A/N: Hello everyone! Welcome to the next chapter! Before we start, I would like to address a glaring flaw my story has that a few people have kindly pointed out. Where is the romance?! You are absolutely correct. This story has not had very many romantic moments so far. I was hoping the dance last chapter would help, but it only did at a minimum level. With that being said, hopefully, you guys don't have to wait too much longer. I have in my head exactly when and where I want Ash and Serena to officially become a couple. For now, I'm letting their relationship develop before I do that. There will be personal talks between them and a lot more amourshipping moments coming up soon in future chapters before they date. So just please be a little more patient. They will date before Johto. I promise. I just don't want to shove them together too quickly.

Another thing a few people pointed out was that Butterfree's release was too early and Ash's bond wasn't as strong as in the anime. I suppose you guys are right on that account as well. It is quite difficult to try to balance a lot of things in this story such as plot development, character development, romance, etc, that I sometimes forget to have personal times with Ash and the others with their Pokemon. I really want to fix this, however. If anyone has any suggestions on ways I can have the group strengthen the bond with their Pokemon without interrupting the story too much, I would love to hear them. Suggestions are very welcome!

One more thing. Please avoid using profanity in reviews for my story, particularly the f-bomb as one person did. Thank you.

Now on with chapter!

Disclaimer: I most definitely do not own Pokemon!

Chapter 21: Blackout in Celadon City Part One

"Oh, wow! It's Celadon City!" Misty squealed as she clasped her hands together.

"It's a lot bigger than I thought it was!" Serena exclaimed while her eyes sparkled.

"There is supposed to be a huge department store here with all sorts of things! I can't wait to check it out!" Misty squealed again.

"Me neither! There is also a really huge mansion here to visit! I can also compete at the Battle Chateau here!" Serena added.

The group had finally made it to another large city. Celadon City was the second largest city in Kanto after Saffron City. Since they have never been to Saffron City, the size of this one still blew them away.

A very large city had different meanings for each member of the group. For Ash, it just meant another place to earn his fourth gym badge. For Brock, it meant a nice break from cooking and cleaning since a Pokemon Center could take care of all of those things, as well as a chance to see pretty girls, especially Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny. For Misty, it meant shopping and visiting the local attractions. Serena had mostly the same views as Misty except large cities also meant another chance at a Battle Chateau title.

The group was so excited about finally getting to another city that they didn't notice the water advisory posters around on various buildings and street poles.

"I think before we do anything that it would be best that we visit the Pokemon Center here," Brock suggested.

"Yeah. Good idea," Ash agreed. He had learned not to just rush headfirst to the gym anymore since starting his journey. It was important to make sure that all of his Pokemon were in top shape, especially his newly caught Krabby.

After training some with his Krabby, Ash had learned that Krabby was actually a very good battler as well. It was very skilled with its huge pincers and could handle many Grass-type attacks if its battle with Bulbasaur was any indication. Most Water-types would need to watch out for Grass-types, but not Krabby.

As the group made their way to the Pokemon Center, they saw a red convertible speeding past them. As they watched it pass, Ash and Serena instantly recognized one of the faces in the car. It was none other than Gary Oak.

Upon seeing the two, Gary ordered the cheerleader driving the convertible to stop. He then got out of the car and approached the four and Pikachu.

"Yo, Ash. Serena," he greeted as he held up his right arm.

"Gary!? What are you doing here?!" Ash exclaimed.

"Isn't it obvious? I was here to win the Rainbow Badge from Erika, the gym leader here. Now that I've beaten her, I just got my fourth gym badge," Gary bragged as he showed Ash his case of four badges.

Ash gave a sigh. Gary always seemed to be one step ahead of him.

"How many badges have you collected so far?" Gary asked Ash as he put his badge case away.

"I've only gotten three," Ash mumbled.

"You have a lot of catching up to do, Ashy-boy!" Gary said with that arrogant smirk that Ash hated so much.

Ash's face turned an angry shade of red as Gary turned to Serena. "What about you, Serena? How have things been? I heard from Leaf that you were doing the Battle Chateau."

"Oh, I've been doing fine. I've only made it to Viscountess so far, but I'm determined to improve in rank while I'm here!" Serena answered.

"There you go! Good attitude!" Gary smiled.

Gary then directed his attention back at Ash. "You could learn a thing or two from Serena about confidence. Here she is telling me how she can get her new rank while all you have been doing is moping ever since you saw me!"

