POKÉMON: CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS

#11: A 2,000-Watt Battle

A little over an hour had passed, and the police boats had arrived, hooking up to the S.S. Anne and delivering uniformed officers on board. Stolen goods were redistributed, statements from witnesses were taken, and the robbers were roughly shoved off the ship in handcuffs, thrown into police boats and shipped back to Vermilion. Their Pokémon had been confiscated, and their process through the Pokémon Redistribution Program had begun. Stacy was wrapped in a blanket, trying to keep from sobbing as the Officer Jenny of the Vermilion PD took her statement.

The Rogue and Dontae were surveying their brave Pokémon. Golbat, Charmeleon and Sandshrew stood at attention before the detective, while Charmander, Wartortle and Poliwag stood in a line before the younger Trainer.

"Guys," the Rogue summarized, "You're courage and ability were top-notch today. No one, not even a Trainer, could be prouder of you than I am now. Excellent work." Golbat and Charmeleon nodded in affirmation, and when they noticed each other doing so, growled at each other. Sandshrew merely postured, rubbing the back of its claws against its chest and blowing on them, as if boastfully polishing them.

"Same goes for you, fellas," Dontae echoed the same praise, "Great job. And way to earn a spot on the team, Poliwag!"

Charmander grinned as it looked back up at Dontae, "Char, char!" Wartortle grunted and flexed its muscles, and Poliwag jumped up and down, slapping its tail on the floor again.

By this time, Stacy was through speaking to the police, and had joined the boys again. The Rogue returned Charmeleon and Sandshrew in a flash of laser light, and Dontae did the same with Wartortle and Poliwag. "We'd better get moving, guys," she said as she approached them, her voice still somewhat shaky, "Kaine won't wait forever."

As if shaken back to the present, Dontae added quickly, "You're right. This little detour took way too long. We'll never stay on schedule at this rate."

The Rogue, fighting back the guilt he felt for slacking off on this most important case, concurred, "We're going to have to get some rest once we get back to the mainland. We'll need sleep before moving out for the next town, and in our present state, there's no way I'll be ready for the Gym Leader. Once we get back to the docks, you guys get some rest at the Pokémon Center, and I'll get in some extra training before I join you. All right?"

Stacy nodded, seeming to still be dazed by today's events. Dontae and Charmander did the same, accompanied by a long yawn from the Fire-type.

-

In the dead of night, the Rogue's training was about to finish. Up north, by a small inlet of water, the detective was developing the skills of his newly captured Pikachu. The yellow rodent Pokémon squared off against a Meowth, a small, catlike Pokémon with beige fur, long whiskers and a golden, coin-shaped pendant on its head. The Scratch Cat Pokémon leaped, screeching as it attempted to Scratch Pikachu.

"Use Thunder!" the Rogue called out.

"Piiiiiiii . . ." Pikachu cried, its cheeks sparking with massive amounts of electricity, "Kaaaaaaaa . . ." the power it emitted spread over its entire body, and overhead, the clouds began to rumble, " . . . CHUUUUUUUUUUU!" The tiny Electric-type unleashed a massive bolt from its body, the strongest the Rogue had seen from it thus far, and it arced toward the feline Pokémon. Meowth yowled in agony as the electricity coursed through its body, and when the power surge ceased, Meowth was still, defeated. The Normal-type slowly got up, singed fur still emitting smoke, and grumbled all the way off into the bushes.

The Rogue was thoroughly impressed. He had never seen so much strength come from such a small Pokémon. Its emotions could still be toned down a bit, but the Rogue knew that, with proper training, Pikachu's awesome power could be a great asset to him.

After settling its power level, Pikachu raced to the Rogue and grabbed his leg, hugging him tenderly, "Pika! Pika, Pikachu!"

The Rogue sighed, cradling his forehead between his finger and his thumb, and managed to force out his gratitude, "Well done, Pikachu. Let's call it a night."

Pikachu whined and looked up at the Rogue with shiny, sensitive black eyes. It seemed as though it didn't want to stop playing with its friend.

