The Missing Slowpoke

Two weeks had passed since Cross joined up with Ash and his friends, the group were now leaving Union Cave and closing in on Azalea Town.

"I can't believe trainers actually wanted to battle you in there." Chloe shook her head in disbelief.

"Was great experience for Froakie and Toxel though!"

"Pika pi!"

"So how much further is it from Azalea Town, Brock?" Ash turned to face Brock as his friend pulled out the map. "Let's see, we just exited Union Cave so it looks like a two to three hour walk from here."

"That's great!" Ash clenched his fists while turning around to face the path ahead of them. "I can't wait to face-"

"Ahhhh!"

"Arroooo!" Ash and Chloe quickly turned upon hearing Brock and Cross' shout only to find a massive hole sitting where their friends once stood. Incineroar stared down at the hole before boldly leaping down after Lycanroc, Cross and Brock, seeming not to care about the potential dangers that laid below.

"Brock, Cross are you two okay?!" Chloe called out.

"Eevoi?!"

"Ugh... w-we're okay!" Brock held his head as he groaned out, his eyes shifted around the hole's interior. "It appears that we're in a cave of sorts. Maybe back in Union Cave?"

"Take a look around, this cave isn't the same as the one we were just in. This one was clearly manmade." Cross muttered as Lycanroc and Incineroar pulled him to his feet.

"I'm going down there." Ash attempted to copy Incineroar only for Chloe to grab his arm.

"No way, their voices are too far off. We're lucky that neither of them got hurt, Incineroar's legs are built differently than yours. You'd likely break yours if you tried." Chloe warned.

Ash stared down into the hole but he couldn't see anything. "Maybe you're right."

"Ash just head to Azalea Town, Cross and I will find a way out and meet you there." Brock called up.

"Right, Lycanroc can find a way out no problem." Cross stated with a light smirk.

"Roc!" The Midnight Lycanroc barked.

"Brock's right besides if the hole is manmade then I'm guessing that somebody there will know a way to find them." Chloe took hold of Ash's hand before turning to continue down the path. "Stay safe Brock!"

"You guys be careful too, watch your step!" Brock shouted after them while Lycanroc began sniffing at the air.

"Roc..." Lycanroc made a disgusted face as the place reeked of Slowpoke. It was hard picking out a scent that belonged to anything else but the canine was eventually successful. "Roc!" Lycanroc turned towards his trainer while pointing behind Brock and Cross.

"You want us to go that way?" Cross shrugged. "Alright."

Croagunk stared at the path ahead and began silently croaking in an unsettled manner as he sensed a disturbance ahead of them.

"And here we are, Azalea Town!" Azalea Town was a much smaller settlement than the previous ones they'd passed through since leaving New Bark Town. Most of the buildings looked quite dated as they were made from logs and other material from early settlement, making the more modern buildings such as the local Pokemon Center and Pokemart stick out like a sore thumb. The entire town was bordered by a thick tree line which caused Chloe to feel rather unsettled upon laying her eyes on the large stadium that had recently been constructed, a lot of trees had to have been cut to make way for it.

Ash shot a quick look around as he searched for a local to question but despite it being the middle of the day, there didn't appear to be anyone on the streets at all. Not even the local Officer Jenny! "Where is everyone...?"

Chloe ran her hand across her forehead as the sun shined brightly upon them, a few flowers and other plants that sat outside of homes were noticeably withered. "M-Maybe they're indoors...? It appears as if there's a drought happening." Chloe pointed towards the withered plants.

"Eevoi..." Eevee flattened her ears at the sight of the plants.

Ash glanced at the plants and shot a quick look around town before finally spotting somebody walking around, a small purple haired boy that was significantly younger than Ash and could be seen accompanied by a large fleet of bodyguards, their belts lined up with Pokeballs. "Huh?" Ash tilted his head as he wondered what the story was with this kid, his attire gave off the appearance of a simple Sentret Scout. He didn't understand why he needed bodyguards at least not until he got a good look at the boy's belt, spotting six Pokeballs lined up on it. "Hold up, that kid is a trainer?!"

