surprised when blue crested over the bridge, descending with his typical haughty expression.
"Well, well, look who decided to show up after all! I thought you'd never get here, but it's clear you're still behind me. Geez, you're such a kid, following the grown-ups around like a lost puppy!" Red scowled, thinking
"Why don't you try going through what I have, then call me a kid again." Blue continued
"Well, whatever, it's not like I care or anything. So, how many badges you got?" Red pulled aside the side of his vest, showing him the Boulder Badge he got from Brock.
"Just one? Ha! I already got my second from the gym here, pretty weak if ya ask me! So, lemme just show ya the power my pokemon possess now!" Red nearly sighed in exasperation, but didn't argue, instead taking up Pikachu's pokeball. He really needed to get him a name. Blue held up a pokeball, shouting
"Let's do this!" The first pokemon he threw out was Pidgeotto, and Red knew he'd chosen right with Pikachu, who he sent out to battle. Blue told him smugly
"You won't get as lucky this time around! We've been trainin' hard and fast!" Red smirked, thinking this might be a viable challenge, as long as he didn't become too arrogant.
"Pidgeotto, Sand Attack!" Red commanded Pikachu as quiet as ever
"Double Team." Pikachu rushed forward, emitted a flash of white light very briefly, and then seemed hazy, splitting into a mass of Pikachus. Pidgeotto looked around, confused as to what it was supposed to do, and Blue shouted
"Keep going, and switch up to Gust! Blow 'em all away!" Pidgeotto flapped its wings hard, lifting into the air, and slashed downward, creating a spiral of air that crashed into a couple of the copies, but luckily missed the real Pikachu by a mile. Red smirked again, telling it
"ThunderShock." Pikachu's copies all vanished, one by one, toward it until it was left on its own, behind Pidgeotto, and fired the thin bolt of electricity. Pidgeotto went crashing down, and Blue called out
"Don't give up! Use Quick Attack!" Red countered
"Quick Attack." Red remembered and knew the rules of strike-first moves; whichever pokemon had the highest speed won out, and he knew that Pikachu were most notable for their speed stat, though he had to admit Pidgeotto was no pushover. Still, Pikachu's speed was higher than Blue's pokemon, so the yellow blur struck head-first into the white-brown blur, and both pokemon were shoved back. Red continued
"Pikachu, ThunderShock." Pikachu shook off the head blow impressively and fired its power, striking the bird for massive damage and knocking it out. Blue growled and returned it to its ball, and he scoffed
"Beginner's luck! But it ends now!" Next he threw out Rattata, and Red figured Pikachu was still good to battle.
"Rattata, use Bite!"
"Pikachu, Quick Attack." Pikachu rushed forward, covered in a bright light, but it seemed to short out, with Red slightly panicking that it was actually too worn out to continue. However, Pikachu jumped agilely and swung its tail, clipping Rattata under the jaw and sending it flying back to Blue, crashing on the ground. Red frowned slightly and took out his PokeDex, checking Pikachu's moves. It seemed a new one was on the roster, Slam. Red smirked and put away the PokeDex, thinking his chances were much better at this point.
"Pikachu, Slam." Blue shouted
"Rattata, Quick Attack!" Red knew that because Slam didn't appear to be a strike-first move, Rattata's move would hit first, and so it did. However, Rattata was paralyzed by Pikachu's Static, and Pikachu slammed into the tiny rat, knocking it down and out. Blue growled again and returned his pokemon, this time not having any disparaging words. Pikachu was panting at this point, though, so he told it
"Pikachu, retreat." Pikachu's ears twitched and looked back at him, and Red nodded to confirm the command. As Pikachu ran back to him, he bent down, holding out his arm. Pikachu climbed up to his shoulder and hung off, his head still quite visible. Red nodded to it and tossed up his last pokeball, sending out Blitz. Blue threw out a small yellow pokemon that appeared to be sleeping. Red recognized it as an Abra, and he wondered why Blue would send it out. Shrugging it off, he told Blitz
"Metal Claw." Blue told his Abra
"Teleport!" Blitz charged the sleeping pokemon, but just before he could strike, the Abra vanished with a small streak in the air, leaving Blitz surprised and confused, until it reappeared behind him. Blitz lunged again, but Abra disappeared again. Red was getting frustrated that the battle was going nowhere, but nowhere near as much as Blitz. He watched closely, and quickly told Blitz
"Strike left." Blitz looked at him for a moment, unsure, but followed direction. He struck out with his left hand, and the claws grazed Abra as it teleported back onto the field. Blue gawked, demanding
"How did you do that without even talkin' to your pokemon?!" Red smirked, continuing
"Forward." Blitz lunged out, and once again his aim was true, striking Abra in the chest and causing it to fall on its back. Blue was now irritated and decided to call Abra out of the battle, admitting defeat in that respect. Blitz was completely out of breath now, so Red returned him, which he was going to do in any case now that Blue was going to use-
"Wartortle!" Red was slightly surprised, but overcame it. Considering how often Blue focused on power, it only made sense that he would have evolved his pokemon as quickly as possible. He sent Pikachu back out and waited on Blue's call to start the battle.
