POKÉMON
Millennials Generation
Episode I
ONE WAY TICKET TO THE THIRTY AND BACK
CHAPTER ONE
THE RADIANT PRESENT
August 2022. We are in the midst of a hyperinflationary recession. Energy costs are skyrocketing, followed by food. The effects of the pandemic that hit the population continue to weigh on the economy and morale. Central banks are raising interest rates, businesses are closing, and unemployment is rising.
The city is gray. As far as the eye can reach, only windows and roofs can be seen, with a few trees here and there that breaks the monotony. We approach a building and pass through an open window, while the white curtains are shaken by the breeze.
A few moments to adapt the eye to the dark environment and we see a turned off notebook with some printed graphics near, and an identification card. On the floor a backpack, a wallet and keys thrown listlessly. It doesn't take long to realize that we are in the apartment of a normal employee or perhaps a manager of one of the many small local businesses.
A can of lemonade on the floor leads us to a hand a little higher and an arm falling off the arm of the sofa. From the ceiling camera we see, through the slow movement of the fan blades, Ash Ketchum, sleeping on the sofa as if he had thrown himself in the night before still dressed.
"Now that your bike has been fixed you can go home Misty!"
A moment of silence and then "Yes you are right... Take care of yourself Ash"
"Misty!" Ash wakes up screaming his name.
"It was just a dream" Ash catches his breath, then gets up and drags himself to the bathroom to rinse his face in the sink.
Ash raises his head towards the mirror. The reflection of him does not lie: he is thirty years old and something, he has not been a pokémon trainer for a long time now, and has become a productive member of this society.
A slight wrinkle of regret forms on his face. Ash comes out of the bathroom and looks at his things. The pc, the graphics, the wallet, the keys, the identification card… these things mean nothing to him, as well as the C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhäuser Gate. All those moments will be lost in time like tears in the rain.
"What a careless, I forgot the TV on" Ash turns off the TV right at the end of Blade Runner, also interrupting my dark narrative.
"But it's been a long time since I last went home. I really want to go and say hello to Mum and Professor Oak!" Ash quickly collects his things and closes the apartment door behind him... then reopens it and goes back to the bathroom: too much lemonade has these effects.
VROOM! Ash jumps on the eco-friendly green-washed electric scooter that has replaced the polluting bicycles and whizzes through the streets of the city avoiding almost all the people, the holes and jumping the bumps, until a structure appears on the horizon: it is the railway station.
Ash goes to the ticket office to get the ticket but there is a strike "Oh yes, I forgot they go on strike every fortnight" So he goes to the automatic ticket office which, however, do not work. Ash thinks "How nice it must be to have a fixed salary in a country with strong unions!". He just has to buy the ticket online with his smartphone.
Half a day has passed and the train finally leaves the station. Ash leans against the window with that dreamy childlike air he once had. The landscape formerly made up of walls, rails, cables and pylons, slowly passes to green meadows, trees, country houses and Renato, the feeble-minded farmhand who inveighs against trains every time he sees one.
Ash is happy to be returning home! And he doesn't care if the company he works for sees him disappear overnight without warning. They will arrange! They will probably post "Missing. If you see him call this number. He doesn't bite. Huge reward". The thought of what will happen does not touch him in the least, because Ash is already thinking about the pepperoni pizza and meatballs that his mother Delia will prepare for him once he gets home, without call before of course.
And so ends the first chapter of our story, with Ash's train running along the prairies towards Pallet town on a sunny day. Because everything is better when you come home and eat for free.
CHAPTER TWO
A NEW NEW BEGINNING
Ash arrived at Pallet town station this morning, where he prepares to walk home. He can't wait to eat the dishes prepared for him by her mother, and also to say goodbye to her and Professor Oak. But wait, what happens? A pokémon encounter!
"Go Magikarp, use your splash attack!"
"Kakuna, harden the armor!"
"Magikarp don't give up! Use your splash attack again!"
"You can't win, give up! Go Kakuna, harden your armor to the maximum!"
Ash enthusiastically observes the meeting thinking to himself "All this reminds me of something... I am convinced that these two children will become great pokémon trainers!"
