Chapter 26: The Mysterious Sound Appears Big!
Last time on "Pokémon Kanto Journey", after Ash has caught Squirtle and with Yellow and Luna having the Eevee siblings as their next Pokémon together, the group continued to make their way towards Vermilion City.
But upon thinking back on the achievements that Ash, Luna, and Isamu has done, Misty and Brock continually reminds that the Badges Ash had were given to him, as he hadn't really defeated the two in a battle while Isamu and Luna earned their Badges by winning.
Determined to prove his friends wrong, Ash captured a Krabby, only to learn that all the extra Pokémon that he catches are sent to Prof. Oak, which is when the group headed for a lighthouse owned by a man named Bill, who is acquainted with Prof. Oak.
But after hearing from Bill, they turned that instead of a man, it was a Pokémon that was standing! And what's more surprising, was that it could talk and it was an ancient Pokémon that was thought to have been extinct.
"I am Bill of the lighthouse." The man declared as the group turned to see in shock of what seemed to be an ancient Pokémon with its pincers clashing together.
"It can't be. That's a Kabuto, an extinct Pokémon! I wonder what it's doing here." Brock wondered until Bill's voice came from... the ancient Pokémon itself?
"No, I'm not a Kabuto. I'm Bill, the Pokémon researcher." Bill spoke as the pincers continued to move in some sort of denial, causing Yellow to blink before she frowned at the Pokémon that had the man's voice.
"Um... is that the real deal or is that a costume?" Yellow asked, allowing the man to explain.
"Yes, this is a costume. I'm stuck inside it." Bill explained
"Do you need help getting out?" Ash asked, earning an affirmative response from the man.
"Yes, step up here." Bill said, as the younger Ketchum brother rushed over to the Kabuto costume.
"Tell me what to do." Ash said, before Bill gestured one of the claws to a small button on the costume.
"Push that button."
"This one here?" Ash asked.
"Yes. These arms are too short. I tried to get out, but I couldn't reach the button." Bill explained, as Ash pressed onto the button. Once he did, the costume began to break apart a little as human arms were shown, along with a man coming out of the costume!
It was man who seemed rather fancy, but kind as he smiled at the six Trainers.
"Thanks for helping me get out. I've been stuck in that costume for hours." Bill explained, causing Isamu to raise a brow.
"What were you doing in that costume in the first place...?" Isamu asked, causing the researcher to smile sheepishly and explain.
"This is a special costume that I use in my research. Getting inside its skin helps me get inside its head." Bill explained, which left both Ash and Luna confused.
"What do you mean?" Ash asked, before Bill turned to where there were pictures of many ancient Pokémon, causing the group to turn and see where he was looking at.
"There are many kinds of extinct Pokémon, and I want to understand how they lived. Putting on a costume is one way of trying to figure out what they were like." Bill explained, as Luna blinked.
"So... by wearing that Kabuto costume just now... you were able to understand what the Kabuto was like...?" Luna asked, causing Bill to shrug and sit on the steps as he explained.
"Yes, indeed. Or I'm beginning to. This planet was created 4.6 billion years ago. During that time, all kinds of Pokémon existed. They had many ways of living." Bill explained, making the younger brother curious.
"All kinds of Pokémon? How many?" Ash asked, allowing the researcher to explain further.
"On this planet, there are more than 150 known species of Pokémon." Bill explained, as Isamu narrowed his eyes. He knew full well of how many Pokémon there were in the Kanto region, but he knew that there was more to than just 150.
"Over 150?" Ash asked, as Bill turned to the six Trainers.
"You're all lucky to be Pokémon Trainers. Your goal is to catch all of these different kinds of Pokémon. That's a great task." Bill commented, causing Ash to grow sheepish while Isamu sighed, remembering the criticism Prof. Oak had given earlier.
"Yeah, but so far I've only gotten seven. And big bro only has five." Ash explained, before he and the others turned back to the wall that had the pictures of all the Pokémon that lived around the Kanto region.
"There sure are a lot of-"
"Of course, these are just the Pokémon we know about. There are still many Pokémon that have never been discovered, so we need to keep searching." Bill interrupted Ash, causing the group to be surprised before Luna raised the question.
"How many are we talking about exactly...?" She asked, causing Bill to answer with calm smile.
"No one knows exactly. The search goes on. There's always something new to look for in our lives and in ourselves." Bill explained, causing Ash to repeat for what the researcher has said.
