Viridian Forest. A vast congregation of trees home to many Bug-type Pokémon. Trainers must pass through it to reach Pewter City. And it is here where we find our young friend, Brayden Marchant, training the new Pokémon he caught here.
"Caterpie, String Shot!" The little Worm Pokémon spat a sticky string on a wild Caterpie, slowing it down. "Now, use Tackle!" Brayden exclaimed. Brayden's Caterpie charged into the wild one, sending it back into the bushes it came out of. As Brayden began to celebrate the win, Caterpie began to glow. "Caterpie? What's going on?" He asked.
Caterpie was no longer visible, it seemed to have been engulfed by the glow, as if it was wrapped in a sphere of pure energy. Then, the light dispersed, revealing a completely new Pokémon in Caterpie's place. "A Metapod!" Brayden said, awestruck. "That means…you've evolved! AWESOME! So THAT'S what evolution looks like!" "Metapod," The Cocoon Pokémon said happily.
"Let's see what the Pokédex says!" Brayden said.
"Metapod. The Cocoon Pokémon. A Bug-type. The evolved form of Caterpie. Its shell is as hard as an iron slab. A Metapod does not move very much because it is preparing its soft innards for evolution inside the shell."
"Okay, you can take a rest now. Return!" Brayden pressed the button on Metapod's Poké Ball, and Metapod was drawn inside.
Brayden resumed his trek through the forest. To his relief, the exit was just up ahead. "Get ready, Pewter City Gym Leader. Your next challenger has arrived!"
After resting at the Pewter City Pokémon Center, Brayden went straight to the Gym. However, he was greeted by a Gym Trainer named Liam, who told him that Gym Leader Brock was at the Pewter Museum.
"Not again," Brayden groaned. As he stepped inside the Museum, he found Brock attempting to romance one of the girl scientists. Brayden walked over and tugged on Brock's arm. "Hey! Lover boy! I'm here to challenge you for a badge! Let's go!" he said impatiently.
Brock snapped out of his little world when he heard those words. "Oh. A challenge? Sure, but…" He wriggled out of Brayden's grip and went back to the scientist. "Wait for me, my dear. I must attend to my Gym Leader duties," he said charmingly. The girl stared at him with a confused look. Brayden had seen enough. He angrily dragged Brock out of the museum.
"Geodude, return!" said Liam. "I guess you really are ready to face Brock. You can pass."
Brayden had returned to the Gym with Brock, but Liam insisted on battling Brayden first. Of course, Squirtle was more than a match for Liam's Geodude and Sandshrew. As Brayden stepped onto the battlefield, he felt himself trembling with excitement again. "My first Gym battle! At last! Let's get this done and get going to Cerulean City!"
Brock flashed a determined grin. "Don't be too confident. I'm not a Gym Leader for nothing, you know." A judge called out the rules of the battle. "The battle between the challenger, Brayden, and the Gym Leader, Brock, is about to begin! Each combatant will use two Pokémon, and only the challenger may substitute Pokémon. Battle…START!"
Brock was the first to throw a Poké Ball. "Geodude, go!" This Geodude seemed a little different from Liam's. No doubt due to Brock's experience. But Brayden was prepared. After he arrived in Viridian City, he had read some books at the Pokémon Center to learn Type matchups. Obviously, Squirtle was a great choice since he is Water type, making him super effective against Rock Pokémon. But Flying and Bug Pokémon like Pidgey and Metapod are weak against Rock Pokémon. So the best choice for his second Pokémon would be…
"Mankey, I choose you!" Brayden threw Mankey's Poké Ball, and the Pig Monkey Pokémon burst out. "Mankey!" he yelled. Mankey turned to look at Brayden and furrowed his eyes. Apparently, he was still annoyed with Brayden. "Hey, Mankey, you want to go to the Pokémon League, right?" Brayden asked.
Mankey loosened his gaze. Then the Fighting type did a short hop, as if to tell Brayden that was correct. "Well," Brayden continued, "I want to go there too. And to get there, we need to get eight Gym Badges. If we defeat Brock, he'll give us the first one. So, will you help me?"
Mankey stared at Brayden for a few seconds, then did a backflip and faced Brock's Geodude. "Key! Man Man Mankey!"
Brayden was relieved. He had gotten through to Mankey! Now to win that badge! "Mankey, use Karate Chop!" Mankey was off like a shot. In no time at all, Mankey had reached Geodude and unleashed his attack. The Karate Chop landed with no resistance! But Brock was unfazed.
"Geodude, knock it away with Tackle!" He commanded.
"Geo!" The Rock Pokémon pushed itself off the ground and smashed right into Mankey. Although Mankey recovered quickly, the attack seemed to have angered him. "Mankey, keep it together! We're still in this." Mankey heard Brayden, and calmed down. But Brock had only just begun his counterattack. "Geodude, Defense Curl!" Geodude held its arms around itself, and its Defense stat rose. "Now use Rollout!" Geodude, still curled up, began to roll in place, then charged towards Mankey at an incredible speed. "Geo, dude-dude-dude!" it shouted.
"Mankey, stop it with Karate Chop!" Brayden cried. Mankey held up his paw, but Geodude reached him right before the paw came down. Geodude mowed over Mankey, did a wide turn, and immediately struck Mankey again.
"No! Mankey! Get up! It's going to attack again!" Brayden shouted. Mankey regained focus and jumped away from Geodude at the last second.
"Pretty strong, huh? Rollout deals more damage the more it strikes in a row," Brock said, as Geodude rolled back to him. "And if you use Defense Curl first, it gets even stronger!"
Brayden was beginning to get frustrated. But then, he remembered something about Mankey. Was it angry again? He looked at the Fighting type, and sure enough, Mankey was truly enraged. Perfect! "Mankey, use Karate Chop, and make it count!"
"MANKEY!" the Fighting type screamed as it tore off towards Geodude.
"Geodude, Defense Curl!" Brock shouted quickly.
Geodude assumed the defensive pose again, but it didn't matter. Mankey slammed down his paw on Geodude with amazing force! Mankey jumped back to Brayden, and his rage subsided.
"Geo…" Geodude groaned as it laid there with its eyes dizzy.
"Geodude is unable to battle!" the Judge ruled. Brayden was ecstatic. "All right! You did it, Mankey!" Mankey looked at Brayden and cheered with him. "Man, Mankey!"
Brock recalled Geodude to its ball. "I see what you did there. Mankey used Rage, which boosted its power for one attack. Not only that, but Karate Chop was a critical hit. Well done!" Brayden had been complimented by a Gym Leader! "Wow, thanks!" he said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
Brock smiled. "Don't let up yet, though. I still have another Pokémon left. Let's see how you handle…" He threw his second Poké Ball. "My ONIX!"
Brayden watched in horror as the massive Rock Snake Pokémon emerged from its ball and roared menacingly.
"Onix?!" Brayden shouted in alarm. This wasn't good. One of the books he had read stated that rookie Trainers should steer clear of Onix. And now, he had to defeat one to get his first badge.
Brayden looked at Mankey again, expecting to see fear on the Pig Monkey's face. But Mankey showed no such thing. He was ready to fight to the end.
"Are you ready?!" Brock asked with ferocity. Brayden knew exactly how to respond. "You bet! Bring it on!"
Author's Note: Cliffhanger! Will Brayden be victorious in his first Gym Battle, or will Onix be too much for him?! Stay tuned for Chapter 7!