The Rogue sighed again, and took out Pikachu's PokéBall, "I'm sorry, little one, but we have to get some rest before we face Lieutenant Surge tomorrow. He's gonna be tough, and we need to be rested before going into battle." Without another word, the Rogue returned Pikachu to its Ball in a flash of red light. The Rogue knew that, while Pikachu's unparalleled strength would be an asset to him, unless it took care to control its emotions, it would only prove to be a liability.

-

The Vermilion City Gym was not like any the Rogue had seen before. While it did sport the logical yellow color scheme for an Electric-type Gym, the far end of the Gym was blocked off by a massive door that seemed to crackle with electricity. The Rogue had heard about Lieutenant Surge's cautious nature, and knew that this door (which was reinforced by another door behind it) was a test to make sure only the toughest, smartest Trainers made it to face off with the Lieutenant.

The test was simple, yet difficult: find the hidden switches that deactivate the electrically-powered doors.

Dontae didn't seem to think it was possible, "What the hell kind of Gym is this?! Why would a Gym Leader have to complicate things by installing mind puzzles into the Gym?! It doesn't make any sense!"

"Relax, Dontae," Stacy coaxed him, "I'm sure the Gym Leader has a good reason for setting all this up. It may look hard, but I don't think it impossible. We just gotta find out what to do, that's all."

The Rogue said nothing, and almost grinned to himself. He walked further inside the Gym so suddenly, the rest of the group hardly noticed. Quickly, Dontae, Stacy, Golbat and Charmander followed him into a large maze of what appeared to be wastepaper baskets. The group kept following the Rogue until he suddenly stopped, putting both arms up horizontally to stop them, as well. He turned left, and the others turned left. He stopped again, and he stopped the others again. He made a sharp turn and walked toward the electrified door, stopped quickly in front of it, then turned away again, and the others followed again. Occasionally, he would pause, making the others give him strange looks, then continued this irregular pattern for a few more minutes at a time. After nearly fifteen minutes of this, he finally stopped, knowing that his group (at least Dontae) would be complaining any minute now. He held out his hands in front of him, hovered them over a nearby waste bin, and after a few seconds, reached inside, grabbed something, and pulled.

At once, there was a great rumble, and the first electrically-charged door slid open entirely. There was hardly any time for anyone to say a word before the Rogue had repeated the process on an adjacent bin. He reached inside and pulled, and the second door slid open with a great rumble.

The detective looked back at his cohorts, and smiled at their reactions. Dontae was wide-eyed, Stacy looked wildly impressed, and Charmander's mouth was agape. Golbat merely stood, a knowing grin on its exceptionally large face.

After a short pause, Dontae spoke up, "How did you do that?! And why did you have to keep the rest of us in the dark? Honestly, could you be a bigger show-off?!"

The Rogue rolled his eyes and started toward the opened door, and the rest of the group followed him. Through the doors, inside was the same elevated area that served as the Gym Leader's chamber of the building. On top of this construct was a tall, muscular man wearing camouflage fatigues, dark sunglasses, and a pair of army tags around his neck. His blond hair was styled in a crew cut, which he overconfidently slicked back as the group walked in.

"Ten-hut!" the man suddenly bellowed, making everyone (except the Rogue) stand erect, "Welcome to my Gym, civilians! State your name and business!"

The Rogue scoffed, but proceeded without a smart-aleck response, "I'm a detective from Viridian City; they call me the Rogue. I'm on an important case that requires my presence at the Indigo Plateau. I request a battle with you for your badge."

"HAH!" Lieutenant Surge mocked, "Moving along kinda slow, ain't ya, kid? The Plateau tournament starts in less than a month! You ain't plannin' on gettin' there with all eight badges by then, are ya?"

"I must insist you abide by Pokémon League regulations, Lieutenant," the Rogue said calmly, keeping his temper in check, "I challenge you for your badge, and you accept. Or should I bring this up with the officials at the Plateau?"

Surge removed his sunglasses, his eyes slightly wide, "Well! Someone's certainly got guts! I guess anyone who solves my door puzzle as quickly as you did deserves my attention! How'd you figure it out so quick, anyways?"

After glancing at Dontae and Stacy and seeing the sudden intrigued looks on their faces, the Rogue gave a slight smile; he thought Surge would never ask.