Brock and Misty watched the exchange between Gary and Ash and immediately understood why Ash always felt he had to be better than Gary. It seemed Gary had a big habit of making fun of Ash.

"I'm confident enough to challenge you to a Pokemon Battle!" Ash shouted as he raised his fists in the air.

"Heh, no thanks, Ash. I only challenge skilled trainers who take great care of their Pokemon!" Gary smirked.

"What are you talking about Gary!? My Pokemon are doing super!" Ash yelled back.

"Have you looked at your Pikachu, lately?" Gary asked while pointing to the rodent on Ash's shoulder.

Ash looked and was alarmed when he saw that Pikachu had a weak look on its face as sparks flew from its cheeks.

"Pikachu! Are you okay?!" Ash cried. Now that he thought about it, Pikachu hadn't said a word since they entered Celedon City. Ash berated himself as he should have noticed sooner but was too distracted by Gary showing up.

"Your Pikachu will be fine. It just has a cold," Gary informed him. "I'm so generous that I will give you a Potion to help you out until you get to the Pokemon Center."

Gary then reached into a pouch in the bag he was carrying and tossed a Potion to Ash who caught it. Ash immediately sprayed it onto Pikachu. Once the potion took effect, Pikachu looked a little better but would still need a trip to the Pokemon Center. Ash was relieved that it was nothing serious but scowled that he always had to look bad in front of Gary Oak.

"Ash actually has an incredible bond with his Pokemon, Gary," Serena said, coming to Ash's defense. "He and his Pikachu have grown exceptionally close. You haven't seen him since you left Pallet Town. You can't judge his training skills based on this one meeting!"

Gary looked at Brock and Misty and saw them nod their heads, signifying they agreed with Serena. Then he noticed Pikachu weakly nod its head in return.

"Alright. I'll take your word for it that Ash is better than I gave him credit for," Gary told Serena.

He then turned to Ash and crossed his arms. "I'll tell you what, Ash. Go heal your Pikachu at the Pokemon Center, and we can have a battle the next time we meet."

"You're on!" Ash shouted with fire in his eyes.

"Now you sound like a trainer worth battling!" Gary praised.

He then nodded to Brock and Misty before turning around to head back to his car and addressing Serena and Ash. "Later guys. One more thing, don't drink the water here!"

"Gary! Gary! He's the best!" his cheerleaders cried as Gary got into the back seat of the convertible. The car was soon turned on by one of the cheerleaders and sped off.

"Gary has his own car and fan club?" Misty asked, clearly amazed.

"Don't ask," Serena muttered as she and Ash face-palmed.

As Ash watched Gary leave, he figured their first meeting since leaving Pallet Town could have gone much worse. At least Gary didn't call him a loser. The only downside was he had to have his friends stand up for him instead of showing proof of the strong bond he had with his Pokemon. He cursed his luck but realized there were more pressing matters to deal with at the moment than his rivalry with Gary Oak. He had to get Pikachu to the Pokemon Center.

Once the group arrived at the Pokemon Center, they could see it was already pretty busy. It was a lot bigger than the one in Vermillion City due to Celedon City being a larger city, but that didn't mean there was any less traffic.

"Excuse me, Nurse Joy," Ash said once it was the group's turn in line. "I think my Pikachu has come down with a bad cold. Do you think you can help it as well as check up on my other Pokemon?"

"I'd be very happy to," Nurse Joy smiled as she put on rubber gloves to take Ash's Pikachu.

"Could you check on our Pokemon, too, Nurse Joy?" Serena asked as she, Misty, and Brock held up their pokeballs.

"Of course," Nurse Joy replied. She was just about to take their pokeballs when Brock ran up to her and held her hands.

"Nurse Joy! Are you free later today? I can take you out to a nice restaurant and…YEOWW!" Brock started, but yelled in pain when Misty began to pull him by the ear.

"You may have Nurse Joy's hands but my hand has your ear," Misty said in annoyance as she pulled him away.

"Not the ear. Not the ear," Brock muttered.

Ignoring the scene with Brock, Ash had noticed a strange Pokemon standing on top of the desk, staring at the group. It was a golden colored, duck-like Pokemon that had its hands holding its head, like it had a headache.

"Uh, is that a Psyduck?" Ash asked.

"Why is it staring at us?" Serena wondered as she tilted her head in confusion.