"Pika pi?!"

Chloe narrowed her eyes for a moment before snapping her fingers. "Oh right, I remember hearing something about this. One of Johto's Gym Leaders was found dead not far off from where Bruno's body was discovered. The Silver League was placed in a state of crisis as the Gym Leader's son was the only one in line to succeed the Gym and with the Silver League starting up within the next month, they didn't have time to search for a new replacement. Thus the son was given control of his father's remaining Pokemon and allowed to become a Pokemon trainer but he must be accompanied by a bodyguard every time he steps foot out of the house or Gym, especially after what happened to his father. I'm guessing that this is the town they were talking about."

"That kid's a Gym Leader?!"

"Pika pi?!" It felt weird battling somebody that was younger than he was, it was sure to happen eventually but he didn't expect that large of a gap so soon!

The kid gave Ash and Chloe a look upon spotting them. He raised his hand for the bodyguards to stop before making his approach. "Hello there travelers, the name's Bugsy. I'm sort of a big deal around here, I'm the Gym Leader after all." Bugsy leaned against a nearby wall while giving Chloe a flirtatious look. Chloe shivered and quickly looked away with disgust. "What brings you here? You here to face me?"

"I-I am!" Ash eagerly shouted before quickly catching himself. "But I have to find my friends first, they fell into some manmade hole not far out of town."

Bugsy's eyes widened. "That'd be the Slowpoke Well, I'll have you know it's illegal to step foot in there!"

"Hey it was an accident, the ground gave out from under them!" Ash shouted in defense of his friends before tilting his head. "Er-Slowpoke Well? What's that?" Curiosity took over as he couldn't help but wonder why they named the well after Slowpoke of all things.

"It's named such because it is home to our town's Slowpoke population." Bugsy explained. Ash, Chloe, Pikachu and Eevee all looked around as they hadn't seen any Slowpoke up to that point apart from Bugsy and his bodyguard's the town appeared to be deserted. "They're all hiding down there at the moment hence our drought, the Slowpoke's yawn has the power to summon rain which as you can see is desperately needed as we're in a drought." Bugsy frowned. "Had to close up the Gym until things cool off."

"Why don't you go and get one out then? Wouldn't that fix the problem?" Ash questioned.

"No way, it's taboo to touch the Slowpoke." Bugsy firmly shook his head. "We have to wait."

"But what about our friends? They're trapped down there!" Chloe exclaimed.

Bugsy uttered out a light sigh. "Your friends are really down there?"

Ash and Chloe nodded.

Bugsy glanced towards his bodyguards before sighing out. "Well I can take you to the entrance but I can't let you go in, follow me." Bugsy waved his hand.

"Alright time to slice and dice!" A Team Rocket member with short crescent shaped teal color hair eagerly shouted as a Scizor clamped it's pincers down on a Slowpoke's tail before proceeding to slice it off! The Slowpoke was silent for several minutes before uttering out a loud pained cry that caused the man's partner to wince.

"Proton, surely there's a better way for us to make money than this. This is just cruel!" A Team Rocket agent with a purple mohawk and short goatee frowned as yet another Slowpoke cried out in pain.

"Shut the hell up, Petrel. If the Masked Man catches you saying that, we're dead! And I'll be damned if I die because you've gone soft! We both signed up for this, you can't go crawling back to Archer and the boss now. They know we're traitors by now."

"I haven't gone soft!" Petrel snapped while shooting a regretful look towards a Slowpoke as Scizor sliced it's tail off. "Don't get me wrong the money's great, thrice as much as the boss ever paid it's just that I didn't expect it to be so-"

"...SLOW!"

"Mortifying." Petrel frowned while looking to the side. "Those Slowpoke never did anything to us nor could they if they wanted to, they're harmless creatures."

"You're starting to sound a lot like that Pokemon Ranger kid I put down last week, Kellyn was it?" Proton stroked his chin in a thoughtful fashion before shrugging it off.

"And there's also that, he may have been a pest but he was just a kid!" Petrel argued. "You didn't have to do that!"

