Originally by Ross Jacobson, Transferred th fanfiction.net by Voyager1713
Chapter 6-The First Battle Ross walked down to his position. He had Butterfrees in his stomach as

Matt sent out a

Magnemite.

'Electricity is too effective against water,' thought Ross, 'so I'll use

Bulbasaur!'

"Bulbasaur, GO!!!" called Ross.

And so began Ross's first battle.

"Magnemite, tackle," ordered Matt.

"Bulbasaur, leech seed," said Ross.

Bulbasaur managed to seed Magnemite before being tackled. Bulbasaur lost

some energy,

but got all of it back from the leech seed.

"Magnemite, thunder shock."

"Bulbasaur, tackle."

Bulbasaur charged at the Magnemite, but was shocked first. Ross's

Bulbasaur tried to

complete the attack, but couldn't move its legs. Bulbasaur was paralyzed!

"Magnemite, tackle."

"Bulbasaur, vine whip."

Bulbasaur might not have been able to maneuver, but it was able to stop and

catch

Magnemite in its tracks. Magnemite lost more energy from the leech seed to

Bulbasaur and was

ready to faint.

"Give it a thunder shock," yelled a desperate Matt.

"Throw Magnemite away before it does!"

Bulbasaur threw Magnemite with its vines and Magnemite landed with a

resounding

THUD. Magnemite then fainted and the bell rang.

Everyone clapped and Ross walked up to congratulate Bulbasaur as Matt got

Magnemite

and walked off to the pokemon center.

Then, seven other trainers and the official walked out. The official then

said, "Let's give a

hand for our first level winners." The audience clapped and the official

continued, "We will be

handing out prizes to our winners on their way out of the stadium. Their prize

for completing this

level of competition is a belt that will be able to carry all of their pokemon.

Congratulations!" Chapter 7-The Qualifying Round The next four matches were announced and Ross, once again, was in the last

match of the

competition level.

Ross carried his Bulbasaur back to his seat and began to massage the

paralysis out of his

legs. While he did this, he noticed that two of the seven strangers was paying

close attention to

what he was doing. Both were about the same age, mid-to-late 30s, The woman

reminded Ross

of the articles he had studied for becoming a pokemon trainer. The man sitting

next to her had

black hair and a rock hard face.

"Pi-pi-pi, pikachu!" cheered a nearby Pikachu, wearing a fanny pack, and

shaking little

pom-poms.

Ross turned to the battle on the field and realized what the Pikachu was

doing. On the

field, a Pikachu wasn't doing very well against a Geodude. One of the

competitors was Ricky.

"Finish it off, TACKLE!" yelled Ricky.

The Geodude flew straight at its opponent. The weak Pikachu fainted on

contact.

The bell rang and the audience clapped, but the strangers' Pikachu seemed

disappointed.

It was time for Ross to battle again.

"How do you feel Bulbasaur?" asked Ross.

The green pokemon flexed his legs, then licked Ross. Ross laughed and put

him back into

his pokeball.

"The next competition is between Zach on the left, and Ross on the right,"

boomed the

official's voice.

**************************************************************************** **

"Pika, Pika, Pikachu," said the Pikachu back in the stands.

"What is it buddy?" asked its trainer.

"Pika, ka, pi, chu," said the Pikachu, pointing at the right side of the

field.

"I don't think so, Zach has that Vulpix, remember?"

Pikachu opened his fanny pack, pulled out a crisp 20 dollar bill, said,

"Pika, pi, chu,

Pikachu," and set the money on the bench between them..

Pikachu's friend pulled out his wallet and removed a bill. "Alright," said

its human

companion, "20 dollars say that Ross doesn't win the tournament." With that, he

put his bill onto

Pikachu's.

Everyone asked if they could be in on the action. Pikachu motioned for

them to put their

money on the other two bills. Everyone bet against Ross, except for the small

yellow mouse.

**************************************************************************** **

"Vulpix, GO!!!" cried Zach.

'Fire-type ay, time to reveal my second pokemon.' thought Ross.

"Squirtle, GO!!!" said Ross

**************************************************************************** **

"You knew that Ross had a Squirtle, didn't you," said a woman on the

opposite side of

the Pikachu's trainer.

Pikachu just nodded knowingly, knowing that only a few types of pokemon

could beat

Ross's.

**************************************************************************** **

"Vulpix, quick attack!" said Zach.

"Squirtle, water gun," requested Ross.

Vulpix used its high speed to run around Squirtle a few times before going

in for the

attack.

Unfortunately for Vulpix, it wound up tackling Squirtle's shell, hurting

Vulpix and

momentarily knocking Squirtle onto his stomach.