"Something to look for?" Ash asked, earning a nod from the researcher.
"Yes, there's a lot for us to look for, inside and outside ourselves. There's meaning for every creature, a meaning for all the Pokémon, and a meaning for all us humans too." Bill explained, causing the Ketchum brothers to think for a moment for what Bill had said.
"A meaning for all..." Isamu thought while Ash spoke the same words out of his mouth silently.
"Keep looking for new Pokémon to catch. It's something that's very important for Pokémon research. It's as vital to me as it is to you. Right now, though, there's only one Pokémon I'm searching for." Bill explained.
"What kind are you talking about?" Yellow asked.
Later...
The group were soon in the lighthouse where the sky was black as the night, only covered by the clouds to prevent the moon from revealing itself. With the sight so dark, it was hard for any of the group to see what's ahead or what might come.
Thankfully, they were able to see just a little thanks to the light emitting from the lighthouse.
And as soon as they all got up there, the researcher continued to explain of the Pokémon he was currently searching for.
"It's probably the biggest Pokémon ever. Bigger than all of the rest. And no one has ever seen it. It's been wandering around the world for years and years, looking for friends." Bill explained.
That left Luna confused as she stepped up with her question.
"Looking for friends? You're making it sound... as if it doesn't have any of that... No friends... no family..." Luna said sadly.
"...Indeed. The Pokémon wanders because it's alone. It's the only Pokémon of its species, one of a kind." Bill explained, leaving the Kanto girl to frown sadly. She could remember back when she had to live alone for a while...
Arcanine felt the sadness from his human girl before he nuzzled her arm. Ninetales did the same upon seeing how her mate had done it. The Kanto girl smiled appreciatively before placing her hands on both of their heads.
"One night, I heard this very strange sound coming across the ocean." Bill explained before he took out what seemed to be a recorder before he pressed on the button. As he did, there was a sound of melodic wailing, alarming the group.
"That sound..." Isamu breathed out as if he recognized the sound he had just heard.
"'I want... I want to meet you.' That's what it said to me." Bill believed, thinking back to when he had heard it the first time.
"Pika..."
"Vee..." Pikachu and Eevee frowned, as if they were sad from hearing such a melodic wail, which sounded rather sound to them. Ninetales and Arcanine frowned as well, as they could understand of what this Pokémon was saying.
"Some time ago, I recorded a similar sound, and played it from the lighthouse towards the ocean." Bill explained as the lighthouse began to emit the similar sounds that the mysterious Pokémon has made as the researcher smiled.
"'Let's be friends. I want to meet you.'" Bill translated as the melodic wailing went on.
"One day, I heard the same voice calling back to me from over the ocean... 'I want to meet you too. I want to be friends.' It was answering me back... Some foggy night, that Pokémon might come here to meet a friend it's been seeking for a very long time. I would be so happy to meet that Pokémon." Bill spoke softly.
"But will you try to capture the Pokémon?" Ash asked, causing Bill to shake his head.
"Why do I need to capture it? Meeting it would be enough for me. Just a chance to study it would make my long wait worthwhile." Bill spoke as Luna smiled softly.
"I would like to see it, too... I want to become friends with it even if it's the first... and maybe the last meeting." Luna said softly.
"Me too..." Yellow agreed, with Chuchu giving a squeak of agreement.
Misty and Brock felt the same way, while the Ketchum brothers looked at each other with smiles on their faces.
The group all had the same idea that Bill had: meeting the mysterious Pokémon that Bill so longed to meet. And tonight may be the day as everyone heard a melodic sound that didn't come from the lighthouse... or from the recording.
As everyone turned, they could see from the fog... that there was a giant Pokémon that was coming towards the lighthouse...
"It's here. The signal." Bill spoke before he used the lighthouse to make the similar wailing to respond to the mysterious Pokémon's melodic cry. And in response, the Pokémon made a cry back, making it sound like it was humming gently.
"It sounds like it's singing." Misty commented, feeling soothed from the sound the Pokémon was giving off.
"Would you care to dance?" Brock offered with a polite bow, causing the Water Type user to smile.
"Oh, thank you." Misty said as she gave a polite bow back.
"Pikachu..."
"Eevee..." The two spoke softly, as if they were trying to join in on the humming together. Yellow, Luna, Ash, Isamu, and Bill all watched in awe to see the giant Pokémon getting closer and closer.