"Quite simple, really," he explained, almost haughtily, "the electric current connecting the switches to the doors runs underground. In a quiet enough setting, the vibrations can be felt through the feet. After following the current, it was easy enough determining where the first switch was. And since the two switches' connection to the door is made more effective by placing one right next to the other, it was a simple process of elimination from there."

Stacy marveled at the Rogue's deduction skills, "Wow! That was so cool, Detective!"

Dontae crossed his arms angrily, "Well, I wish you would've told us that!"

Surge, however, was only mildly impressed, "Hah! Not bad, kid, not bad! But you'll have to do better than that to beat me in battle!" He then produced a shrunken PokéBall from his belt and enlarged it, "These here Electric-type Pokémon saved me during the war!"

The Rogue's eyebrows went up, "Indeed?"

"That's right!" the lieutenant went on, "They shocked all my enemies straight into paralysis! Same as I'll do to you!"

The Rogue's eyebrows sunk into a determined glare as he produced his own PokéBall, "That remains to be seen."

Surge returned the detective's determined stare, and threw back his arm, prepared to throw. "Voltorb!" he commanded as he chucked the Ball into the air, "Report for duty!"

PANG! The Ball opened, and in a flash of light, a Pokémon took to the field that uncannily resembled the device from which it was summoned; spherical, with red on top and white on the bottom. The only differences: it stood nearly a foot-and-a-half off the ground, it had no button mechanism, and it had two sharp, wicked-looking eyes. It buzzed and spun around on the spot, showing off for its foe.

The Rogue enlarged his own Ball with the push of a button, opened the Ball, and with a PANG!, Pikachu was on the field, in all its adorable yellow glory. It turned around and jumped up into the Rogue's chest, hugging him gleefully, "Pika, pika!"

The Rogue held back a disapproving groan and plucked the static rodent from his body. "Now, look," he directed at Pikachu, turning it around to face him, "We discussed this, little one. No getting distracted. You have to battle for me now. Can you do that?"

Pikachu smiled and sparked its cheeks, "Pikachu!"

The Rogue frowned, "I'll take that as a 'yes'." He then set the Electric-type down and faced the battlefield, and Pikachu did the same, racing out to greet Voltorb in combat.

"HAH!" Lieutenant Surge laughed again, "Tryin' to be a copycat, eh? Let's see how far it gets you! Voltorb, get down and give me a Tackle!"

Voltorb emitted a buzz that sounded oddly like it would've said, in English, 'Sir, yes, sir!" The Ball Pokémon then began to roll, with blinding speed, toward Pikachu.

The Rogue, having scanned Voltorb with his PokéCell just before Surge made the first move, commanded Pikachu's next move, "Pikachu, use Mega Punch!"

At once, Pikachu raced at Voltorb at nearly the same speed on all fours, took a flying leap forward, and aimed a tiny, balled-up paw at Voltorb. On the way, Pikachu's balled-up paw seemed to whiten with massive amounts of energy. The Tackle and Mega Punch met in the air, and Voltorb was knocked back, flying uncontrollably until it hit ground, when it started rolling uncontrollably. As if reversing gears, Voltorb spun forward, kicking up a cloud of dust and emitting a screeching stop, and rolled forward again, upright by the time it came back into the battlefield.

Pikachu landed with surprising grace on its feet, and shook its paw in pain. Apparently, the Tackle took its toll, but was not enough to keep the electric mouse down.

"Voltorb, unleash a Sonicboom!" the lieutenant ordered. Again, Voltorb gave three rhythmic buzzes, and then spun around again, this time much faster. So fast, this time around, the very sound of its body brushing against the air seemed to be magnified by ten-million. Voltorb then suddenly stopped spinning, launching the visible tornado of sound at Pikachu.

The Rogue responded quickly, "Pikachu, Double Team!"

Pikachu obeyed just as quickly, and, as if running back and forth at a law-defying speed, its little body seemed to split in two, creating two mirror images of Pikachu. Both Pikachu jumped out of the Sonicboom's path, but one of them didn't make it in time, and was struck full-force by the massive sound wave.

It phased through Pikachu's body as if it were nothing.