"Wartortle, Tail Whip!"
"Pikachu, ThunderShock." Wartortle lowered Pikachu's defense while Pikachu dealt damage to it. Red was seriously considering the wisdom of most status moves; obviously not all of them were completely useless, but most of them seemed not to work out for the one using them. Wartortle wouldn't likely get the chance to attack again and take advantage of Pikachu's lowered defense, and because it was Blue's last pokemon, neither would his team.
As he predicted, Wartortle went down after another ThunderShock, and Blue scoffed
"Well, I guess your beginner's luck helped you again. Still, you shouldn't be so dependent on it; it won't last forever." Red rolled his eyes as he walked past with his typical message;
"Smell ya later!" Red rolled his eyes again, prepared to challenge the bridge, but was stopped when Blue grabbed his shoulder.
"Hey, I forgot somethin'. My Wartortle went off wherever when I wasn't lookin' and came back with this." He held up a light blue egg with a brown shell pattern and swirled pattern below it. He tossed it in Red's direction and he caught it quickly. He scowled at Blue, who brushed it off and continued
"I don't want it, so it's your problem now. Have fun. And this time, smell ya later, for real!" He walked off, hands in his pocket, and chuckled at his genius; that pesky egg was now weight off his shoulders and a bigger burden on his rival. He was so brilliant. Meanwhile, Red looked at the egg, thinking
"How could anyone not want their pokemon's children? They're one of the last few innocent beings on the planet, and certainly don't issue war against war against each other. And throwing a baby around like a random, useless object?! Next time I see that jerk, I'm gonna knock his block off extra hard!" Grunting, he held the egg closer, deciding he would take it, and hopefully gain another team member in the process. He called Pikachu back up on his shoulder and headed to the Pokemon Center to heal his pokemon and get the egg checked; no sense to carry around an egg that might never hatch. Better safe than sorry.
As he waited, he thought about the prospective gym battle, even though he had no information on which type was run. Asking around wasn't exactly an option, either, given his quiet personality. Perhaps he would just build up his power in his pokemon and hope for the best. Of course, that wasn't really his style. His style was capitalizing on type advantages and weaknesses and striking those areas hard and fast.
"Excuse me, sir? Your pokemon are ready." Red looked up to see the nurse was addressing him, so he walked up to the counter, returning his fresh pokemon to his belt, and pointed at the egg. The nurse nodded and explained
"It's healthy, and still fresh. It might be a while before it hatches, depending how much travelling you do." Red smirked, nodding his appreciation. He took the egg and walked back outside, heading for the bridge again, and without any distractions this time he began the challenge. For the most part, it was easy for Blitz and Pikachu to sweep aside the competition, so Red figured if this was a requirement to battle the Cerulean Gym, it set the standard for how tough it would be. However, he couldn't completely assume that, seeing as the gym seemed to be devoted to Water type pokemon. Blitz would have to sit this one out, unfortunately.
Red continued his Golden Bridge challenge, taking down the variety of trainers and their styles. At the end, a strange man complimented his obvious power and told him he would make an excellent Team Rocket executive. Red scowled at the thought of working with the enemy, though, and shook his head, refusing. The man whipped a disguise off, showing the Team Rocket uniform, grinned, and said in a low voice
"I insist." Red immediately launched into battle mode throwing out his pokemon as the Team Rocket grunt did the same. Red naturally swept aside the competition with hardly any problems, and after the battle finished the grunt recoiled, shouting
"Why didn't anybody tell me you were so strong?!" Red rolled his eyes and shoved past the guy, ignoring his splutters thereon. There was a mass of trainers beyond the reach of the bridge, and Red was now concerned that any one of them could belong to Team Rocket. Spurred by the thought, he went forth and challenged everyone in the clearing, and after defeating them all was finally relieved to learn that none of them belonged to Team Rocket.