The two then took out their pokedexes to scan it. "Psyduck, the duck Pokemon. This Pokemon has mysterious powers but doesn't recall how to use them. This is why it always looks puzzled," the pokedexes said.

"Nurse Joy? What's up with this Psyduck?" Ash asked curiously once he and Serena put away their pokedexes.

"Honestly, this Psyduck has been here for weeks now. It wandered in one day very injured. I nursed it back to health quickly, but it never leaves despite my efforts to encourage it. I don't know where it came from," Nurse Joy said.

"So it just stands there all day with a blank expression on its face?" Misty asked as she came back once dragging Brock a suitable distance away.

"Yes. It does," Nurse Joy confirmed.

Misty leaned in a little closer to get a better look at Psyduck. The duck Pokemon stared back at Misty without moving at all.

"This thing looks pretty dopey," Misty commented while raising one of her eyebrows.

As soon as Misty finished her comment, Psyduck leaned forward and pecked Misty on the mouth with its beak, almost like it was kissing her.

"Gross!" Misty exploded as she wiped her mouth with her hand, startling everybody else in the Pokemon Center. "This dim-witted duck just kissed me!"

Ash, Serena, and Brock couldn't contain themselves as they burst into a fit of laughter.

"What do you know? Psyduck likes you Misty," Ash said in between laughs.

"I need to go wash my mouth out and take a shower while I'm at it!" Misty yelled as she ran to the bathroom.

"Oh no! You mustn't do that!" Nurse Joy called suddenly, causing the group to look at her in confusion.

"What's wrong?" asked Serena.

"Celedon City's water has become very polluted lately. This is due to Celedon being such a large city. There is so much energy and pollution here that it contaminated our waters. Now there have been many Grimer and Muk that are down in our sewer systems making the situation even worse. This isn't good as our entire city runs on hydroelectric power," Nurse Joy explained.

"That must have been what Gary meant when he told us not to drink the water," Ash realized.

"So what's being done about the problem?" Misty asked as she walked back to the counter.

"Our gym leader Erika has gone down to the sewers a few times to try to at least fend off the Grimer and Muk. The only problem is she uses Grass-type Pokemon, and they are weak against Poison-types like Grimer and Muk. There have even been a few trainers to go down to the sewers to see what is wrong, but they turn up missing. I don't know why the Power Plant workers aren't doing anything. Nobody has been able to contact them for weeks," Nurse Joy replied.

"That's awful," Brock muttered.

"Yes it is. Our police force is having a hard time trying to search for the missing trainers and help with the water problem," Nurse Joy agreed. "Until the problem is fixed, we have to rely on bottled water to take care of ourselves. Thankfully, we are getting it donated for free here at the Pokemon Center."

"I guess we will just have to use the bottled water to wash ourselves while we are here," Ash figured.

The group was just then walking away from Nurse Joy's desk when the lights to the Pokemon Center went out.

"Woah! Who turned out the lights?!" Ash exclaimed.

"Nobody did! The power has gone out!" Misty yelled at him.

The lights going out had caused quite a commotion. Many people had begun yelling and frantically running outside to get out of the dark since it was still daytime. The only one not looking panicked was Psyduck. It never changed its expression or moved from its spot despite the chaos.

"I need to call the police station on the wired phone now!" Nurse Joy said as she ran to the only phone in the center that didn't run on electricity.

"What do you suppose the problem is?" Ash asked the group among the chaos at the Pokemon Center.

"Do you think it has anything to do with the polluted water system?" Serena suggested.

"I don't think so," Brock replied as he crossed his arms in thought. "Dirty water shouldn't make the whole Pokemon Center shut down."

It was then that Nurse Joy got off the phone with a worried look on her face.

"What's wrong, Nurse Joy?" Brock asked as the group went over to her.

"It's terrible. The Grimer and Muk have become so numerous in the water system that they are blocking all the water needed to run the Power Plant. This whole side of Celadon City is in a complete blackout until the problem is fixed!"

The group gasped upon hearing that.

"Can't you send the sick and injured Pokemon to the other centers while the problem is being fixed?" Ash asked.

"I wish I could, but our transfer system runs on electricity. Without any electricity, there is nothing I can do," Nurse Joy replied sadly as she buried her face in her hands.

"Isn't there some kind of back up generator for emergencies?" Serena asked.