And as it did, the group were able to make out on what it looked like. It seemed to be a dragon with wings and long antennae of some sort on its head. The way it made its cry sounded kind... as if it was curious on what was ahead.
Isamu took out his Pokédex, wanting to scan the Pokémon and see for what he and the others were seeing.
But a shaking head from Luna stopped him as he blinked before he smiled softly, before he put the device away.
With a rare time like this, he could understood that this was no time to be using the Pokédex when he could see for himself on what it was and to be able to become friends with the large Pokémon.
But as it was getting close, it happened...
BOOM! BOOM!
Something exploded onto the large Pokémon, alarming the group as the mysterious Pokémon glared and lashed back! One swipe of its claw destroyed the lighthouse, causing the wreckage to start falling!
"Look out!" Yellow yelled as everyone started to try and make their escape. But as they were doing so, the rumbling that the Pokémon was causing made it difficult for the group to run fast and proper as Luna ran before she tripped.
"Ah!"
"Luna!" Isamu exclaimed in shock before he rushed over to where she fell as Arcanine and Ninetales rushed over to protect their Trainer.
"Stop! Stop it! Stop it right now! We don't want to fight you!" Isamu yelled out loud.
"Vee! Eevee Vee!" Eevee cried out in agreement, but their pleas came unheard as the Pokémon roared in anger and in pain as Isamu remembered that something had exploded onto the Pokémon, which resulted in its lashing.
As he rushed over to the edge of the lighthouse, he widened his eyes before seeing a familiar trio shooting at the Pokémon with some sort of cannons! Jessie and James were firing while Meowth was watching with an evil smirk.
"Those... jerks! Eevee! Swift!" Isamu yelled as Eevee nodded before she jumped up and shot the Swift attack onto the evil trio!
"OW! OW!"
"Where is that coming from!?"
Jessie and James yelped in pain as they stopped firing before they looked up to see the glares from Isamu and Eevee from the cliffside as the elder Ketchum brother took notice of the rope that was hanging at the edge of the cliff.
"...Have a nice swim, you morons." Isamu said as he untied the rope, causing the evil trio to widen their eyes in horror before...
"AHHHHH!"
SPLASH!
And with just the rope being untied and loose, the evil trio were sent falling down into the ocean, as they were now no longer able to shoot at the giant Pokémon anymore. But it would seem as the damage was done as the Pokémon was still in pain.
"Wait! Please wait!" Luna pleaded, trying to stop the giant Pokémon from leaving.
But the pain that it felt tonight made it afraid as it could no longer stay in the place where it felt the hurt of being attacked. But it only gave sad cries... as if it was saying goodbye to the young saviors that saved it from feeling anymore pain.
And then, it turned, before making its leave into the ocean to continue its travel... to find more friends...
"Oh no..." Luna said with a sad frown as Isamu frowned.
"At least... we were able to save it from the morons..." Isamu commented, before feeling frustrated to the evil trio that caused pain to the giant Pokémon that he and the others could've been friends with...
And soon, it wasn't long before it had completely disappeared from their sights...
"Vee..." Eevee whimpered sadly, as she had also missed the chance to make friends with the mysterious Pokémon. Ninetales and Arcanine didn't hide their disappointment of being unable to see it as well.
Luna just frowned sadly, hurt mentally that the Pokémon had to leave... but she understood the reason as the attack from Team Rocket caused it to want to leave because it felt threatened...
Noticing this, Isamu slowly placed a hand over her shoulder to try and comfort her.
"...We'll see it again." Isamu said softly as Luna blinked before she gave a brief nod.
"Yeah..."
The two watched the night grow young despite the fog that made it difficult to see. And with the lighthouse no longer working, they could only see darkness in front of them...
But the crashes from the waves comforted their lack of sight as they watched with their Pokémon partners.
"Let's go... We're worrying the others by not being around them." Isamu suggested, causing her to nod softly before she smiled as Isamu led her to where their friends and Bill was...
The next morning...
After the incident regarding the giant Pokémon, Bill and the group watched the morning sun starting to rise up. But as they watched, there was no sign of disappointment on the researcher's eyes...
"What kind of Pokémon was that anyway?" Ash asked, curious to know.
"Who knows? Pokémon live in more ways and places than humans may ever learn." Bill commented as Isamu raised a brow.
