AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 2 of the Adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu in Johto. You may have heard or read about the classic book, "The Trumpet of the Swan" by E.B. White. Maybe you've even read it. Now to you, this chapter may display some similarities between this chapter and the book, but I can assure you that it's different in more ways than one. The instrumental version of the music cue "All We Wanna Do" from the CD Totally Pokémon comes in this chapter. You've also heard it periodically in the segment "Pokémon Karaokemon" on Pokémon: The Johto Journeys. This song was written by Ken Cummings and John Loeffler. If you want, you can imagine the lead singers Élan Rivera and Jamily Gray from the music group Johto singing along to this song, but you don't have to. Once again, I do not own Pokémon. Please feel free to read and review at your leisure.
TEASER: Tristan discovers a mysterious Pokémon, who is so fiercely protective because it is taking care of two eggs. After he rescues the eggs, the Pokémon begins to trust him. The babies hatch and one of them quickly befriends him. However, Tristan wants to keep the mysterious Pokémon's existence a secret.
Chapter 2: AN INCREDIBLE SECRET
(Music Cue: Golden Silver (as heard in "The Little Big Horn"))
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu finally have a chance to experience some down time thanks to their grandparents, Veronica and Eric, who are treating them to a few days at the beach at Kisado City on Silver Rock Isle in the Whirl Islands.
"Thanks for taking us here, guys," said Tristan.
"You're very welcome," replied Veronica and Eric together.
"After all the journeying you two have been doing so far, you deserve some time to relax and enjoy yourselves," added Veronica. "Eevee agrees, don't you?"
Her Eevee nodded.
"We'll do our best," said Hillary. She ran off with Tristan to play on the beach in their swimming gear as Pikachu followed them.
"Be careful out there, guys, and have fun!" called Veronica as she and Eric started to leave.
"We will!" replied Tristan and Hillary.
After swimming in the water for a few hours, Tristan and Hillary changed back into their regular clothes and started back to the Pokémon Center to meet up with their grandparents. But just then, Tristan spotted a shadow in the water near another island.
(Music Cue: The Moon Stone)
"What's the matter, Tristan?" asked Hillary.
"I thought I saw something out there," replied Tristan. He wasn't sure exactly what he saw, but in a few seconds, it was gone.
"Maybe you just imagined it," said Hillary. "Let's go."
"You go ahead, sis. I'll catch up later," said Tristan.
"Okay, then," replied Hillary. "Just be careful, and don't make Grandma worry too much."
Hillary went on ahead to the Pokémon Center while Tristan stayed behind to see if he could see what he saw a few seconds before. He and Pikachu noticed a tunnel and cautiously crossed it to the other side to Ogi Isle. He sat on the water's edge on that island and kept very still, hoping that he could see what he thought he saw earlier.
Tristan took out a pair of binoculars and looked out over the water, but couldn't find a thing.
Just then, a pale-silver white head popped up out of the water. It had a long, slender neck, but Tristan wasn't sure if he was able to see it completely.
Either way, Tristan was amazed by the sight of the mysterious Pokémon. "Wow," he whispered to Pikachu. "It looks so powerful, yet so beautiful. I wish I knew what it was."
Pikachu wondered, too.
They both saw the mysterious Pokémon swimming toward the island in the distance. When it emerged from the water, it was a lot bigger than he first thought. The creature resembled a dragon, a plesiosaur, and a bird, all at the same time. It had a wings that resembled hands, and blue plates on its back.
"I wonder what that Pokémon's doing?" wondered Tristan as he focused his binoculars on it.
The mysterious Pokémon sat on the island very carefully, but Tristan wasn't sure why. Suddenly, it turned and seemed to glare at him and Pikachu for some reason.
"Pika pika!" shouted Pikachu in alarm.
"Shhh!" whispered Tristan as he covered Pikachu's mouth. "Quiet, Pikachu. We don't want it to hear us. I'm sure it'll realize that we mean no harm to it, whatever it is, or whatever it's doing. Most Pokémon need their space sometimes, especially if they're doing something very important."
Pikachu nodded and calmed down.
The mysterious Pokémon still glared at Tristan and Pikachu and readied itself for an attack should they come any closer to it, but they both kept very still and didn't make a sound, still awestruck at the sight of the creature.
After an hour of watching, Tristan and Pikachu got up and quietly left for the tunnel back for Silver Rock Isle and the Pokémon Center, hardly making a sound. The Pokémon watched them go.
When Tristan and Pikachu got back to the Pokémon Center, Hillary, Veronica, and Eric were already having dinner.
"Sorry we're late," said Tristan.
"Where were you, young adventurer?" asked Veronica.