He continued on to see what lay at the end of the path, passing up a small cottage along the way until he came upon a small cape, overlooking the ocean just beyond the reach of most people, normal and trainers alike. Red paused, remembering the beach near Gateon Port, back in Orre, as he released the Legendary Bird Trio and their master, or rather, mistress. He wondered how the fared, if they were still free, or if they were under threat again. He rather doubted it, but now he wouldn't know for sure, and that would probably bug him for a while.
Deciding to get away from those thoughts, he turned around and began walking back the way he came, intending to take on the Cerulean gym now that he'd beaten the Golden Bridge challenge. But something strange caught his attention; at the cottage he passed by before, he noticed that the door was open slightly, not enough to notice coming from the other side, but now the dark crack was completely thrown into view. With that being present and obvious, Red wondered if something had happened to the owner. He walked over to the door and knocked lightly, and a small, high voice replied
"Come in!" Red frowned, thinking the voice sounded childlike, but surely there wasn't a child here on their own, was there? He pushed the door open and walked inside, looking around. He saw a desk with an old-looking computer and strewn with papers, and the by far dominating view was that of two massive machines that were connected on the top. In front of these machines stood a small pink fairy-like figure, and Red didn't recognize it. He pulled out his PokeDex and aimed it at the creature, and it labeled the pokemon as a Clefairy. He couldn't get any further information without catching it first, but right now had no interest.
He walked over to it, wondering who spoke if indeed this Clefairy was the only living being here. He definitely heard a voice welcome him inside, but pokemon didn't have the ability to talk. This supposition, however, would be thrown out the window as the Clefairy remarked
"Oh, good! I've been needing help for some time now!" Red reeled back, eyes wide. The Clefairy grinned and chuckled nervously, adding
"Weird, huh? A pokemon talkin'. But I'm not really a pokemon, I'm actually a human!" Red rolled his eyes, thinking sarcastically
"Right, and I'm a shining knight, with a sword and everything. I must be dreaming." The Clefairy saw his expression and insisted
"No, really, I am! You see those machines over there? I was doing an experiment, but a Clefairy wound up joining me for the ride, and I was fused with it! Now I need someone to reverse the process. Can I ask for your help?" Red thought for a moment, then shrugged indifferently, reasoning
"If this really is a dream, I might as well see where it goes." The Clefairy sighed in relief, replying
"Thank you. Follow me." The talking pokemon jumped and floated/hopped over to the desk with the computer, and hopped on top, barely avoiding the keyboard. It began typing something, some kind of command, Red assumed, and after a minute pointed at the screen.
"This is the program I need to get out of this mess. All you need to do is click on 'Start' whenever I'm in the machine. Okay?" Red simply nodded, and the Clefairy hopped over the computer and floated over to the right-most machine. It went inside and hopped up, hitting a button that closed the door, and Red heard the high, small voice call out to him
"Start the program!" He turned his attention to the screen, moved the mouse over the correct button, and clicked on it. Instantly the machines came to life, with many glowing and flashing lights as well as a long, loud whirring sound. A pink light suddenly came up at the pipe connecting the two machines, traveled over to the other one, and after a tense moment, the entire thing dinged loudly. The doors to the machines opened up with steam pouring out, and from the left machine a Clefairy, this one not talking, floated out and promptly left through an open window nearby. Out of the right a person stepped out, with curled brown hair, average appearance, and not very imposing in the least. Red walked over to him, and the man said
"Ah, back in my own body again! Thanks for your help, kind sir! My name is Bill, I'm the creator of the PC system, where you can store your pokemon efficiently." Red couldn't help but blink in surprise, since he had used that system more than once, though admittedly he wasn't using it right now. Bill told him
"I need a proper way to thank you. I got something you might like." He walked back over to the desk and pulled up an envelope, whipping out a ticket-looking object. He walked back over to Red and held it out, explaining
"This is an invitation to a party held on the S.S. Anne, in Vermillion City. It's not really my kind of scene, though, but I heard there will be a lot of trainers on board, too." Red's attention perked up at this, and after a moment's consideration, he nodded and accepted the ticket. He slipped it into his pack, then waved goodbye as he made to leave. Bill called out his thanks again, and Red left in good, if somewhat confused, spirits. He was still slightly stumped on how a man transformed himself into a pokemon.