"There is, but unfortunately it only runs on water as well. With our water system the way it is, it won't help. I suppose no one could have anticipated an event like this to happen. I don't know what to do!" Nurse Joy said as tears came to her eyes.

"We'll go down there and get rid of the Grimer, Nurse Joy!" Ash declared.

"What? You are? Can you really do that?" Nurse Joy asked hopefully as she looked up.

"Somebody has to act! If the gym leader is unable to take care of them, then we will! There's no way I'm going to let these sick and injured Pokemon suffer because of this," Ash said with determination.

"Ash! You heard what Nurse Joy said! Trainers that have gone down to fix the problem turn up missing! I don't want to end up like them!" Misty told Ash.

"By all means, then you can stay here, Misty. This problem can't be ignored," Ash replied.

Ash then looked at Serena and Brock. "Are you guys in?" he asked.

"Definitely!" they both replied

"Oh, why do you have to be so stubborn?" Misty muttered.

Ash then turned to Pikachu who was still on Nurse Joy's desk. "Pikachu. I need you to stay here while we are gone. You are in no condition to fight right now."

"Chuuuu," Pikachu shook its head slowly.

"I know you want to come, but I need to make sure you are safe. We'll be back before you know it," Ash said as he ran out of the Pokemon Center with Serena, Brock, and Misty on his heels.

"Please be careful!" Nurse Joy called after them.

She then turned to see Pikachu running after them despite its cold. "Wait!" Nurse Joy cried, but it was too late. Pikachu had already left the Pokemon Center.

Nurse Joy sighed as she turned to see how Psyduck was taking this chaos, but it was gone, too.

"That's weird. Where could Psyduck have gone to?" Nurse Joy thought.

The group was running through the streets of Celadon City as fast as they could. It was hard to maneuver around all the people who were scurrying about. They were trying to find an entrance into the sewers below to see if they could fend off the Grimer and Muk causing the problem, as well as find the water blockage.

As they passed a small pond, they could see exactly what Nurse Joy was talking about. The water looked absolutely filthy and smelled terrible.

"Do you guys think there could be some sort of clue in there?" Ash asked in thought as he put his finger to his chin.

"Great idea, Ash! How do expect us to go down and look?!" Misty asked sarcastically.

"We could send some of our Water-type Pokemon and…never mind," Ash trailed. It would be cruel to send their Pokemon into that disgusting water to look for clues.

"I bet your Magikarp won't mind going into the water, Misty," Brock said. "Magikarp have a high tolerance to any type of water so it should be fine."

"I guess I could give it a shot," Misty sighed. "Go, Magikarp!"

Magikarp came out of the pokeball and landed into the water.

"Alright, Magikarp! Go down under the water, and see if there is anything below!" Misty commanded.

However, Magikarp didn't seem to be able to carry out Misty's commands. All it was doing was splashing around on the surface. It didn't even look like it could swim properly.

"Karp! Karp! Karp!" it choked out.

"Uh, can't you dive down in the water, Magikarp?" Misty asked.

All Magikarp continued doing was splashing around pointlessly on the water's surface.

"Ohhhhh! This Magikarp can hardly even swim!" Misty groaned.

This Pokemon was giving her a headache. With a sigh, she returned it to her pokeball. That Magikarp had been no help at all.

"Sooooo…what now?" Ash asked awkwardly.

Before anyone could come up with an answer, they saw a yellow duck run up to them.

"Hey, is that the same Psyduck we saw at the Pokemon Center?" Misty asked.

"Psy aye aye!" the Psyduck said as it hopped into the water, almost splashing the group in the process.

Unfortunately, it couldn't swim either and began thrashing frantically in the filthy liquid. It managed to dog paddle to the edge and climbed out, panting. The group sweatdropped upon seeing the display.

"Ugh, this thing can't even swim. What a boring Pokemon," Misty muttered.

"Shouldn't you be back at the Pokemon Center, Psyduck?" Serena asked it as she knelt down to be more eye level.

Psyduck stared cluelessly at the group before holding its hands on its head again like it had a headache.

"I don't think we are going to get anywhere by trying to search the water. Let's just continue looking for a way into the sewers below," Ash sighed as the group continued on, leaving Psyduck behind.

"Psy?" Psyduck remarked as it watched the group leave.

"Hey, look! Here's an entrance right here!" Ash announced, pointing to a sewer lid in the ground

"Do we really have to go down there?" Misty asked as she eyed the entrance nervously.