It is late and Ash decides to walk home, letting the trainers finish the match alone. The sun is setting on the horizon, giving a reddish color to the cultivated fields. "Everything is just like it used to be!" Ash remembers the old days when as a child he enjoyed playing climbing plants, running through the meadows and dreaming of becoming a great pokémon trainer. But nostalgia is sometimes evil and Ash chases away these thoughts, also because he has arrived home.
"Mom, I'm home!"
"Ash! You're back! And you are... thirty and something!"
"I'm happy to see you too mom..." Ash replies a little embarrassed.
"Ash, if you had stayed here you would still be 10 years old while now we are practically the same age. But it's nice to have you here!" Delia hugs him.
"Come on, mom, we've already talked about it..."
"I'll make you your favorite pepperoni pizza! In the meantime, why don't you go say hello to Professor Oak? "
So Ash walks to Professor Oak's laboratory. Going back down that road, images of his debut come to mind, when he showed up in his pajamas because he had overslept and was late to take Pikachu, his first pokémon. Again, nostalgia calls for bad emotions, emotions that Ash tries to drive away.
Ash reaches Prof Oak's laboratory, where he enters without warning as he always has.
"Hello Professor Oak!"
"AAAAHH!" Caught behind, Oak jumps into his chair.
"Ash jeez! How many times have I told you not to get behind me like this! After... after... twenty years then!"
"Hehehe, I'm sorry prof. Of course nothing has changed here! How are my pokémon?"
"Ah yes... your pokémon... here you see... I certainly couldn't keep them here, my space is limited and so I freed them"
Ash is shocked "WHAT? My Muk? Kingler? All my Tauros? Pidgeot, ah no I had abandoned that one... "
"I understand that you are upset Ash, but after all it is you who have abandoned your idea of becoming a pokémon trainer. What do you have now, thirty and something?"
Ash begins to get angry "Damn prof! Why do you people all keep reminding me? I couldn't train pokémon forever! The world goes on and…"Oak cuts him off.
"Okay Ash, I didn't mean to be blunt. Anyway why did you come back?"
Ash collects ideas "I wanted... I needed to take a break..."
So Ash explains to Oak that he needed a change of scenery, that he felt homesick and that he wasn't too happy with his life, but not to mention the recurring (awake) flashbacks and dreams (asleep) of past adventures with his friends.
Narrator 2 "Ok but do you need to remember the difference between flashback and dream? And then look, when you write a story it's better to tell it in the past tense like: Ash went, explained etc..."
Narrator 1 "Listen, I want to tell it in the present to keep a more pressing pace and then this is my story and I tell it how I want to ok? Thanks!"
Oak scratches his chin thoughtfully "Ash, since you're here I have a favor to ask you"
"What kind of favor, professor?"
"As you surely remember, my nephew Gary abandoned his dream of becoming a pokémon trainer to become a pokémon researcher. He has a professorship at the University of Celadon city. That's where you'll have to go to get the Mysterious Pokémon Artifact That Hides No Dark Secret Trust Me"
"The Mysterious Pokémon Artifact That Hides No Dark Secrets Trust Me?" Ash is flabbergasted.
"Gary has been studying this ancient artifact for some time, but it seems he hasn't been able to fully decipher it yet. Unfortunately, Gary has withdrawn more and more in himself. You know how he is done, he's competitive and he can't stand not being able to do something. He has been locked up in his laboratory for months and I can't even contact him. Maybe you Ash, who was his main friend and rival, will be able to talk to him. Go to Celadon city, talk to Gary, get him the Mysterious Pokémon Artifact That Hides No Dark Secrets Trust Me and brings both of them here. Will you do me this favor Ash?"
In Ash's eyes the old flame of the pokémon quest has flared up again, and just like in the old days, without thinking about the consequences this will have on the rest of his life, he replies "Okay, I'll do it!"
"Before you go Ash, aren't you forgetting anything? It's dangerous to walk in tall grass without a pokémon!"
"Oh yeah! But I don't have any pokémon anymore! Professor Oak, please tell me you have one left!"
"Bulba!"
Ash and Oak turn around: it's Ash's old Bulbasaur!
"Bulbasaur!" Ash exclaims, who with his eyes full of joy runs to hug his old friend.
"Bulbasaur stayed here to help me and didn't want to leave with the others. Here also take these pokéballs and the new pokédex, they will come in handy on your journey. Now Ash has everything you need to start this new adventure!"