He wormed his way back to the bridge, crossed it, and aimed for the Cerulean Gym; now that he'd beaten the Golden Bridge challenge, and even beyond, he would be allowed to take on the gym and its leader.
When he walked inside the gym guide questioned him again if he had beaten the challenge, and when Red confirmed it, the fire in his eyes was so obvious that the guide didn't question it. So Red took on the gym, defeating all of two trainers that rested in there, using Water type pokemon. Red knew instantly that Pikachu was the best way to go, and eventually he made it to the platform where the leader stood, a young girl by the looks of it, with bright orange hair.
She introduced herself as Misty, telling him that she was a master of Water types, and that he didn't stand a chance. Her first pokemon was a starfish-looking pokemon, and Red pulled out his PokeDex to reveal it as a Staryu. He was about to toss up Pikachu's pokeball, but a bright flash from his other suddenly lit up, and Blitz entered the field of battle instead. Red paused, confused, then asked so low only Blitz would be able to hear it
"What are you doing? You're weak to Water, you don't have the advantage here." Blitz flashed a grin back at him, then shot small flames out of his mouth, showing off his spirit. Misty asked
"We doing this, or what?" Red considered Blitz for a moment, and decided that if he was going to be adamant about battling, he might as well give him a shot. He nodded to Misty, then commanded Blitz
"Scratch." Blitz rushed forward, raising his claws to strike, and Misty countered
"Staryu, Water Pulse!" A small, water-blue orb grew at the top point of Staryu's body, and waited until Blitz raked his claws down its body, then fired the ball, making it impossible to dodge. It grew suddenly in size and enveloped Blitz, and his image became distorted until the attack exploded in a deluge of water, sending Blitz crashing to the ground and struggling to get back up. Red immediately held up his ball to recall him, but Blitz, as if predicting this, turned his face to Red, clearly giving him a look that told him not to do what he was thinking of doing.
After a moment, Red's arm slowly descended, and he nodded to Blitz. He pushed himself back up, refusing to back down. Misty commented
"Your Charmeleon's got spirit, I'll give it that, but you're going to need more than just spirit to get by me! Staryu, Rapid Spin!"
"Blitz, Metal Claw." Blitz jumped forward, his right arm glowing momentarily before it settled with a silver sheen over it. The Staryu had jumped up and begun to spin quickly, leveling out parallel to the floor, then flew at Blitz. At the last second, Blitz swiped through the air, knocking Staryu off course and sending it flying off. He quickly followed up with Ember, and while it didn't do much damage, it did leave the starfish pokemon with a burn, meaning that Rapid Spins already weak power would barely do anything at all.
"Blitz, Scratch."
"Staryu, Water Pulse!" Staryu flew back to Misty's side of the field and landed lightly, then charged the ball of compressed water again. Blitz charged forward and slashed downward, striking the charging attack in the process. The incomplete Water Pulse exploded, throwing both pokemon back, and they slammed against the platform.
"Blitz, can you stand?" He demonstrated his willpower by struggling once again to push himself back into a standing position, panting heavily. Staryu managed to stand back up as well, and though it had no discernible face, it seemed tired as well. Misty encouraged
"One last try, Staryu; Water Pulse!" Blitz roared to encourage himself, then charged a more powerful than usual Ember. Red was about to protest, but he and Staryu fired at the same time. The Water Pulse barreled through the embers, but the Ember attack was a wide-shot, meaning a fair number managed to skate by the Water Pulse. The barrage of Embers struck Staryu as the Water Pulse crashed into Blitz, and both were taken down in a simultaneous knockout. Misty was astonished that a Fire type had managed to take down her Staryu, a feat few accomplished before. As both trainers returned their pokemon, Misty told Red
"Not bad, not bad at all. Still, this isn't over, I've got one left. It's time to put an end to this." Red nodded, agreeing, and Misty threw up her ball, releasing another starfish, but this one looked different from Staryu; it was a shade of purple, the gem in the center was bigger and more defined, and it appeared to be two starfish stuck together. Red assumed it was the evolved form of Staryu and tossed out his Pikachu.