Stacy turned to Dontae, a look of confusion evident on her soft features, "Wow, that was creepy. What just happened, Dontae?"

Dontae commented on the maneuver, "Whoa! It hit the wrong one! Pikachu's Double Team increased its likelihood to dodge attacks! Now that it has a double, moves like Sonicboom lose that much more effectiveness!"

Stacy smiled and turned to cheer the detective on, "Way to go, Rogue! You've got him on the run, now!"

Surge didn't miss a beat, "Voltorb! Back-to-back Sonicbooms, soldier!" Voltorb answered with three drill-army-style buzzes, and spun around in blinding circles again. One right after another, a visible vortex of ear-splitting sound was launched at Pikachu and its Pika-double. Effortlessly, both of them dodged and ducked from the paths of the attacks, but the Rogue knew it couldn't keep dodging forever. Quickly, he thought of a maneuver, and was just in time to execute one; the real Pikachu was nicked in the side by an oncoming Sonicboom.

"Pikachu," the Rogue commanded, "Surround it and launch another Mega Punch!"

"Pi-kaaa!" Pikachu growled, and at once, it and its facsimile raced into the fray, each one taking a close position beside Voltorb. The Ball Pokémon did a double-take before being hit with another fierce punch, and was sent flying skyward.

The Rogue followed up quickly, "Now, use Slam!"

Pikachu nodded, and sprang up into the air after Voltorb. The Mouse Pokémon spun in the air, somersaulted, and slammed Voltorb harshly with its tail. Both Pokémon fell from the air quickly, and Pikachu brought Voltorb down with a mighty crash, "Ka-Chu!"

In a few moments, the dust settled, and Voltorb lay still, on its side, eyes no longer visible and looking as lifeless as the Ball it was kept in.

Stacy hopped up and down and clapped, "Yes! One down and two to go! Keep it up, Detective!"

Dontae did not add to the celebration, "He's not out of the woods just yet. I'm sure the good lieutenant is just getting warmed up."

Lieutenant Surge returned his Voltorb, and replaced its Ball with another from his belt, "Well, now, looks like I'd better clear the landing area for this one!" Surge enlarged the Ball and threw with gusto, "Pikachu, report!"

PANG! The flash of light went off, and when it quieted, a second Pikachu entered the battlefield. It was nearly identical to the Rogue's Pikachu in every way, except for its tail, which ended in a much sharper point, and its expression, which was deathly serious.

The Rogue gave a distinct scoff, "Who's trying to be a copycat now?"

"Pikachu!" Surge made the first move again, "Agility! March!"

Pikachu nodded, and suddenly vanished. Without warning, a small, yellow blur ricocheted around, this way and that, dazing the Rogue's Pikachu and making it waver on the spot. The Rogue knew this was no trick or illusion; this was pure speed. Agility was turning Pikachu into a little fuzzy speeding bullet.

"Use Slam, Pikachu!" the detective called out, and Pikachu obeyed. Or, at least, tried; taking as careful aim as it could, the Rogue's Pikachu jumped, spun, and slammed down on the lieutenant's Pikachu. But it was all for naught; the Gym Leader's Pikachu was far too fast, and the Slam attack just barely missed.

"Don't aim at where it is!" Dontae cawed from behind the detective, "Aim at where its going to be!"

"Keep your comments to yourself!" the Rogue bit back, still attempting to piece together a decent plan.

Surge made a quick follow-up, literally, "Now, use Quick Attack!" With the same blinding speed, Surge's Pikachu sprang forward, covering the distance between it and its foe in mere seconds and knocking the Rogue's Pikachu back with a tiny elbow.

The Rogue processed a way to outmaneuver the Gym Leader's speedy Pokémon, when he noticed something; Surge's Pikachu, after landing from its last move, began to moan in pain, its body locked up and unable to move.

"Paralyzed?" Stacy put the confusion of the turnaround into words, "But how? Rogue's Pikachu didn't even land a hit yet."

"Static," Dontae clarified, "Pikachu's Ability. When the foe uses a move that makes direct contact, Static has a chance to paralyze the attacker instantly."

The Rogue quickly used this new development to his advantage, "Pikachu, Thunder attack!"