"No professor, something is still missing"
"Ash but don't you eat anything? Hey, is that Bulbasaur?" Ash doesn't seem to hear Delia as he rushes into his old bedroom. Everything is exactly in the same place, and here it is: the Pokémon League Expo Hat!
"Bye mom, I'm leaving for a new trip Professor Oak gave me, don't wait for me for dinner!"
"But Ash, the pizza is ready!" But it's too late: Ash and Bulbasaur are already running towards their next adventure.
CHAPTER 3
IN VIRIDIAN FOREST NO ONE CAN HEAR YOU WHAT?
Once again we find Ash and Bulbasaur crossing the dense Viridian Forest, where it's easy to get lost if you don't know the way and especially when you take shortcuts, isn't it Ash?
"We're almost there Bulbasaur! Now let's take this way instead of that way as we did last Friday and we should have arrived at… *Ash in tears* …at the starting point"
"Bulba!"
"What's up Bulbasaur? Do you want to know why I didn't ask for information from that trainer we met two days ago? Because I don't ask for directions, directions ask for me!"
"Bulba! Bulba! Bulba!" Bulbasaur saw a pokémon drinking from the stream.
"Hey what pokémon is that?" Ash aims the pokédex.
"Cramorant. Waterfowl Pokémon. When hungry, the Cramorant usually swallows its prey whole. Speaking of which, you know who else is good at swallowing…"Ash closes the pokédex.
"A Cramorant! Even if his appearance looks awkward he should learn fly and surf, and he might come in handy on my journey!" So Ash approaches the Cramorant.
"Hey Cramorant, prepare to be caught!"
"Cra?" The Cramorant looks at him with his stupid gaze.
"Bulbasaur use your vine whip, go!" But Cramorant evades the attack. Despite his clumsy appearance and stupid gaze, he demonstrates unmatched speed. Cramorant is now fighting back using the drill peck.
"Bulbasaur use the vines to hang you from that branch!" Bulbasaur avoids the attack and hangs from the branch.
"And now Bulbasaur, tackle attack!" Bulbasaur pushes himself like a swing and hits Cramorant.
"Go poké ball!" But Cramorant still has energy to fight and swallows the sphere. Ash and Bulbasaur are stunned. But the sphere fires in the stomach and traps Cramorant. Who said pokémon have to be captured from the outside? The sphere is still moving with the flashing light. Ash is anxiously awaiting. The sphere stops and the light goes out.
"Hurray! I'VE CAUGHT CRAMORANT!" Ash celebrates by dancing with Bulbasaur. It seems that, after all, Ash and Bulbasaur still remember how to fight.
"I caught my first pokémon… again! Just like when I caught Caterpie!" Ash whispers to the pokéball he holds in his hands.
"Back then things were different though"
"Who's there?" Ash exclaims.
"You really don't recognize me?" The stranger comes out of the bushes and after a few seconds of silence Ash exclaims
"Brock!"
"It's been a while Ash... I didn't think I'd see you again... and I didn't think I'd see you here"
"Brock! But do you see me? " Ash exclaims incredulously.
"I meant metaphorically, Ash"
And so the two friends set off along the path that will lead them to Pewter city. On the way, Ash explains to Brock about his new mission given to him by Professor Oak, while Brock updates him on his life. Since they split, Brock has returned home where he resumed his role as head of the gym and carer of his brothers together with his father, but he also opened a small pokémon grooming company where he could pursue his dream of becoming a Pokémon breeder. Over the years, his company has grown more and more, also thanks to the love that pokémon owners pour out on their creatures to compensate for the lack of satisfying relationships with other human beings, creating a continuous cashflow. Today Ivy & Brock corp. it is extended throughout Kanto, has more than 10,000 employees and offers services ranging from simple grooming to the management of pension and insurance plans for workers in the pokémon industry.
"By the way Brock, that Ivy?"
"Yes Ash, when I opened my first branch in the Orange Archipelagos, Professor Ivy was very interested in the project. Soon we got married and started a family. Today we have two beautiful children: little Jamie *truck horn* and little Jane *overtaking motorbike*"
"Sorry Brock, could you repeat the names?"
"Jamie *ambulance siren* and Jane *barking dog*. You will meet them tonight, you are my guest for dinner!"