"Once again, Misty, you can stay up here if you want," Ash told her as he lifted the lid.

The group was just about to go down when they saw Pikachu emerge from some nearby bushes. It still looked like it had a cold.

"Pikachu! What are you doing here? You should be back at the Pokemon Center," Ash stated.

"Chuuuu," Pikachu shook its head again. It didn't want to leave Ash's side.

"I get it. You are worried that we won't come back and may end up like the other missing trainers," Ash realized.

Pikachu nodded its head.

"I guess you can come along with us. Just please be careful since you aren't feeling well," Ash told it.

"Pika," Pikachu said while giving a tired smile.

"Okay. Pikachu and I will go down first and let you know if the coast is clear," Ash planned as he made his way down the ladder into the sewers below, Pikachu following suit.

The group waited anxiously to hear any sign from Ash and sighed with relief when they heard his voice.

"Okay, guys! Everything is fine! Come on down!" Ash called up to them.

"I'll go next," Serena decided as she began to slowly make her way down the ladder.

"Careful, don't slip, Serena," Ash said as Serena came closer to the surface below.

"Thanks for your concern, but I'll be fine," Serena smiled

No sooner had she said this than her foot missed the next step, which caused her to stumble and fall to the ground below.

Luckily, the fall wasn't very far, and Ash had managed to catch her just in time.

"See. It's a lot more slippery on those steps than one would think," Ash said as he smiled down at Serena.

Serena was blushing heavily as Ash was holding her in his strong arms. He didn't seem to realize that he was holding her bridal style. She almost felt like she could faint. She could stay in this position forever. It was so comfortable!

"Hey! Is everything okay down there? I thought I heard someone fall!" Brock called from above.

"Yeah! We're fine!" Ash called back as he set Serena back on her feet.

Serena let out a disappointed sigh once Ash let her go but didn't let him or Pikachu see it.

Brock made his way down into the sewer next without incident. Misty was next. She was grumbling the whole way down about how this was totally gross and how badly she would need to wash herself once she was through with this. The group really hoped she wouldn't be complaining the whole way. Brock took out a flashlight from his backpack and turned it on so they could have some light, and they began their trek.

As the group made their way down the sewer, they didn't notice a dark, floating figure following them. Every time it saw Pikachu's cheeks spark, it seemed even more intrigued…

"It really smells down here," Serena gagged as she held her hands over her mouth.

"Yeah. I know sewers are supposed to stink, but this doesn't smell natural. It almost smells like sludge," Brock agreed.

Misty happened to look behind them at that moment and noticed the dark figure following them. Once it saw Misty was looking, it quickly moved back into shadows. Misty let out a gasp and began shivering.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked as he and the group turned to look at her.

"Th-Th-There's something following us," Misty stuttered as she pointed her index finger in the direction where she saw the figure.

"I don't see anything," Ash replied as he looked around in the darkness.

"Trust me. I know I saw something back there," Misty said fearfully.

"Listen, Misty. If you're scared you can still head on back. The rest of us can continue on," Ash told her.

"I'm telling the truth, you little twerp! There was SOMETHING back there whether you believe me or not!" Misty yelled in Ash's face.

"Alright. Settle down, Misty," Brock said, trying to calm her.

It was then that Serena decided to look behind her and saw the dark figure as well. It moved back into the shadows as soon as Serena saw it.

"A-A-Ash. Mi-Misty's telling the truth. I-I just saw it, too," Serena stammered as she grabbed his arm for support.

"Really?!" Ash asked as he turned around to look, but once again saw nothing.

"Okay! Whoever that is can come on out! Show yourselves!" Ash said bravely.

"Chuuu," Pikachu growled despite its cold.

"Ash is so brave," Serena thought as she looked in admiration at her hero.

"On the other hand, if you are a ghost or something else that's scary, you can stay where you are, and we won't bother you," Ash finished lamely, which caused the rest of the group to fall over in disbelief. So much for Ash acting brave!

The floating figure began to slowly come out of the shadows right behind Pikachu. Its eye began to glow as the group began to huddle around each other fearfully.

"Watch out, Pikachu!" Ash warned as Pikachu began to panic.

Brock quickly shined his flashlight on the shadowy figure, and it was revealed to be a robotic-like Pokemon with one large eye in the middle and a horseshoe magnet at its sides. It had two screws at its bottom on one on top. It was a Magnemite.