Pikachu eyed its Gym Leader counterpart with a combination of anger and frustration. It had clearly had enough.

"Piiiiiii . . ." Pikachu charged up power, its cheeks sparking, "Kaaaaaaa . . ." the Mouse Pokémon's coat sizzled with electricity, and a clear rumble of thunder sounded off from outside the Gym wall, "CHUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!"

The blast of plasmatic energy surged across the room, striking the paralyzed Pikachu head-on, making it squeal in pain and blackening patches of its yellow fur. The monstrous Thunder ceased, and Surge's Pikachu collapsed instantly.

Surge seemed blown away, "No way! A one-hit KO! And against another Electric-type, too! That little soldier o' yours packs a wallop, son!"

The Rogue couldn't help but hold back his own surprise. Pikachu's emotions ran high in this battle, but if this was the extent of its power during such an episode, it may have been a wise idea not to suppress its emotions, but to teach the little Pokémon how to control them.

The lieutenant returned his own Pikachu to its Ball, "I'll bet you're feeling pretty confident now, aren't ya, Private?"

The Rogue returned with a sneer, "That's the idea, Lieutenant."

Surge sneered back as he detached his last PokéBall, "Well, that idea will get you killed, soldier. Know your enemy before charging into the war zone." With that, he enlarged the Ball, and threw it with a bellowing command, "Raichu! Front and center!"

With another PANG!, the Gym Leader's third Pokémon appeared. It looked like a bigger, stylized Pikachu, with orange fur instead of yellow, a yellow spot on each cheek instead of red, and had longer, curlier ears and a longer, thinner tail, almost resembling an extension cord. On the end of its tail was a sharp-looking lightning-bolt design, which swished back and forth dangerously as Raichu glared at Pikachu, taunting it with a voice that only sounded like a deeper version of Pikachu's, "Rai-rai-raichu!"

This time, the Rogue made the first move, "Pikachu, Mega Punch!" Pikachu charged in, aiming its tiny fist at its evolved form.

"Raichu, Thunder Wave!" Surge responded quickly.

Raichu cackled haughtily as a wave of electric energy pulsed from its body, "Rai-rai, Raichu!"

Before Pikachu could turn away, it was struck with the eerie static wave, and its attack was compromised. It stopped in its tracks, every move it attempted to make only causing it pain. It too, was Paralyzed.

"Now, use Body Slam! Forward, march!" Lieutenant Surge commanded.

"Chu-rai-chu!" Raichu responded with mechanical quickness. Then, hefting its weight airborne, it zoomed across the field, slamming its lesser form down with a tremendous crash.

"No!" the Rogue yelled in aggravation, then fell back on a different strategy, "Double Team again!"

Pikachu obeyed as quickly as it could, and began its move. The double from its last Double Team reappeared, and both Pikachu split in two, creating four altogether.

"Stale move, soldier," Surge taunted, "Raichu! Shock Wave!"

Raichu grinned when a coat of electricity covered its body. It thrust out its stubby paws, and the wave expanded, becoming a series of rings of electric power that rotated and created a globe shape, resembling a gargantuan atom. The Shock Wave continued to enlarge, and the Pika-clones were all caught in the wave, but only one actually felt the damage, and cried out as it was flung backwards.

"No," Dontae mumbled, his voice crestfallen, "Pikachu's finished. Shock Wave ignores accuracy and evasion modifications. It always hits, no matter what."

"What?!" Stacy gasped, astounded that there was a chance the Rogue could lose, "No! Pikachu, hang on!"

Surge followed up quickly, "Now, Thunderbolt, soldier!"

Raichu's power charged again, and it made a mighty call as it hurled a bolt of electricity at Pikachu, "Raaaaaai . . . . CHUUUUUUU!" The sizzling arc of plasma struck true once again, ignoring the three Pika-copies.

The Rogue felt himself being slowly cornered. Desperate for a way out, he switched back to the offensive, "Pikachu, Slam!"

"Raichu, Body Slam!" Surge countered quickly.

Pikachu bravely raced toward its foe. It was still weak, but more than willing to fight. It jumped as high as it could manage, spinning and readying its move. Raichu raced in as well, and met Pikachu's Slamming tail with a powerful full-body pound. Both moves blasted the Electric fighters back, but Pikachu was injured the most from that face-off. As it landed, it fell to one knee and began panting hard.