That evening, in the most luxurious white marble mansion in Pewter city, surrounded by huge windows and a vast garden, Ash meets Professor Ivy and gets to know her children Jamie and Jane.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Ash again! Brock has told me a lot about you over the years... Sometimes I think he married the wrong person, haha! " Ivy jokes.
Ash a little embarrassed replies scratching his head "Hehehe, well we've been through a lot together. But I didn't expect Brock to be so successful! When he traveled with us he always ran after all the pretty girls he met..."
"Hey that was the old Brock, now I'm much more mature!"
"So you Brock too have chosen to become great by giving up your perennial youth?" Ash starts the discussion.
"I don't want to grow up mom, I want to be a pokémon trainer!"
"Of course Jane, when you grow up you will do whatever you want" Ivy replies.
"I want to become a pokémon breeder just like Brock!" Jamie replies.
"Ah this is my son!" Brock proudly replies.
"So Ash tell me, you too have chosen to give up your youth to become a productive member of this society. Can I ask you why you are back to catching pokémon now?" asks Ivy, keeping an eye on Bulbasaur who is eating from his bowl.
Ash chuckles embarrassed "Well it's a long story... Let's say I took a break during which I help Professor Oak in his research"
"Ah Professor Oak, I haven't heard from him for a long time. I guess he hasn't changed at all, always busy with his researches"
"Well you're right, Professor Oak is still the same. His nephew Gary, on the other hand, makes us think: he seems to be close to an important discovery, but he has cut off contact with everyone and Oak thinks that I am the last hope for him"
"Sounds serious! Dear, why don't you accompany Ash on his adventure? I'll take care of the business, and so you'll have some time to spend with your friend like in the old days!"
"In fact there aren't many challengers in the gym right now... What do you think Ash?"
"Brock, that's why I came here, I couldn't do it without my old friends!"
And so the dinner continues in a festive atmosphere, between Brock's tales of his adventures with Ash and the waiters going back and forth.
Later, Ash and Brock are on the porch making preparations for departure.
"My backpack is ready Ash, but before leaving, take my curiosity away: it seems to me that someone is missing... what happened to Pikachu?" Ash becomes paralyzed and his face goes dark. After a few moments Brock adds "Hey if you don't want to talk about it, patience, we'll talk about it another time..."
Meanwhile, Ivy and the children join them "Children go say hello to Brock!"
Brock hugs them "Don't worry dear, I'll be back soon"
"Don't worry dear, take your time!" Ivy answers.
And so Ash and Brock greet Ivy and the children as they begin, as in the past, towards Cerulean city, on a splendid starry night.
Narrator 2 "Why on a starry night? Couldn't they leave the next morning?"
Narrator 1 "Because it is more beautiful! It conveys a better image in the reader! But do you always have to be to review everything?"
Narrator 2 "It's just that you seem to write things randomly..."
Narrator 1 "I can't stand her"
CHAPTER FOUR
A BIKE TO CARBONIZE
This beautiful morning Ash and Brock are headed to Cerulean city, where Ash hopes to win his second badge… COUGH! I meant: Brock seems to be pensive this morning ...
"Ash, there is one thing that is not clear to me..."
"What Brock?"
"Considering that you, like me, have hung up the pokéballs by choosing to become an adult and therefore to grow old... why did you come home and accepted this assignment from Professor Oak?"
Ash with his hands behind his neck "I already told you Brock: I took a break, that's all! And then I'm helping a friend"
Brock doesn't seem very convinced "Hmm… And why did you get Bulbasaur, the pokéball and the pokédex? And you also captured that Cramorant..."
"Why does every self-respecting pokémon quest need this equipment Brock, don't you remember anymore? This is why we are walking instead of taking one of your private jets"
Ash's explanation seems solid, yet Brock still has some doubts "Sure you're righ ... And after you picked me up now we're going to pick up Misty to..."
"…To complete the trio! Brock you seem a bit slow today"
"And tell me Ash, what do you expect to find?"
Ash loses his temper, stops and turns to Brock "Ok Brock, speak up! What's your point?"
Brock replies bluntly "I don't think you're doing all this to help Professor Oak"
"Ah don't you think huh? And listen, Dr. Freud, why would I be doing all this then?"