Squirtle quickly got back on its feet, turned to face the dazed fox, and

soaked it with a

water gun. The Vulpix couldn't take much more, so Ross waited to see what Zach

would do.

"Get up you dumb fox, ember, NOW!!!" yelled the furious Zach. Everyone was

in awe.

Zach still wanted to fight, and Ross had no choice but to abide his wishes.

"Squirtle, bubble," said Ross.

Vulpix tried to launch an ember at Squirtle as Squirtle released bubbles at

Vulpix. The

ember wound up getting caught up in a bubble and fell to the floor. The rest of

the bubbles

popped on Vulpix, making him faint. The bell rang.

"What a lousy excuse for a pokemon!" complained Zach as he stomped up to

the fallen

fox, grabbed it by the tails, and dragged it off to the exit.

The official and 3 other trainer, including Adam and Ricky, walked out onto

the battle

field. "Let's hear it for our qualifying round winners. They won a TM/HM

construction kit,"

proclaimed the judge.

After the audience's applause died down, Ricky, Ross, Squirtle, and the

official walked off

the field so that Adam and another trainer could battle. Chapter 8-The Mystery Thickens Ross walked Squirtle around to the side of the grandstand where he saw a

faucet earlier.

Ross turned on the water and Squirtle laid down under the refreshing water.

Ross rubbed

Squirtle's back with a soft cloth to polish the bruise on his shell from where

Vulpix hit him.

From this angle, Ross could se a red-headed woman holding hands with a man

wearing an

official Pokemon League cap. Ross also saw that there was now some money on the

bench. The

money wasn't the only thing that was different, but he just couldn't tell what

it was.

When Ross finished polishing Squirtle's shell, he turned onto his side and

began to drink

some water from the water from the faucet.

"Pikachu," said a tiny voice.

Ross looked up and saw the unusual Pikachu with the fanny pak.

"Squirt!" said the Squirtle, but Ross thought that he heard it say 'help!'

Ross looked down and saw his Squirtle, stuck on its back. Ross helped it

onto its feet

again and looked back up for the Pikachu.

But it was already back by its group. Ross decided to see if his Squirtle

really could talk,

or if it was just in his mind.

Then the bell rang. Ross looked at the Arena and saw his brother's

opponent running out

to pick up a fallen Squirtle and leave for the entrance. Ross also saw his

brother calling a

Bellsprout back into its pokeball.

"The next match will be between Ricky on the left, and Ross on the right,"

declared the

official's voice. Ross put Squirtle into its pokeball and stepped out to.

Both of the 2 competitors took their positions, and prepared to battle. Chapter 9-The Tournament Continues "Geodude, GO!!!" said Ricky.

"Squirtle, GO!!!" said Ross.

"Geo," said Geodude.

"Squirtle," said the tiny turtle.

"Defense curl."

"Water gun."

Geodude spun in a circle and grew another layer of rock. Squirtle let out

a blast of water

and reduced Geodude's strength by half.

"Geodude, tackle!" ordered Ricky.

"Squirtle, another water gun," said Ross.

Geodude started to charge at Squirtle, but was washed away by a water gun.

"Geodude, rock throw."

"Squirtle, bubble."

Geodude was now so weak that the rock fell half-way between Geodude who

fainted on

contact. The bell rang.

The official and Adam came out. The official said, "Let's give another

round of applause

for our finalists! At the end of their match, they will both receive a set of

collectors' edition

pokemon dolls."

The crowd let out a cheer, but underneath it all, Adam said, "Dolls!?!" Chapter 10-The Showdown This was it, the showdown between the two finalists. Remembering what

happened to the

last Squirtle that fought Ross's Bellsprout, Ross put Squirtle back into its

pokeball and had

Bulbasaur's pokeball in his hand. Adam had his pokeball in his hand.

"GO!!!" called the two brothers at the same time.

Both pokeball landed, opened, and let out the plant pokemon.

'Plant attacks like vine whip aren't very effective on plant pokemon,'

remembered Ross,

'better go with tackles and growls. Leech seed will also help.'

"Bellsprout, vine whip," ordered Adam. Apparently, Adam didn't know or

forgot.

"Bulbasaur, leech seed," said Ross.

Bellsprout swung its vines up and down onto Bulbasaur's back. Bulbasaur

cringed under

the blow, but wasn't seriously injured. Bulbasaur managed to get a few seeds

onto Bellsprout's

vines as the walking flower drew back its vines.

"Bellsprout, use growth!" cried Adam.

"Bulbasaur, tackle."

Bellsprout started to grow with power when it felt the effects of the leech

seed and started

to slowly lose energy to Bulbasaur. Bellsprout became even weaker when

Bulbasaur tackled it.