Before the Rogue could make another move, Surge ended the battle, "Shock Wave!"

Raichu bellowed as it emitted another atom of electricity, and Pikachu was struck once again, dead-center. It flew backwards and landed right in front of the Rogue, still and defeated.

"No!" the Rogue called out, bitter regret edged in his voice, and ran out onto the field to check on his Pokémon. He knelt down beside it and took it into his arms, and Pikachu stirred, waking slightly. It looked up at the Rogue, and tears began filling its eyes. It buried its plump face into the Rogue's jacket and began to cry; as it did, sparks from its cheeks arced outward and struck the ground, peeling paint and blackening the Gym floor.

Before any more damage could be done, the Rogue produced Pikachu's PokéBall and returned it, assuring it just beforehand, "You were very courageous, my friend. I'm sorry it had to end this way." His determination flared with the loss of his Pokémon, the Rogue stood, walked back to his end of the field, and wordlessly summoned his next Pokémon with a PANG of a PokéBall. In a flash of light, Beedrill took to the field, stabbing the air and buzzing angrily.

"A Beedrill, huh?" Surge smirked, "Well, no plan's gonna help you now, jarhead! Raichu, Thunder Wave!"

"Beedrill, Twinneedle!" the Rogue responded quickly, and Beedrill obeyed, swiftly buzzing forward and jabbing Raichu with its left stinger just before the static wave hit. Another stab with Beedrill's right stinger, and the damage was done to both combatants.

"Raichu, Shock Wave!" the lieutenant called out, and Raichu emitted the same atom-shaped electric pulse that defeated Pikachu. Beedrill was struck hard, but not defeated; it furiously jabbed at the air, as if swearing vengeance on Raichu.

"Beedrill, come back with Fury Attack!" the detective ordered, but Beedrill was already on the way over. It struck Raichu with its left stinger. Raichu was thrown upward, and Beedrill met it on the way down with another jab from the right. It repeated this once more before Raichu landed on its feet, hurt and irritated.

Surge was beginning to get irritated as well, "Raichu! Show the enemy your Body Slam!"

"Another Twineedle!" the Rogue answered, and both Pokémon struck each other with their attacks again, Raichu's striking first, then Beedrill's piercing Raichu and knocking it back.

"Now, use Fury Attack again!" the Rogue commanded. Beedrill tried to move, but it buzzed in aggravation when it could not. It dropped to the ground, its body locked up in Paralysis from Raichu's Thunder Wave.

Surge moved in for the kill, "Raichu, Thunderbolt! Forward, march!"

"CHU-RAI-CHU!" the mighty Mouse Pokémon responded, and launched its sizzling electric arc at Beedrill. Unable to escape, Beedrill took the attack as it made to stand up again, and after the move subsided, the Poison Bee Pokémon collapsed again. It had fainted.

"I gotta admit, kid," Surge relented, "You're givin' me a run for my money. But no soldier ever fought for his country by quittin'!"

As the Rogue returned Beedrill to its Ball, he realized that the lieutenant was right. When facing Brock and Misty, he had become discouraged far too easily. If this was the time for that to happen, the Rogue ignored it, and his resolve strengthened. Bravely replacing Beedrill's PokéBall with his third one, he threw, and with a PANG, Sandshrew appeared. It crossed its arms and stared at Raichu, chittering pitiably, "Wh-thiw, wh-thiw", as if Sandshrew wished it had a far stronger opponent.

Stacy smiled brightly. "Of course!" she praised, "Sandshrew's a Ground-type! Ground-types are immune to electricity! He's gonna win after all!"

Dontae replied earnestly, "You forget, Sandshrew's track record thus far has not been pleasant. If it had more experience, the Rogue would definitely win, but now it could be anybody's game."

"Anybody's except yours, Private!" Lieutenant Surge laughed haughtily, "If you think Type can win you this battle, you've got another thing coming! Raichu, Body Slam!" Raichu hastily obeyed, zooming at Sandshrew full force and striking it with its very girth. Sandshrew was knocked back by the force of the move, but still managed to agilely land on its feet.