"He was sixteen, he knew what he was getting into." Proton waved his hand dismissively. "And don't even think about ratting me out for that, you're an associate to the act so you'd be jailed too! Now shut up and let me finish, these Slowpoke tails are a delicacy and will make us rich! Masked Man needs the funding for some big scheme he's planning but there'll be plenty left over for us!" He knew there wasn't a point in running off as Attila and Hun ended up dead before they could escape the city limits, the Masked Man didn't tolerate deserters.

Petrel sighed out and turned to face a nearby wall as he attempted to tune out the noise.

Brock, Cross, Croagunk, Incineroar and Lycanroc soon stepped around the corner and froze up at the sight. Brock's face was a mixture of green and red as he was both disgusted and furious at the sight, Cross' face remained the same as usual though his fists clenched up at the sight.

"Roar..." Incineroar growled.

"Roc..." Lycanroc snarled.

"Those poor Slowpoke, we've got to do something!" Brock exclaimed.

Cross huffed. "Right, Incineroar use Darkest-"

"Wait, the Slowpoke will be caught in the crossfire!" Brock hissed out.

"Well what do you suppose we do then?" Cross asked with an irritated tone. "We can't just stand here."

"I think I have an idea..."

"Roar..." A bright fire light up around the corner as Vulpix lit up the cave with Flamethrower, Kangaskhan's arms stretched to the sides while Incineroar's roar echoed out throughout the cave. Kangaskhan's shadow loomed around the corner as the roar intensified causing Petrel and Proton to freeze up as they looked towards the source of the noise.

"A D-Dragon type!" Petrel turned pale as he screeched out.

"I thought only Slowpoke lived in this cave!" Proton clenched his fists while slowly edging away from the Slowpoke.

"Apparently not, how else would you explain that?!"

Proton continued backing away before quickly bolting off. "Man forget the tails, let's come back after he's fallen asleep!"

"R-Right!" Petrel backed off before bolting after Proton, the two raced further down the cave before screaming out as Lycanroc burst from the ground in front of them. It's demonic red eyes staring directly into their eyes as it snarled out. "Ah, Cerberus!" Petrel screamed out.

Proton growled and grabbed hold of his partner's arm as he attempted to go back the way they came only to find himself face to face with Croagunk who had Poison Jab active as Brock and Cross caught up with their Pokemon.

"Good job, Croagunk."

"Croa..."

"You'd do well to surrender, we got you surrounded and outgunned." Cross advised.

"I surren-" Petrel started.

"We'll see about that, Ariados use Sticky Web!" Proton shouted while hurling a Pokeball forward.

"Aria!" The spider Pokemon fired out a glob of sticky substance that flew towards Brock and Cross with the intent of trapping them.

"Poison Jab!" Brock shouted out.

"Croa!" Croagunk used Poison Jab on the webbing, shattering it before it could even touch Brock and Cross.

"Well don't just stand there, help me!" Proton snapped at Petrel.

Petrel gritted his teeth as he tossed a ball forward. "Weezing use Thunderbolt!"

"Weezing!" A teal colored Weezing burst out, electricity crackled around it's body before firing off in a large electrical bolt. The bolt flew towards Lycanroc giving the canine an electrical shock.

"Arooo!" Lycanroc howled before snarling out as he bared his fangs at his enemy.

"Stone Edge!" Cross shouted out.

"Mega Punch!" Brock swiftly ordered out.

"Roc!" Lycanroc raised up his paws as large jagged rocks erupted from the ground, the rocks rushed across the field before surrounding Ariados as they closed in on him before squishing him!

"A-Ariados!" Ariados twitched between the rocks before going limp as swirls formed within his eyes.

"Croa...gunk!" Croagunk's fist glowed bright purple as he leaped up and punched Weezing's face. The Poison type cried out before falling to the ground below, swirls formed within his eyes as he laid beside his unconscious partner.

Petrel frowned and silently returned Weezing while Proton snarled out. "Scizor, let's teach these punk kids a lesson they'll never forget! Mega Evolve!" Proton raised up the sleeve of his uniform, revealing a Mega Ring!