"Bellsprout, wrap," proclaimed Adam.

"Bulbasaur, tackle," stated Ross.

Bulbasaur made its approach, but Bellsprout was expecting this. Bellsprout

wrapped its

long body around Bulbasaur and started to squeeze. However, as Bellsprout

weakened

Bulbasaur, Bulbasaur remained strong thanks to the leech seed. So Bellsprout

took most of the

damage.

"Bellsprout, try another vine whip!" said a now desperate Adam.

Keep Bellsprout back with a growl!" said Ross.

Bellsprout let go of Bulbasaur and prepared to swing a vine at Bulbasaur.

But when

Bulbasaur let out a fearsome growl, Bellsprout thought better of it. Then,

Bellsprout lost its last

ounce of strength to the leech seed, and fainted.

**************************************************************************** **

The bell rang and with it, seven jaws and one small paw dropped. While the

jaws didn't

land on anything, the paw picked up $160, and put the money into his fanny pack.

"Pi-ka-chu," said the happy little yellow mouse.

"Come on," said the man in the pokemon league hat. Chapter 11-Identities Revealed After Adam and his unconscious pokemon left for the prize table and exit.

Ross put

Bulbasaur back into his pokeball when the official stepped out. He said,

"Congratulations, you

have won our little tournament. Your opponent has already claimed his last

prize, and I must say

that that last battle was one of the most impressive battled we have ever had

here. Now for your

final prize, and to present it, we are once again honored to have the Elite

Masters of the Pokemon

League!"

Ross's jaw dropped as he saw the seven people and Pikachu from the darkened

corner

stand up and walk down the stairs to the field. In a matter of moments, the

world's greatest

trainers, breeder, and pokemon were standing right in front of him.

Ash, Pikachu, Misty, Togepi, Brock, Suzie, Lance, Bruno, and Lorelei, all

of them were

right there in front of him.

Ash handed Ross a box and said, "This box contains your prizes for winning

the

tournament. A great ball, an official pokemon league hat, a pokemon that

Professor Oak has

never been able to offer, a fishing rod, and the beginner's badge. The

beginner's badge is a sign

of a great trainer. It will also increase your pokemon's health.

Congratulations, and now I'm

afraid that we must get back to Indigo Plateau."

"Thanks," said Ross to the figures as they left. Ross walked to the stands

and opened the

box. He looked inside and pulled out a small piece of metal formed into for

letters, PKMN.

Ross pinned it onto the inside of his coat, put on the red and white hat, and

put the occupied

pokeball onto his belt before heading over to the prize table to claim the rest

of his prizes.

**************************************************************************** **

"That was fun," said Misty. Everyone agreed.

"Those last 2 matches were among the toughest that I have ever seen for

beginning

trainers," commented Brock.

"No kidding," said Ash.

"Pika," agreed the small mouse.

"Maybe we should keep an eye on those trainers," suggested Brock.

"Good idea," confirmed Ash. Chapter 12-Goodies & New Rivals Ross walked up to the table and asked for the rest of his prizes. Ross put

on his new

pokemon belt, packed his TM/HM kit and box of pokedolls, and walked out to his

bike.

Ross rode over the bridge where he found the Squirtle, hoping that the

Spearow was still stuck

in the bridge, but all that was left to indicate that the Spearow was ever even

stuck was several

holes and scratches. Ross just shrugged it off and continued on his way to the

pokemon center.

"Hi Nurse Joy," said a cheerful Ross. After all, why shouldn't he? He won

the

tournament, got everything he would need packed into his backpack, and

everything that he might

need later in his journey deposited in his computer. All he had to do was take

care of some

business at the pokemon center and he was on his way.

"Hello Ross, I heard that you won the opening tournament," asked Joy.

"Yep, I just need my pokemon healed and my paycheck, then I'm on my way,"

replied Ross.

"Okay, you know the drill, oh, and your brother and Ricky are still here."

"Cool,"said Ross as he turned in his 3 pokemon, realizing that he still

hadn't found out

what pokemon that the Elite Masters gave him. Ross walked over to where Adam

and Ricky

were talking. However, they stopped talking when they realized Ross was coming.

"Hey guys," said Ross.

No response. "How's it going?" asked Ross.

Still no response. "So, Adam, what do you plan to do with your pokedoll

prize?"

"Nothing, I threw them into that trash can over there," replied Adam.

"Number 13, you pokemon are ready," announced Joy.

Ricky tapped Adam and said, "That's us."

"Oh, you're going on your journey together?" asked Ross.