"Follow up, soldier!" Surge added, "Body Slam!" Raichu moved in, ready to strike.

The Rogue made a quick command, "Defense Curl!" Sandshrew obeyed, curling its body into a perfect sphere and gaining a faint white glow. Raichu's Body Slam struck, and the damage was greatly reduced.

Surge growled, his options slowly dissolving, "Back-to-back blitz, Raichu!" Raichu obeyed, hitting Sandshrew multiple times with unrelenting power.

"Sandshrew, Sand-Attack, then Defense Curl!" the Rogue commanded, and Sandshrew swept its paw against the ground, kicking up a cloud of sand at Raichu just before its next Body Slam landed. Raichu veered off course and missed its target, but when it prepared to strike again, Sandshrew was already even more fortified. The next successive Body Slams did very little damage, if any at all.

"Raichu!" Surge called out with a combination of fury and anxiousness, "What is the matter with you?! On your feet, soldier!" Raichu stopped and stood up straight, then everyone saw what the matter was: Raichu's breaths were coming out in purple clouds.

"Raichu's Poisoned?" Stacy questioned, "But Sandshrew hasn't used Poison Sting yet. How did that happen?"

"It must have been Twineedle," Dontae replied, a tinge of awe in his voice, "Beedrill's Twineedle has the potential to Poison. It must've done that just before it fainted!"

The Rogue smiled in pride for all his Pokémon, before reinforcing his strategy, "Another Sand-Attack-Defense Curl combo, Sandshrew!"

"Wh-thiw-thiw!" Sandshrew gave its Trainer a thumbs-up, and kicked up another cloud of sand at Raichu before forming a ball and strengthening its Defense once again.

Raichu angrily sparked its cheeks, then launched another series of Body Slams. Few of the strikes even landed, and the ones that did had almost no effect at all. With each successive failure, Raichu's health deteriorated, and the pain in its face grew more and more evident.

Until Sandshrew tried to move, and found that it could not.

The Rogue saw that Sandshrew was Paralyzed, a side effect of the relentless Body Slams. Knowing a quick ending was now mandatory, the Rogue took the last move he could make, "Now, Sandshrew, use Slash attack!"

Sandshrew, bravely bracing itself from the pain of movement, raced toward the oncoming Raichu, and Slashed it with its claws just as it struck. "CHAAA-aaa-AAAAAaaaa!" Raichu screamed in agony as the claws raked its skin. Finally, the Electric titan was flung to the ground by the force of the attack, rolling over until its momentum ceased. It propped itself up, attempting to get up, then after a few tentative seconds, its arms gave way, it fell back down, and Raichu moved no longer.

"YES!" Stacy congratulated, jumping up and down as she squealed, "You did it, Rogue, you did it! You really did it!"

Dontae grinned, "I have to admit, that was pretty cool. Good job, Pendergast."

The Rogue merely sighed with relieved exhaustion, and went to return his Sandshrew. Before he could, though, a glow made him shield his eyes, and he looked to see that the glow was coming from his Sandshrew. Its form shrouded in white light, its form changed back and forth rapidly, soon almost blindingly, then in a burst of sparkles, the evolved form of Sandshrew stood proudly, a foot taller than before. Its yellow hide was replaced by yellow fur and dark-brown spikes all over its back. Its claws grew to be so long as to take up the entire hand on either side, which was the same for the claws on its feet. Its black, beady eyes glinted, then it released a victory cry, "Wh-shash!"

The Rogue smiled at his newly evolved Sandslash, and resumed returning it to its PokéBall, saying just beforehand, "Excellent job, my friend. Take a rest, now."

Lieutenant Surge, having returned his Raichu, stepped toward the Rogue, an excited grin on his craggy features, "Well, that was a shocker! You're the real deal, detective!" He then produced an object from his front pocket; it was orange and octagonal, with each side sporting a yellow point on the outside and making it resemble a star.

The Rogue smiled again, his pride and confidence growing with each second. And the ThunderBadge makes three, he thought, Look out, Kaine. I'll be at the Indigo League Tournament before you know it. And when I find you, you're going down.