"Scizor!" Scizor's body became engulfed by a bright pink glow that engulfed the cave. The Slowpoke gasped as the light hit their eyes and after a few minutes, they began slowly discussing among themselves.

"Slow..."

"Poke...?"

"Slow..."

"Poke..."

"Slowpoke..." They turned and began heading for the exit of the cave.

Brock clenched his fists at the sight of Mega Scizor. "Croagunk come back!"

"Croa..." Croagunk backed away while Brock threw a ball forward.

"Marowak we need your assistance!"

"Marowak, wak wak!" The Alolan Marowak twirled his fiery bone club as he stared his opponent down.

"Incineroar, get over here!" Cross shouted.

"Roar!" The large luchador tiger raced onto the scene before leaping in front of his trainer, growling out in a vicious manner as he stared Scizor down.

"Ah!" Petrel almost had an accident as he'd never seen the tiger Pokemon before. "B-Beedrill, we'll show we've got power of our own. Time to Mega Evolve!"

"Beee!" A Beedrill burst out shortly before the familiar pink light consumed his body, transforming him into Mega Beedrill!

"Poison Jab!"

"Beeee!" Beedrill's stinger turned purple as he swooped across the field before jabbing Incineroar's chest. Incineroar let out an irritated roar as flames burned within his eyes.

"Bullet Punch!" Proton shouted out.

"Scizor!" Scizor blasted forward and began rapidly punching Marowak with quick rapid movements.

"Wak..." Marowak faintly grunted out.

"Flame Wheel!" Brock shouted.

"Wak!" Flames engulfed Marowak's body as he rolled towards Scizor before crashing into the Mega Pokemon's body!

"Scizor!" Scizor grunted out as Marowak knocked him back.

"Flamethrower!"

"Roar!" Incineroar thrusted his body outwards as a large stream of fire erupted from his belt, the stream flew towards Beedrill before making contact with his body causing the bee to emit a loud pained scream as he collapsed against the cave floor. The pink light soon enveloped his body as he transformed back into his regular state while swirls filled his eyes.

"Beedrill!" Petrel gasped, the Rocket agent collapsed to his knees and faintly sobbed as he recalled Beedrill to his Pokeball.

"Hyper Beam!" Proton shouted out.

"Zor!" Scizor fired the orange-yellow energy blast towards Marowak only to gasp in surprise as the energy passed through him.

"No way, is that a Ghost type?!" Proton facepalmed.

"Shadow Bone!"

"Marowak!" The flames on Marowak's club turned a bright purple color as he took a swing at his opponent, the flames intensified upon making contact with Scizor's body causing the Mega Pokemon to cry out.

"S-Scizor!"

"Flame Wheel!" Brock swiftly ordered once more. Scizor was recharging so they had an opening.

"Wak!" Flames engulfed Marowak's body as he rolled towards his opponent before crashing into him, knocking Scizor onto his back!

"Scizor!" Scizor cried out, the pink light enveloped his body once more as he crashed against the ground. Swirls formed within his eyes as he laid against the cavern floor.

Proton's eyes widened as if he couldn't believe what he'd just seen. He hastily returned Scizor to his ball before grabbing Petrel's arm. "Come on, we've got to get out of here!"

Brock tried to grab them but was too slow, the Rocket agents raced out of the well while gleefully laughing out and not paying much mind where they were going resulting in them crashing into Bugsy's bodyguards.

"Ahhh!" The pair of bodyguards and Rocket agents shouted as they fell to the ground. The other bodyguards let out an irritated huff before hoisting Proton and Petrel off the ground.

"You're under arrest for trespassing!"

"Yeah? Under whose authority?" Proton laughed before going pale as the bodyguards whipped out International Police badges. Proton swore beneath his breath while Petrel looked a bit relieved. The tailless Slowpoke began lumbering out of the cave not long after followed by Brock, Cross and their Pokemon. Blood droplets had tried up along the Slowpoke's backs making it quite clear that they were cut and hadn't fallen off as they naturally did from time to time.