"I'm not convinced yet... but if you expect everything to return to the way it was before, I'm afraid this won't be possible"
Ash looks at him sufficiently and with his hands on his hips "AH! Do you really speak? Aren't you the one who decided to accompany me ONCE AGAIN?"
Brock also replies sufficiently "In reality Ivy suggested the idea..."
"And you accepted without hesitation! Aren't you hiding something from me?"
Brock loses his temper "HEAR WHO SPEAKS LIKE DOCTOR FREUD NOW!"
Ash always with sufficiency "Apparently I hit the mark! I should have worked as a shrink..."
Brock seems to calm down "Okay Ash… when we get to Cerulean city you go find Misty while I go to get some supplies for the trip. But be careful that it's been years since you last saw her!"
"Don't be worried about me Brock, I can take care of myself, I'm not a child anymore!"
And so, once in Cerulean city, Ash and Brock separate: Brock heads towards the commercial district, while Ash continues towards the gym.
"It's been years... I know Brock, you don't have to tell me" Ash mulls over what happened.
"Maybe I was lucky with Brock... Maybe I won't be so lucky with Misty... It could end like Pikachu..." Ash's confidence begins to falter.
"No why should it? We didn't leave badly: Misty got her bike back and went home to take care of the gym. It was what she wanted. Yes, I'm sure she will have become a great water pokémon trainer!" Ash escapes all doubts and regains confidence in himself, right now, in front of the gym doors.
Ash theatrically opens the doors wide and jokingly yells "I came to challenge the gym leader to win the Cascade Badge!" But no one answers.
"Hey? Is anybody there?" The gym seems empty and not even Bulbasaur can smell Misty.
Narrator 2 "The smell? How does the smell? You mean Misty stinks?"
Narrator 1 "In the sense that Bulbasaur's sense of smell is more developed than Ash's. Come on, it's clear!"
Narrator 2 "Why don't you write that Ash and Bulbasaur can't see Misty, the international beauty?"
Narrator 1 "Because neither of them have hallucinating"
"Maybe Brock was right... maybe something has changed..." Ash bends his head to his chest and his gaze becomes dark. He exits pushing the door to the gym, then lifts his head to the sky. Bulbasaur tries to console him by rubbing his head on Ash's legs.
"I don't know what I can do Bulbasaur. Brock was right: the gym seems deserted and who knows what happened to Misty. I was a fool to think that everything would be as it was before" Ash starts walking aimlessly trying to rearrange his ideas, accompanied by Bulbasaur.
Meanwhile, Brock is busy running his errands. He has bought so many supplies that he struggles to move, but there is another burden he has to bear: Brock accidentally ended up in the Cerulean city fashion district during sales week. Dozens and dozens of girls continue to pass in front of him. But Brock is a married man who has yet to finish his errands, so he continues trying to keep his composure.
Meanwhile, Ash sit in a park absently throwing stones in front of him. He is thinking that he hasn't been very nice to his friend Brock. He was just trying to be rational and avoid him a disappointment. It's hardly Brock's fault that Misty isn't where he thought she was. Years go by and no one stands still waiting exactly where you left it. Maybe if Ash had kept in touch now he would have already reformed the trio.
"Okay Bulbasaur, let's go"
"Bulba?"
"We have to resume the journey and I have to apologize to Brock!"
Ash throws the last stone in front of him, which lands behind a bush accidentally hitting a Victreebel in the head. The Victreebel notoriously has a bad temper and is convinced that the Spearow perched on the tree threw the stone at him. With his vines he grabs a large branch of the tree, shaking it. The Spearow, who also don't have a good character, attack him. Victreebel is surrounded by a flock of Spearow pecked him repeatedly. He has no choice but to defend himself with his razor leaf attack without taking too much aim. Some leaves inadvertently cut off a large branch, while Ash and Bulbasaur are watching the whole scene in disbelief. The branch falls hitting a wooden structure that, leveraging, throws a bicycle into the air, which spins a couple of times and smashes right in front of Ash.
"What the hell happened Bulbasaur?" Ash is still in disbelief.
"MY BIKE!" Ash just has time to turn around and he is grabbed by the collar of his jacket.
"DAMN IDIOT YOU DESTROYED MY BIKE! WHAT'S WRONG IN YOUR BRAIN?" But suddenly the girl freezes, her face from angry to incredulous.