"Alright, let's kick this off; Starmie, Water Pulse!"
"Pikachu, ThunderShock." Pikachu charged the Electric attack as the double-starfish charged its own, they fired at the same time, and the ThunderShock broke through the Water Pulse, destroying it, and finally zapped Starmie. It was shocked fairly well, given that the Electric attack wasn't very strong on principle. It also managed to paralyze the starfish, which of course only worked in Red's favor. He smirked, a rare sight for most humans, and commanded quietly
"ThunderShock again." Pikachu's speed won out and he struck Staryu once more for decent damage. However, it wasn't enough to take it out, and Misty quickly called it back for a Super Potion, which sort of irritated Red. He was aware that healing pokemon was a standard part of battle, but it didn't make it any easier to deal with. Nevertheless, he persisted.
"Slam."
"Starmie, Recover!" Naturally, Pikachu won out in the realm of speed, slamming hard into Starmie and shoving it back a couple feet. It was then surrounded by a white and green light, and it appeared less tired than before. Misty then commanded
"Starmie, Rapid Spin!" Red countered
"Pikachu, ThunderShock." Pikachu launched the small bolt, taking its health down once again, but not succeeding in taking it down. But it looked close, very close. Starmie rose into the air, its two body pieces spinning independently and flying somewhat toward Pikachu. Red spotted the hitch in its execution, and quickly told his pokemon
"Pikachu, dodge, then Quick Attack." His ears twitched, acknowledging he had heard, and waited until the last second before jumping to the right as Starmie listed to the left. Once Starmie zoomed by, Pikachu turned to it and followed with a bright white light following him, slamming into it and sending it into the pool inside the gym. Misty shouted in disbelief and worry, calling out
"Starmie! Are you okay?!" The starfish pokemon floated at the top, but the gem in its center wasn't as luminous as before, now a dull crimson as opposed to the bright scarlet. Misty sighed and returned it, telling Red
"Well, you beat me. And as recognition for winning the gym battle, you've earned this." She walked over and handed him another small, metal badge, this one in the shape of a teardrop, a rich shade of blue. Red pinned the badge inside his vest, nodding his thanks. Misty pulled out a blue disc and handed that to him, too, explaining
"That's TM 43, Water Pulse. It has a small chance of inflicting the confused status condition on the target. Remember, TMs are only good for one use, so be careful who you teach it to." Red nodded once more, then headed back the way he came, coming out to the bright day in Cerulean City. Feeling a bit more accomplished, he decided to try and find a way forward, to leave the city without complication. However, the only viable path seemed to be through a house that was robbed recently, apparently by Team Rocket. He was able to pass through without incidence, and exited the hole in the wall in the back. He was surprised to find a Team Rocket grunt standing just outside, evidently just standing around. Red walked up and glared at him, and the grunt said
"Hey, I'm not doin' nuthin' wrong, I'm just standing here!" Red's glare deepened, and the grunt huffed
"You don't believe me, do ya? Fine!" The two started a battle, but Red's pokemon thrashed the grunt's, and he quickly gave up the item that was stolen, a brown TM. Closer inspection revealed the word "Dig" on it, and he suspected that was the move it offered. The grunt fled the scene, and Red went back into the house, trying to give the man his stolen property back. However, he didn't want it anymore, so Red took the TM for himself; who knew when it would come in handy?
He left the house and proceeded in his journey, traveling down a small route before a large tunnel passage was visible. He walked through and continued on his way, but the man behind the counter caught his attention, quite abruptly.
"HEY!" Red jumped, his hands flying to his belt, but paused there, unsure what to do. The man seemed suspicious, in more than one way, and said
"Road's blocked ahead, kid, you can't pass through." Red scowled, but figured it was probably best not to argue it, to avoid an argument. He went back the way he came, instead entering a small building off to the side, which turned out to be an underground path. As he descended the stairs he thought
"I don't know what's going on here, but sooner or later, I intend to find out."
And that's about it for now. Sorry it took so long to get this out, guys, but I just wasn't feeling it for a while. But don't worry, I'm not giving up on the story. Oh, and by the way, I've got another out. Check out my full profile, My Stories, for more details. See ya next time!