"We thought you were going to miss dinner," added Eric.
"I was out exploring the island," replied Tristan. He wanted to keep the appearance of the silvery creature to himself.
"Anyway, there's pizza waiting for you," said Veronica.
"Yeah, help yourself," added Hillary.
"All right!" said Tristan as he and Pikachu happily went to the counter and got some as he joined the others at the table.
(Music Cue: Unhinged)
The next morning, Tristan and Pikachu were up early.
Tristan cooked some breakfast and shared it with Pikachu. Afterwards, he found a pen and some paper and wrote down a note. It read:
Pikachu and I have gone for a walk. We'll be back for lunch.
He put the note somewhere where Hillary and his grandparents would find it. Then, he and Pikachu quietly left the Pokémon Center for Ogi Isle across the undersea tunnel.
Tristan wanted to see the mysterious Pokémon again. He somehow felt that he was being drawn toward it. However, he didn't want anybody else to know about it for the Pokémon's own safety.
When Hillary, Veronica, and Eric woke up an hour later, they found the note and saw that Tristan and Pikachu were gone.
Hillary and Eric knew that Tristan loved going on adventures, even on vacation.
Of course, Veronica was the only one concerned. "I just hope Tristan knows what he's doing out there," she said nervously.
Hillary assured her. "I think he'll be just fine, Grandma. After all, he's proven himself to be quite capable, especially with Pikachu on his side."
When Tristan and Pikachu reached Ogi Isle, they found the spot where they sat the evening before and quietly took their positions. Tristan took out his binoculars and looked for the same creature that he saw. He didn't see it, but what he did see almost made him jump in surprise. He found a nest on that very same island where the creature was. Not only that, there were two silver eggs.
"This is an amazing discovery!" whispered Tristan. "That explains why that Pokémon glared at us last night. It was protecting its eggs."
Just as he said that, he spied a blue jellyfish Pokémon with multiple tentacles shooting out of the water.
(Music Cue: Flying Pokéball Chaos (as heard in "The Lost Lapras"))
In a twinkling, it raced toward the nest where the eggs were and prepared to attack.
"Oh, no!" gasped Tristan. "It's a Tentacruel, and it's headed straight for the eggs!"
The silver Pokémon was nowhere to be seen, and Tentacruel was already halfway to the nest.
"We have to get to the eggs before it's too late! Lapras, I choose you!" shouted Tristan as he threw a Pokéball.
Lapras emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
Tristan and Pikachu quickly hopped on Lapras's back as it started swimming toward the island as fast as it could.
Tentacruel aimed its poisonous stinger directly at them.
"Hurry, Pikachu, use your Thunderbolt attack to stop that Tentacruel!" ordered Tristan.
Wasting no time, Pikachu jumped as high as it could, and shot a yellow bolt of electricity from its cheeks at Tentacruel, scoring a direct hit on it.
After that, Pikachu landed neatly on Lapras's head. Pikachu was ready to attack again in case Tentacruel returned for a second attempt, but Tentacruel was in no mood to return thanks to Pikachu's attack.
Tentacruel disappeared back into the water.
"Phew!" said Tristan. "That was close. Great job, Pikachu."
Pikachu was about to reply when it suddenly lost its balance, and fell off of Lapras's head into the water.
"Are you okay?" asked Tristan.
Pikachu then resurfaced. It scratched its head, as if it meant to do that.
Just then, the silvery Pokémon emerged from the water. It saw Tristan and Pikachu near its eggs and glared at him warily.
"Hold on there," said Tristan. "I'm not gonna steal your eggs. We saw a wild Tentacruel attack them, but Pikachu and I scared it away."
Pikachu and Lapras cried out in agreement.
The creature heard what Tristan and his Pokémon said and stopped glaring at him. It realized, beyond a doubt, that Tristan and Pikachu were its friends. They were in the right place at the right time and used the right attack to drive Tentacruel away. It felt lucky that its eggs were safe.
The creature landed on the island cautiously near Lapras and Tristan as Pikachu reunited with him in his arms.
"You're all wet," said Tristan
Pikachu happily replied and quickly shook itself dry, spraying drops of water onto Tristan.
Tristan laughed. "Now I'm the one who's all wet," he said as he turned to the creature. Sure enough, it was significantly taller than him.
The creature nodded approvingly at Tristan and returned to the task of keeping its eggs warm.
Then, Tristan and Pikachu, still on Lapras's back returned to Ogi Isle and sat back down on the ground again as his heart raced from all the excitement. "Thanks a lot, Lapras," he said "You were great." He took out Lapras's Pokéball and returned it inside as it gave a happy reply. He then took out his binoculars and focused on the nest again.