The group sighed with relief that it was just a Magnemite. Serena and Ash pulled out their pokedexes to scan it.

"Magnemite, the magnet Pokemon. This Pokemon is able to float in the air by generating electromagnetic waves and can generate powerful magnetism," the pokedexes said.

"Where do you suppose this thing came from? It seems odd that an electric Pokemon like this would be wandering around in the sewers of Celadon City," Ash commented.

"It must have come from the Power Plant in the city," Brock suggested. "I hear that the workers use Magnemite to help run and control the electricity there."

"That must mean there is an entrance to the Power Plant from somewhere in the sewers!" Ash realized.

"Probably so," Brock agreed.

"Hey, Magnemite! Do you think you could lead us to the entrance to the Power Plant from here?" Ash asked it.

Magnemite didn't appear to be listening to Ash, however. It was circling around Pikachu with a distracted look on its face. It then turned red as Pikachu watched it curiously.

"You don't think Magnemite is in love with Pikachu, do you? Ash asked in disbelief as he tilted his head.

"I don't see how that would make sense, either. Magnemite is an inorganic Pokemon while Pikachu is an animal," Brock agreed.

The group then noticed Pikachu's cheeks spark once more, and Magnemite turned red again.

"Of course! Magnemite must be attracted to the sparks coming from Pikachu's cheeks!" Brock realized as he put his fish in the palm of his hand.

"Chuuu," Pikachu muttered as it tried to back away from the Magnemite, but the Magnemite kept following it.

"Hey! Leave it alone, Magnemite! Pikachu isn't interested!" Ash said to it.

To the group's surprise, Magnemite obeyed and disappeared back into the shadows. They were surprised that Magnemite left so easily, but it was then they noticed the sludge smell had gotten a lot stronger. They heard movement behind them and spun around to find a horde of Grimer there!

"Woah! How did these things sneak up on us?!" Ash asked in surprise.

The Grimer then began to pour into the area. They were coming up out of the flowing sewer water, from the pipes, everywhere!

"My nose feels like it's on fire! They smell terrible!" Misty exclaimed as she pinched her nose shut.

Upon hearing that comment, the Grimer's eyes widened in anger. "Griiiiimer!" they all shouted.

"You might want to be careful of what you say, Misty. Don't say anything that will insult their pride, or it will make them angry," Brock warned.

"Do you think we should try battling the Grimer to get them to leave?" Serena asked.

"I don't think we can take all of these Grimer on by ourselves," Ash replied as he and the rest of the group slowly backed away.

"We can do whatever as long as these nasty Pokemon go away!" Misty shouted.

"Shut up, Misty!" the rest of the group said as they covered her mouth.

The Grimer had enough, however, and got angry looks on their faces. It was then that a much larger Sludge Pokemon arose from the back of the group, A Muk.

"Oh great!" Ash said sarcastically as he and Serena pulled out their pokedexes to scan it.

"Muk, the Sludge Pokemon and the evolved form of Grimer. This Pokemon is so toxic that even its footprints are poisonous," said the pokedexes.

The Muk then raised one of its arms in the air and signaled the Grimer to go after the group.

"Way to go, Misty!" Ash yelled as they turned around and began to run. How was it they always seem to get chased by angry Pokemon?! They had a bad habit of this!

After the group had been running from the Grimer for quite some time, they were starting to get tired. Pikachu was especially becoming tired because of its cold. Ash had no choice but to pick it up and ignore the slight jolts of electricity that kept coming from Pikachu.

"Hey, look! There's a ladder leading up! We can get out of here!" Serena shouted while pointing.

The group made their way up the ladder with Misty going first. Once she was up enough distance, Serena went next, followed by Brock. Unfortunately, by that time, the sludge Pokemon had caught up to the group and began to crowd around Ash in such a way that they were blocking the ladder. Ash managed to throw Pikachu up onto the ladder, but he was still trapped.

The Muk then appeared again behind the Grimer gang and ordered them to charge at Ash. The Grimer did so and soon began to smother him so he couldn't get to his pokeballs. Not only was the smell making Ash want to vomit, the Grimer were literally beginning to suffocate him.

"Oh no! Charla! Help, Ash!" Serena cried with worry as she opened Charla's pokeball.

Charla grabbed hold of the ladder and shot out a Flamethrower which hit all of the Grimer around Ash. The Grimer gave a yell of pain and backed off which gave Ash enough room to make his way up the ladder as well.