"Ash? Ash Ketchum?"
"M... Misty?" Ash replies still groggy. Misty lets go the jacket and the two remain staring at each other for a few moments without anyone having the courage to say anything.
"Bulba!" Bulbasaur breaks the silence.
"Bulbasaur! How are you?" Misty bends over to caress him while Ash tries to compose himself.
"Misty... I didn't think I'd find you here!"
"So what did you come to do?" Misty replies angrily.
Ash tries in vain to piece together his ideas "Well I... Professor Oak... I must find Gary and the Mysterious Pokémon Artifact That Hides No Dark Secrets Trust Me ... I'm here with Brock"
"But why did you come here?" Misty replies referring to the city.
Ash reconnects his brain "Why do I need my old friends to complete this adventure!"
Misty seems to change the subject "Wait, what do you have now, thirty and something? Does this mean that you are no longer a pokémon trainer?"
Ash sighs "Well a lot of things have changed Misty... Some time ago I went back to Pallet, Oak asked me to help him and here I am. Anyway, you too Misty look like thirty and something. Have you abandoned your dream of becoming a great water pokémon trainer?"
Misty grabs him again by the jacket "ARE YOU BACK HERE AFTER TWENTY YEARS TO DESTROY MY BIKE AGAIN AND INSULT ME?"
"Calm down Misty, I didn't mean that" Ash defends himself embarrassed.
"After you separated, Misty came back here to run the gym..." Ash and Misty turn around: it's Daisy, one of Misty's sisters.
"...It seemed she was happy to be the gym leader and she never went back on her journey to become a trainer..." Replies Violet.
"…But apparently she didn't like it, so she ended up getting older even than us" jokes Lily.
"Ash, guess who I met in town?" Brock is "gone" with heart-shaped eyes and a jelly brain.
"WHO THE HELL ASKED YOU TO TELL MY LIFE?" Misty explodes against her sisters.
"Come on Misty, Brock explained everything to us. You have a second chance to become a pokémon trainer!" Daisy resumes.
"The life of the gym leader is obviously not for you, otherwise you wouldn't have aged. You are always bored there to distribute Cascade Badges and TMs bubble beam and water pulse" Observes Violet.
"And you're not even so young, beautiful and talented enough to have a place in our show" Lily chuckles.
"For your information, I LOVE standing still in the gym waiting for the challengers! And with regard to my skills as a trainer, I am known as the nightmare of all Charmander starters!"
"Well then I was right to choose Bulbasaur!" Ash replies with a mega smile.
Misty strikes him down "Well Ash, since you're back as a pokémon trainer we can finally close our pending account. Ash I challenge you to a pokémon match!"
"What pending account?" Ash falls from the clouds. Misty grabs him by the arm and drags him to the gym.
We are at the Cerulean city gym where the match between Ash and Misty is finally about to begin. The battlefield is a swimming pool with floating platforms; Ash and Misty are on opposite sides; Brock and the Sensational Sisters watch them in the stands.
"The rules are simple: we will use two pokémon each, with no time limits!"
"It is fine by me! Are you ready Bulbasaur?"
"Bulba!"
Narrator 2 "Two Pokemon, of course..."
Narrator 1 "What's wrong now?"
Narrator 2 "It's just an excuse because Ash only caught two Pokémon!"
Narrator 1 "How not... or maybe it's Misty who can't handle longer matches"
Narrator 2 "Umpf"
"Are you sure you still remember how to fight Ash?"
"I advise you not to underestimate me Misty, I'm no longer a child!"
"HAHA! This is exhilarating! Ash, if you defeat me I will help you find Gary, but if I defeat you, I will prove my skills as a trainer and you will have to leave Cerulean city forever!"
"I really don't understand why you're in such a bad mood, BUT I AGREE! Go Bulbasaur!"
"Go Gyarados!"
Ash gets scared "Gyarados? Misty is determined to win!"
Meanwhile in the stands Brock murmurs "If Misty has chosen Gyarados as her first pokémon, who knows what she has for later... Be careful Ash!"
"Don't be intimidated Bulbasaur! Stun spore!" The attack is successful: the spores hit Gyarados.
"Ash, do you always make the same mistakes? Gyarados, go underwater and wash off the spores!"