"I wonder how much longer it'll be before those eggs hatch?" asked Tristan to himself. "I guess it can't be too much longer."
Pikachu wondered in agreement.
A few hours later, Tristan and Pikachu got up quietly and left Ogi Isle by way of the undersea tunnel. The creature had dozed off quite some time ago.
"Well, well, well," said Veronica as Tristan and Pikachu got back to the Pokémon Center. "Did you two have fun exploring again?"
"We did," answered Tristan.
(Music Cue: OK! (Piano Ballad))
"Where did you go?" asked Hillary eagerly.
"Like I said before, sis, I was just exploring," replied Tristan. He wanted to keep the appearance of the mysterious Pokémon on Ogi Isle a secret because he didn't want it to experience any more danger, especially after it nearly lost its eggs to that wild Tentacruel.
Hmmm, thought Hillary. I have a feeling that Tristan's hiding something.
"Lunch is ready, kids!" called Eric from the kitchen. "It's homemade spaghetti and meat sauce."
"Did you follow the recipe, honey?" asked Veronica.
"Yes, dear," replied Eric. "The kids should enjoy it even more than we do."
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu all had two helpings of their grandfather's homemade spaghetti because he was right: They enjoyed it even more than he and their grandmother did.
That evening, Tristan wanted to talk about the mysterious Pokémon he saw with his grandmother, but he wasn't sure how.
"What's the matter, Tristan?" asked Veronica. "You seem concerned."
"Well, I suppose that's possible, but what do you mean, Grandma?" wondered Tristan.
"I mean that there's a secret that you want to talk about, but you feel that it's risky to talk about it," replied Veronica.
"Well, there is," answered Tristan. "But how do you know?"
"Grandmother's intuition, dear," chuckled Veronica. "But I know something's been bothering you, and maybe I can help you if you just tell me the truth."
Tristan knew that keeping secrets from his grandmother wouldn't do him any good, so he reluctantly told her what was happening. "Pikachu and I have been walking back and forth to Ogi Isle through an undersea tunnel, and when we got there the last two times, we saw a mysterious Pokémon."
"Hmmmm," said Veronica. "That's interesting. Do you know what this mysterious Pokémon looked like?"
"It looked like a silver bird," replied Tristan. "It had wings that looked like hands, plus it had blue plates of some kind on its back. It can swim and even fly. I also saw it taking care of two eggs."
"Two eggs?" asked Veronica. "Now that's very interesting."
Tristan then bent his head down low. "I didn't want to say anything before because I wanted to keep it a secret. I didn't want anybody else to follow me to Ogi Isle, but I just wondered if you knew about the Pokémon I saw."
"That's understandable, and I think I know what you're talking about," replied Veronica. "I believe it's a Lugia."
"Lugia?" repeated Tristan.
Veronica nodded. "I've seen a Lugia on my travels many years ago. It's a legendary Pokémon that's said to be able to calm and give rise to storms. I was on a ship when this particular storm happened." And she began her story.
(Music Cue: Mystical Story (as heard the second time in "A Bout with Sprout"))
"I was a young Pokémon Trainer just like you are now," she said. "I was sailing in the water on an ocean liner near the Whirl Islands with many friends of mine when suddenly, a huge storm came up. It was so strong that the waves made the waters nearly impossible to navigate. One wave hit the ship full force, causing every one of us to fall into the raging waters below.
"We all struggled to stay afloat in the water as the lightning flashed and the thunder roared. It looked like all was lost when all of a sudden, a whirlpool glowing in a mysterious bright light rose up out of the water. Instantly, the seas were calm and the sun came out again. My friends and I saw a mysterious silvery feather called a Silver Wing fall from the sky."
"A Silver Wing?" asked Tristan.
"Yes," Veronica answered. "But what I saw next amazed me even more. I saw a shadow of this mysterious Pokémon as it dove back into the water. I was amazed by what it had just done, even though everyone else had missed it. Still, it was incredible to see a Silver Wing come from this Pokémon."
"When your grandfather and I got married, I talked about this Pokémon for what seemed like hours," continued Veronica. "He knew more about the legend better than I did, and he told me that the Pokémon that saved my friends and me that day was a Lugia. Apparently, a similar incident took place when your grandfather's great-great-great-grandfather was just growing up. The silver wings that fall from the heavens have been a reminder of the events that took place in the stormy seas all those many years ago."
"That's a truly amazing story, Grandma," said Tristan. "I never knew that Lugia could do that. The Lugia was one of the reasons I've been going to Ogi Isle alone with Pikachu, and I thought that was the way it liked it. I was just afraid that if word got out about Lugia and its eggs, people might come and make it nervous."