The group hurriedly made their way through the opening in the sewer lid and quickly closed the lid with the angry Grimer still below them. Once the lid was securely fastened, they all let out a sigh of relief.

"It seems like…those Grimer and Muk were the ones polluting the water, after all. They were everywhere!" Ash panted.

"Ash, are you okay?" Serena asked him worriedly.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," Ash said. He was thankful none of the sludge had gotten stuck to him while the Grimer were smothering him.

Pikachu then went over to rub against Ash. Ash grimaced from the slight shocks he was getting but knew Pikachu was just worried about him.

Serena thanked Charla for a job well done and returned it to its pokeball. The group then got a good look at their surroundings as Brock shined his flashlight around. The sewer exit didn't lead them back outside like they had expected. They instead seemed to be inside of a narrow hallway of some sort with an empty waterway next to it. The weird part was that Brock learned that they didn't need their flashlight anymore as the lights were still on here.

"Do you guys think we somehow ended up at the Celadon Power Plant?" Serena asked as they looked around.

"I don't know. It's hard to tell," Brock answered as he noticed the empty waterway next to them at the edge of hallway.

They then went over to inspect it.

"I think this might be the Power Plant, after all," Brock realized while putting his fist underneath his chin. "This must be the path the water travels to get to the generator. If we follow it, we will no doubt find something. One way may lead to what's blocking the water while the other should lead to the generator itself."

The group realized this was a good plan and began walking along the waterway.

"I don't get it. If this is the Power Plant, then where are all the workers?" Ash wondered aloud.

"Yeah. You would think that such a large Power Plant would have a lot of people here, especially with Celadon City being in a blackout right now," Misty agreed.

"There is something else I don't get," Brock added.

"What is it?" Ash asked

"The Grimer and Muk are no doubt the ones that are polluting Celadon City's water, but I saw no evidence that they would be the cause for the blackout," Brock said.

"What do you mean?" Ash asked.

"It's true that there are a lot of Grimer and even a Muk, but as we were running along the sewers, it didn't look like any water was being blocked anywhere. If it were, there is no doubt the sewers would have been flooded, but the water level looks completely normal down there," Brock explained.

"Yet the waterway is empty through this hallway," Serena pointed out.

"Right," Brock said. "It seems that there is a problem at the Power Plant itself rather than the Grimer and Muk causing it. I think the flow of water might have been shut off manually rather than blocked."

"So you're saying someone shut off the flow of water to the generator on purpose?!" Serena exclaimed.

"It's only a guess," Brock shrugged.

"Why would someone do that, though?" Misty asked curiously. "The workers should know that the city is very dependent on hydroelectric power."

"That's the part I don't get," Brock replied in thought. "Why WOULD anyone purposely shut off the water supply to the generator?"

"I bet you the answer is at the end of this waterway," Ash said as they continued to walk along.

After a few minutes, the group rounded a corner and were surprised to bump into at least four other men. The only problem was they were men the group was hoping to never run into again. They had on black uniforms with a giant red "R" in the middle.

They were Team Rocket grunts.

"Chaaaaa," Pikachu said worriedly as it hid behind Ash's leg. It normally wouldn't be afraid of them, but it was still sick.

"What the…!? What are these kids doing here?" one exclaimed.

"It looks like we have some more nosy trainers poking around somebody else's business," another growled.

"Team Rocket! You guys must be the ones who are behind the power outage in Celadon City!" Ash accused.

"That's right. We caused it," the first one confirmed.

"Why would you do something like that?!" Serena exclaimed.

"That's none of you business!" a third one sneered.

"Yeah. For poking your nose where it doesn't belong, you're coming with us or else!" the fourth one said threateningly as they pulled out pokeballs.

"We aren't afraid of you guys! If it's a battle you want, a battle you will get!" Ash yelled.

He and the others each withdrew a pokeball from their belts. It looked like a battle was going to take place. Before the group was able to release their Pokemon, something cold and hard was pressed against the back of Ash's head, which made him and the others immediately halt their movements. It was something Ash was hoping never to have directed at him.

Someone was holding a gun to the back of his head.

"Drop the pokeballs, and turn around very slowly," a very raspy voice said dangerously from behind him. "Unless you kids want us to put a bullet through your heads."

Wow. My first cliffhanger. Please don't hate me!