"Ugh! I forgot!" Ash understands the mistake.
"Gyarados, use the water pulse!" A powerful jet of water emerges hitting Bulbasaur and throwing it into the air.
"Now! Bite attack! " Gyarados emerges from the water like a bullet and hurls itself at Bulbasaur.
"Bulbasaur uses the vines!" Bulbasaur manages to grab Gyarados.
"And now tackle attack!" Bulbasaur gives himself the momentum with the vines and hits Gyarados throwing him back into the water, then landing on a floating platform.
"I'm surprised Ash, you still seem to remember how to do it!" Misty taunts Ash.
"I beat you once and I can do it again!" Ash replies smugly.
"Bulbasaur solar beam!" Bulbasaur took in sunlight.
"Solar beam is a time-consuming move. But if you want to gamble on power I'm in! Gyarados, hyper beam!" Gyarados fires a hyper beam at Bulbasaur intent on absorbing the light.
"I think Misty made a mistake..." Brock exclaims in the stands.
At the last second Bulbasaur fires the solar beam, which passes through Gyarados's hyper beam and knocks him out.
"Gyarados no!" Misty exclaims.
"Misty, you forgot that Bulbasaur is at a much higher level than Gyarados!" Ash exclaims.
Misty quickly regains confidence in herself, calls Gyarados back and prepares for the second battle "Congratulations Ash, but your luck ends here, go Sealeo!"
"Huh? What pokémon is that?" Ash aims the pokédex.
"Sealeo. Sea lion Pokémon. The thick layer of accumulated fat allows it to withstand extreme temperatures and its tough skin protects it from many attacks. Although Sealeo is a fat pokémon, it is still not as fat as yours…"Ash closes the pokédex.
"What's happening Misty, Was Gyarados your best card? Go bulbasaur, razor leaf!" The leaves hit Sealeo but the impact is cushioned by the thick skin. Ash and Bulbasaur lose the advantage.
"Bulbasaur, quick, sleep powder!"
"Sealeo aurora beam!" The aurora beam destroys the sleep powder and continues on to Bulbasaur, who cannot avoid it and knocked down.
"Did you say something Ash?" Misty exclaims arrogantly.
"Sealeo looks well trained. It only took him one shot to win against Bulbasaur"
"Brock are you talking to yourself?" Lily looks worried.
"AHAHAHA! It is an old habit. Don't mind sweet Lily"Brock replies embarrassed.
"Bulbasaur come back!" Ash takes the blow, adjusts his hat and thinks of a strategy.
"I have no choice but to field Cramorant, but what attacks can I use to beat Sealeo? I have to think of a strategy and fast! Go Cramorant!"
"Sealeo, use your aurora beam again!" But Cramorant is very fast and throws himself into the water avoiding the attack.
"Bravo Cramorant!" Ash rejoices with shining eyes.
"Now Cramorant, use the drill peck!" Cramorant emerges from the water... looking around with his stupid gaze.
"Ash! I'm afraid that Cramorant is in the grip of one of his amnesia!" Brock yells from the stands.
"Couldn't have been better! Sealeo, use body slam!" Sealeo throws himself at Cramorant with all the bulk of him.
"CRAMORANT STOP LOOKING AROUND LIKE AN IDIOT AND DO SOMETHING!" Ash yells in despair.
"BURP!" Cramorant belches in Sealeo's face under everyone's incredulous gaze. Sealeo breathes in the toxic vapors and faints.
"Sealeo!" Misty screams worried. "Ash! It's really like you not to teach your pokémon education! "
"No Misty, the move is valid: Cramorant only used his belch attack" Brock explains and continues " Misty has no more pokémon to fight, Ash wins the match!"
"Excellent Cramorant!" Ash jumps across the platforms to hug him.
"No I do not believe it! It is not possible that he won this way!" Misty drops to her knees in tears of despair.
And so Ash wins the match against Misty, adding a great friend to the group who will help him complete his journey. Well, at least after she calms down.
After helping to fix the gym, Ash, Misty and Brock say goodbye to the Sensational Sisters and set off for Celadon city. What other exciting adventures await them along the way? We will find out in the next episode, or maybe never.
"Ash?"
"What's up Misty?"
"You have to pay me the bike back!"