"And Pokemon abuse, eh? You two are going away for a long time!"

"No please, I can't go to jail!" Proton cried out. "I won't survive!"

"Yeah yeah, tell it to the judge!" Two of the bodyguards dragged Proton and Petrel away while the other two remained behind to watch over Bugsy.

"Brock, Cross you're okay!" Chloe beamed.

"We are but I'm not sure about the Slowpoke." Brock frowned. Ash gasped upon seeing the blood, his hands tightly clenched while Chloe had to look away as she couldn't stand the sight of the blood.

"I-It'll be okay Brock, what they did was cruel but... Slowpoke's actually grow their tails back. They lose them all the time and new ones eventually grow in their place." Which is why the consumption of Slowpoke tails wasn't outright illegal, just insanely expensive and a 'delicacy' as it was hard to get one that fell off on it's own. Course their were plenty of chefs that bought unnaturally cut tails.

"Well that's a relief to hear." Brock sighed out.

"I can't believe somebody would do that to a Pokemon, it makes me sick!" Ash snapped while recalling what Attila and Hun did to those poor Cubone and Marowak.

"Pika!"

"Wak!" Brock gave Marowak's head a light pat.

"Slow..." A Slowpoke yawned out, the sky darkened shortly afterwards as heavy rainclouds formed above them.

"What do you know, the legend was true!" Chloe gasped.

"Eevoi!" Eevee cried as rain began falling down on top of them, helping revive the withering plants within Azalea Town.

Bugsy smirked up at the sky before turning towards Ash. "Well Ash it looks like you'll have to wait until tomorrow for our match, sound good to you?"

"Of course!" Ash and Pikachu excitedly clenched their fists as they turned to face Bugsy. "We can't wait!"

"Pika pika!"

"Who is the man behind the mask?!" The Goldenrod City police chief slammed his fists against the table as he confronted Proton in the interrogation room. Azalea Town lacked a proper holding cell so Proton and Petrel were transferred to the next city.

Proton flashed a smirk as he glanced up at the man. "Wouldn't you like to know?" He mocked. "You'd certainly be surprised."

"Who is it?" The police chief slugged Proton causing the Rocket agent to cry out as his nose was broken.

"Gah, that was my nose you c-!"

"Answer the freaking question!" The police chief roared out. "You know how many lives were lost during the Silph Takeover?! I lost my daughter because of you lot!"

"Sounds like a you problem..." Proton laughed before crying out as he was punched in the face once more. "Ow! Watch it you c-"

The door to the interrogation room opened up as Looker walked in, a calm expression upon his face as he held a cuffed Petrel with one hand. "Take him back to his cell, Scarfe."

"Looker?" The chief's eyes widened at the sight of an International Policeman. "O-Of course, I'll get right on that. It's your lucky day, chump. Sounds like your friend wants to talk." Proton narrowed his eyes at Petrel who jerked his head away to avoid eye contact.

Looker cuffed Petrel to the table as Proton and Scarfe left the room. "Alright Petrel, who is the Masked Man?"

"I ain't telling, he'll kill me..."

"Petrel," Looker sat down and retained his calm demeanor as he looked the Rocket agent in the eye. "I've been at this long enough to tell when somebody wants out of the life, you have that look about you. You're shaking-"

"Eh?" Petrel froze up.

"You're eyes are darting about as if you expect an attack." Petrel stared down at the table. "And you look like you're regretting something. You know we can protect you, you'll still need to do time for being an associate but I can transfer you to Unova which is on the opposite end of the globe and far away from here. I can set you up with a new identity and once you serve your time, you'll be a free man with a new identity. What do you say? Do we got a deal? You willing to give up the Masked Man's identity?"

Petrel was silent for a moment before looking up. "Alright, alright... I'll tell you." Petrel took a deep gasp. "The Masked Man is-" Petrel went silent and promptly dropped to the floor as an intangible Dusknoir flew out of him. Looker raced across the room and felt Petrel's neck before shooting a quick look around the room with a puzzled expression while Petrel laid motionless against the room's cold floor, the color having left his eyes.