"I'm sure the others will understand," replied Veronica. "If you want, we can talk to the others about your concerns."
"Thanks, Grandma," said Tristan.
"Hey, everybody, dinner's ready!" called Hillary.
"All right, I can't wait!" said Tristan excitedly as he quickly followed Hillary to the cafeteria.
Veronica was still amazed. "Tristan has so much energy, even after our little chat," she said to herself. "I wonder if he's thinking of another adventure after our vacation is over?" And she followed suit.
(Music Cue: The Pokémon Castle)
Later, Tristan and Veronica explained what was going on to Eric and Hillary, who completely understood Tristan's concerns.
"So that's what's been going on," said Hillary. "That explains the shadow you saw."
Tristan silently and slowly nodded his head.
"I know that Lugia is a legend not soon forgotten, but I never knew there was one nearby," added Eric.
"I just wanted Lugia to know that it would be safe if I just watched it from a distance," replied Tristan. "I noticed that Lugia was very protective of its eggs, but once it saw that Pikachu and I stopped a Tentacruel from attacking them, it knew that we were its friends, too."
There was a moment of silence, then finally, Veronica spoke. "I know it wasn't easy, Tristan, but you were very brave to talk about it. We'll keep the existence of Lugia and its eggs a secret unless you say otherwise."
"Thanks, guys," said Tristan. "Would you mind if Pikachu and I traveled to Ogi Isle alone first thing tomorrow morning?"
"Sure, Tristan," replied Hillary. "We understand why."
"We're planning to leave for home tomorrow afternoon, anyway," added Veronica. "So you should have an opportunity to see when those eggs hatch if they're almost ready to."
"I'm not sure how close they are, but I think they're pretty close," replied Tristan. "Pikachu and I are very excited about that. Right, pal?"
Pikachu nodded.
"I haven't seen a Lugia in years," said Eric. "It sounds like it will be awesome when those babies hatch."
Everyone continued eating, but seeing Lugia and possibly its new babies was the only thing on Tristan's mind.
(Music Cue: All We Wanna Do (instrumental)
Tristan was the first one to wake up the next morning. He made an effort to quietly crawl out of bed, get dressed, and exit the bedroom without waking anybody else.
Pikachu woke up, yawned, and opened its eyes, just as Tristan quietly opened the door. It saw Tristan, who waited patiently for it and ran quietly to meet him.
Tristan quietly closed the door and he and Pikachu made their way to the kitchen to make breakfast. Tristan made toast with butter for him and Pikachu to share. Then they got themselves some juice to drink. Then they sat down at the table together and ate their breakfast.
Shortly thereafter, Tristan and Pikachu quietly started out to Ogi Isle. It was still dark, but Tristan knew that if they wanted to see Lugia's babies, they had to do it alone, and that was the way Lugia liked it, considering how fiercely protective it was. "You know, Pikachu," he said. "You and I have been together for a long time. We've met many different kinds of Pokémon already. But I know that there are tons of Pokémon that we haven't even seen yet."
Pikachu nodded in agreement.
"I wonder what kind of new Pokémon and Trainers we'll meet in the Johto region," added Tristan. "Remember that Cyndaquil that Evan had? It had an incredible way of using that Flamethrower attack. I'd never seen a Pokémon power a flame on its back at will before until then."
Pikachu agreed again. It knew what Tristan was talking about.
"And Braden's Feraligatr was awesome, too," added Tristan. "It sort of reminds me of Blastoise. They're both big and strong Pokémon. They could almost be friendly rivals."
Pikachu agreed with him and perched itself on Tristan's shoulder.
Tristan smiled. Then he said, "I don't know how to thank you, Pikachu," he said. "I couldn't have made it this far without your help."
Pikachu smiled. It knew what Tristan was going to say next.
"Together, we can take on any challenge," said Tristan. "And soon, we'll be ready to have some new adventures. I think Hillary will want to come along with us."
Pikachu agreed.
"Then it's settled," he said. "As soon as we get back to New Bark Town, we'll get ready for our new journey together."
Pikachu smiled. It was just as excited for a new adventure as Tristan was.
"But now, let's see how close the Lugia's eggs are to hatching," added Tristan. "I'm sure they're close. Seeing the birth of a legendary Pokémon is a special treat."
Tristan and Pikachu then made their way through the undersea tunnel. A moment later, they exited it and entered Ogi Isle. They then quietly sat on the water's edge.
Lugia saw them arrive, but it didn't mind. In fact, it rather liked it.
As they sat down, it didn't take them long to see the eggs start flashing in a bright light.
Tristan quickly took out his binoculars. "It's almost time, Pikachu," he whispered. "I can hardly wait."