"You don't seem disappointed..." Isamu pointed out as the researcher just smiled while turning to the group calmly.
"Well... because of that issue last night, I wasn't able to get a proper look or the chance to study it, but... I'm sure that it'll return someday when the time is right. And after all... I got to see the Pokémon a little with my own eyes... That's enough for me." Bill explained in reassurance.
"I see..." Isamu said nothing more and smiled a little, understanding Bill's explanation.
Ash smiled, bringing up his belief on how people and Pokémon can become close with one another.
"I think looking for and catching Pokémon should help bring all of us together." Ash commented, before Brock and Misty began to state their own opinions on how to get close to the Pokémon that they meet and bond with.
"Learning to raise Pokémon is another way of understanding how to live with them." Brock commented with a soft smile.
"And Pokémon are always lots of fun to play with." Misty added, as Yellow looked at Chuchu, who smiled happily at the straw-hat girl. Luna turned to her two Fire Types before petting them gently, causing them to smile at her back.
And the elder Ketchum brother smiled at Eevee, who smiled back at her human partner while Bill stood and watched the sunrise with the calm smile not fading away from his face.
"Meanwhile, I'll stand watch for the giant Pokémon to appear at my lighthouse again." Bill said, before Ash questioned of the chances of seeing all the Pokémon that lived around the world they live in.
"Bill, do you think we'll ever find all the Pokémon there are?" Ash asked.
"No, Ash, there are probably as many as we can imagine. Maybe many, many more. Maybe there's no limit to the Pokémon we can actually find on this planet." Bill spoke before he turned to the group, and then to the Ketchum brothers.
"Ash... Isamu... You two are Pokémon Trainers. I'm a Pokémon researcher, seeking out all kinds of life on this planet. Even if our paths are different, I think our goals are the same." Bill explained, as the brothers both smiled together.
"Mm-hmm."
"Yes..."
And after their brief talk with the researcher, the group began to make their way out of the lighthouse and continue their route to Vermilion City, once they had said their goodbyes to Bill.
As they were walking, Isamu took out his Pokédex once more to search for the mysterious Pokémon that had appeared last night before it went away after it was attacked by the evil trio.
As he searched it up, he finally found the Pokémon that resembled the exact figure of the mysterious Pokémon...
"Dragonite, the Dragon Pokémon. This extremely rare and highly intelligent type is able to fly faster than any known Pokémon." Isamu's Pokédex explained as the elder Ketchum brother widened his eyes.
"So that's what it was..." Isamu breathed out as Luna walked up next to him.
"I'm sure we'll see it again..." Luna said softly, causing the elder Ketchum brother to glance at her and nod in agreement.
"Yeah... and not just Dragonite... but many different kinds of Pokémon..." Isamu agreed as he and the others continued on to make their way to their next destination.
To be continued...
Isamu's Team:
Eevee: (F): (Swift, Bite, Sand Attack, Quick Attack)
Pidgey: (M): (Gust, Sand-Attack, Quick Attack, Tackle)
Nidorino: (M): (Double Kick, Poison Sting, Body Slam, Peck)
Vulpix: (F): (Ember, Quick Attack, Roar, Dig)
Oddish: (F): (Poison Powder, Mega Drain, Sleep Powder, Acid)
Next chapters:
Chapter 27: The Shocking Gym Battle! Pt. 1
Chapter 28: The Shocking Gym Battle! Pt. 2
Chapter 29: Aboard the St. Anne! A Big Challenge?
Chapter 30: Battle at the St. Anne! Abandon Ship!
Chapter 31: Escape from the St. Anne! A Truce!
Next chapter preview:
Ash: We're finally here! We finally arrived in Vermilion City! My third Gym Battle, here I come!
Brock: Just a minute there, Ash. We need to get cleaned up and the Pokémon could use a break from all the traveling.
Nurse Joy: This is terrible... That Lt. Surge is up to his usual brutal tactics again. Just how many challengers does he want to hurt badly?
Ash: This... Lt. Surge guy seems pretty strong. And he even has a Pokémon that is the evolved form of Pikachu, Raichu!
Isamu: Don't let him intimidate you, Ash! Evolution is one thing, but you can turn things around with the things only you and Pikachu know!
Ash: What's that!? Pikachu, no! Try to stand up to that Raichu with your Thunder Shock attack!
Events that occurred:
- The group and Bill encounters a giant Dragonite