The next chapter will be up next Tuesday as usual. See you all then! Thanks for all the support and comments. I can't believe I actually reached 400 follows. That's incredible. Thank you all so much!

Chapter 22: Blackout in Celadon City Part Two

Answering the Questions:

Will Ash ever see Butterfree again?

Maybe. Keep in mind I said he would release Butterfree. I never said it would never make another appearance at some point.

By any chance will Serena go all "fire-up angry" in some distant future? I would so love to see that!

She might, but keep in mind that Serena is a very sweet-natured girl, albeit a little sassy. It would take something very enormous to offend or anger her enough to go on a rage and lose her temper.

Will, Ash, Serena, Misty, Brock, Tracey, May, and Dawn, etc. have different Poké Balls besides the usual standard Poké Balls?

If necessary, yes.

Will Magma Leader Maxie and Aqua Leader Archie have Pokémon in your series when you come around to the Hoenn and Sinnoh arcs?

Definitely.

Since You Said that Tobias will return, will Ash get "destroyed" like in the Anime?

I don't want to give away too much about Tobias such as when he shows up or what his encounter with Ash will be like. Sorry.

Will Ash get jealous from a rival that could fall in love with Serena?

Yes.

Will Ash and friends end up imitating at least one of team rocket's mottos?

I don't have anything like that written so far, but something like that may turn up as a fun teaser in the future.

Will Ash use his old pokemon in the hoenn league?

Yes. Ash will definitely use all of his Pokemon in each league he attends rather than just that region's Pokemon.

Will you include the episode "Pikachu's Goodbye" as a part of the story?

That was a touching episode that really strengthened Ash and Pikachu's bond. I would like to write an alternate take on that episode if I can fit it into the story.

Where do I go for the poll? Are Jessie and James gonna date in this fic? Will Gligar still go away for a while?

1. The poll is at the top of my profile page. Vote there; 2. I'm a fan of Rocketshipping so they might, but there won't be much focus on it; 3. I'm not sure as Sinnoh is still a long ways away.

How about Pokeathalons in the Johto region?

Pokeathalons will definitely be in the Johto arc.

Will you do a remake of Mr. Mime Time since that is the episode where Mr. Mime becomes part of the Ketchum family?

Mr. Mime will definitely become a member of the Ketchum household someway. It won't follow how canon portrays it, though.

Can you please make Giovanni say Butch's name wrong please?

That actually seems (to me anyway) a little OOC of Giovanni to get his subordinate's names wrong, even Butch's. He strikes me as a super serious guy. Everyone else Butch encounters will get his name wrong if that makes you feel better.

So will James' gag with his Cacnea and Carnivine still be present if he appears in Hoenn and Sinnoh?

If he is in those arcs, then yes.

What's gonna happen with Aipom?

I'm not quite sure. I know it won't leave to play Ping Pong and will stay with either Dawn or Ash, though.

Now, are you going to throw in wild Legendary Pokémon for Ash and his friends to battle? I'm getting the feeling that you're probably not going to have them capture them.

I plan for Ash to befriend all of the legendary Pokemon, at least. Capturing them is a completely different story, though. If Ash does get a legendary, don't expect it to be something like Mewtwo, Mew, Celebi, Ho-oh, Lugia, Deoxys, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Arceus, etc. That's pretty unrealistic to me.

Will Brock ever date a Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny?

Poor Brock. He won't get the "two perfect girls" like Officer Jenny or Nurse Joy. He will end up with someone by the end, though. He will have his happy ending.

Will any of them get an eevee?

Yes.

Will any of the movies be different or changed up any?

I really would like to do that for the movies I choose to do. I want the movie chapters (or separate stories) to be as original as I can make them while still having the same idea.

Will a girl flirt with Ash to make Serena mad?

Yes.

Will Ash still get his nine Unova Pokemon somehow in Sinnoh or in a new arc after Sinnoh?

Probably.

Why not have Serena catch the Magnemite?

She might. It did make its appearance in this chapter, at least.

Since Ash will be catching fanon Pokemon in Kanto, will he do so when traveling through the other regions?

Yes. He will catch noncanon Pokemon in other regions, also.

Will Ash lose the Indigo League the same way as canon?

The Indigo League will play out differently than canon. I will not reveal whether Ash wins or loses, but if he does lose, it won't be because Charizard refused to battle.

Will Ash face the same opponents in the Indigo League as he did in canon?

There will be a mixture of canon and non canon opponents in the Indigo League.