Pikachu quietly agreed with him.
Tristan zeroed in on the eggs. The binoculars made the eggs look more pretty.
The eggs kept flashing. Sometimes they stopped flashing, but at other times, the flashing continued.
As it got lighter and lighter, the eggs started flashing more and more frequently.
"It looks like we came at just the right time, Pikachu," whispered Tristan. "Now I know we're going to see the birth of two legendary Pokémon. Now it's just a matter of time before they hatch."
Pikachu quietly agreed excitedly.
The eggs kept flashing more frequently as time passed.
At that moment, the sun came up over the horizon, bathing everything in more light.
Then, Tristan's patience was rewarded, for just as the sun rose up from the horizon, the eggs started to glow. It was time for them to hatch.
Tristan could barely contain his excitement as the eggs glowed and changed shape. He quickly adjusted his binoculars and watched the eggs transform through them. When the eggs finished glowing and hatching, they looked like the big Lugia, but they were much, much smaller.
Tristan focused on the babies through his binoculars. He was awed by the way they looked. "This is so awesome!" he whispered to Pikachu. "So that's what a baby Lugia looks like. They're so cute!"
Pikachu nodded.
The big Lugia, who was now a parent, kept its new babies warm under its huge wing to keep them from freezing in the chilly morning air.
But suddenly, one of the babies, who was more curious than the other was, decided to take a swim in the water. Something had apparently caught its attention, much to the parent Lugia's surprise.
Tristan noticed that the baby was swimming its way toward him. Not only was it a natural at swimming, but it did so very quickly.
When the baby reached Ogi Isle, it walked right up to Tristan and lay at his feet.
Tristan's heart skipped a beat when it did. "Hi, there, little one," he whispered. "My name is Tristan, and this is Pikachu."
The baby lowered its head, but didn't make a sound. Instead, it rubbed against Tristan to show its affection.
Tristan grinned. Then, slowly and carefully, he petted it on the back of its slender neck.
The baby seemed to like it.
The parent Lugia, understandably, got worried. Even though it knew Tristan's good intentions, it felt that the baby should still be with it. So it swam to where Tristan was so it could take it back to its nest.
"Sorry about that," said Tristan as the parent approached him. "Your baby must have come here to say hi to me. It must like me a lot, but I know it loves you. Pikachu and I were just about to leave anyway."
The parent understood and motioned the baby to follow it back to its nest across the water.
The baby felt very sad about leaving Tristan and Pikachu behind.
As soon as the parent Lugia and the baby got back to the other island, the parent thought it might be cold from swimming, so it tucked it in under its wing to keep it warm. In a matter of minutes, both babies disappeared from view.
Tristan and Pikachu left for the undersea tunnel back to Silver Rock Isle. But unbeknownst to them, a strange silver-colored feather had fallen right where the baby Lugia was standing as it glowed in a mysterious white light.
After Tristan and Pikachu got out of the tunnel, they were so excited by the Lugia and the birth of two of its babies that they raced each other over to the Pokémon Center to get ready to catch the afternoon ferry back to Olivine City.
(Music Cue: Cold Blood)
But little did they know of the danger awaiting them on the ferry, for at that moment, a sinister figure who was partially bald with a peach-colored mustache and peach-colored hair had sneaked on board the ferry headed for Olivine City. The ferry wasn't due to leave until that afternoon. He had a sinister scheme going on, and he was apparently looking for something to capture.
The captain was apparently restocking the ferry with supplies and was unaware of the danger also.
Suddenly, the sinister figure came up behind the captain. "So you're the captain," he snickered. "Well, I suppose I'll have to make you swab the deck."
"Hey, you! What are you doing here?!" demanded the captain.
"Who I am is none of your concern," replied the figure. "What matters is that you will play a part of my big plan. So now I'm afraid you will have to be stowed away for now."
All at once, the sinister figure seized, bound, and gagged the captain and stored him in a space just below the ship's deck.
"Perfect," smirked the figure. "It's on to phase two." And he snickered evilly as he put on the captain's uniform and hat. "I know that someone knows about a mysterious Pokémon hanging out on the Whirl Islands somewhere. Everyone knows how powerful that Pokémon is. And soon, it will be all mine. I won't stop until I have that Pokémon's power all to myself!" He then laughed evilly.
And so, Tristan discovers the mysterious Pokémon, Lugia, whose two babies just hatched from eggs. But now, a sinister figure has infiltrated onto the ferry headed for Olivine City. Who is that figure? And what does he want? Will Tristan and Hillary be able to avoid the danger? You'll have to find out next time!
► TO BE CONTINUED