"Yeah, and someday, we're gonna make you pay for the humiliation that you

made us

suffer today!" said Ricky.

"You bet," added Adam.

They stomped up to the front desk, snatched their pokeballs, and stormed

out the front

door.

'They're probably just blowing off steam,' thought Ross, 'But I can't

believe Adam would

just throw away those pokedolls.'

Ross walked up to the trash can Adam indicated and pulled out a box with a

picture of

some stuffed pokemon. He opened the box, and he saw four smaller boxes with a

clear plastic

window. Ross removed one of the boxes and saw a stuffed Charmander through the

window. He

smiled at the stitched-on grin.

"Cute Charmander," said a voice behind Ross.

Ross jumped what seemed like 10 feet. When he landed, he spun around and

saw Joy.

"Sorry," Nurse Joy apologized, "Your pokemon are all fine. If you just

wait a little bit

longer, I'll go get your pay," With that, Joy took off for the backroom.

Ross put the Charmander and other boxed dolls back into the box. He walked

to the

computer for trainers and turned it on.

"Use pokedex verbal ID to access accounts," explained the computer.

Ross pulled out his pokedex, turned it on, and placed his finger on the ID

pad.

"I'm Dexter, a pokedex programed by Professor Oak for Ross Jacobsen of the

town of

Pallet. If lost or stollen, I cannot be replaced or used by anyone else," said

the pokedex.

The computer screen changed and a menu popped up;

Pokemon storage

Item storage

Shutdown

Ross chose item storage and deposited the TM/HM kit, the Safari Zone

passes, and his 2

boxes of pokedolls. After thinking for a little while, Ross had his bicycle

transported too so that

Ross would be able to pay more attention to his surroundings for pokemon.

Then Ross walked over to the poster of badges. He saw the 21 badges

required to enter

the Pokemon Legue, along with the one that Ross had.

Ross heard footsteps and turned around to see Nurse Joy with an envelope

and said,

"Here's your wages, $5000," Joy handed the envelope and said, "Also that stuffed

Charmander

reminded me of something that I need to talk to you about before you leave. Do

you remember

that Charmander that was left here a couple of weeks ago?"

"Yes," said Ross, "it was really neat."

"Well, I'm afraid that its trainer showed up in Lavender Town. He

abandoned Charmander."

"What!?!" exclaimed a shocked Ross.

"I'm afraid so. Now I've gotta find a new home for Charmander," explained

Nurse Joy,

"I believe that that home is with you."

Just then, a red lizard with a flaming tail, hopped out from behind the

desk, landed on the

counter, and said, "Charmander!"

"You mean that you're giving me Charmander!?!" inquired Ross.

"Yes," said Nurse Joy, "If you really want each other."

Charmander hopped off of the counter, landed in front of Ross, and big,

wide eyes, asked,

"Char?"

There was no way that Ross, could turn Charmander down. Ross checked what

attacks

Charmander knew, pulled out an empty pokeball, enlarged it, and set it down in

front of

Charmander. "Charmander is more than welcome to come along," said Ross.

A smile appeared on Charmander's face. Charmander then opened the pokeball

and willingly

hopped in. The pokeball closed and Ross picked up his now full pokeball.

Then a mysterious smoke filled the main room. It was near impossible to

see anything with the

fog. Ross compressed Charmander's pokeball and set it into his belt.

The smoke started to dissipate and 2 mysterious figures started to become

visible. The 2

figures started to speak in turns. Chapter 13-Team Rocket "To protect the world from devastation," said a female voice.

"To unite all people within our nation," said a male voice.

"Better go start up the emergency transport system, I'll slow these guys

down," Ross

whispered to Joy.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love," said the female.

"To extend our reach to the stars above," said the male.

Joy nodded in agreement and snuck through the back door while the strangers

continued

their poem.

"Bonnie," said the woman's voice again.

"Clyde," said the male voice again.

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light," said the female. She was

in clear sight now.

She had blond hair, wore a white skirt, white shirt over black with a red "R" on

her shirt.

"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" said the male. He had dark brown

hair, a similar shirt,

and a pair of white pants.

"Meowth, that's right!" said a cat pokemon.

"A talking pokemon, that's impossible!" proclaimed Ross.

"Nothing is impossible to a pokemon that tries hard enough," explained the

Meowth.

"Hand over your pokemon kid," ordered Clyde.

"No way!" denied Ross.

"That wasn't a request kid," said Bonnie, "Lickitung, GO!!!"

"Weepinbell, GO!!!" said Clyde.

"Meowth, get out there," said Bonnie.

"Meowth!" proclaimed Meowth as he ran out to join the other pokemon.

"Give it up brat. We have you outnumbered, 5 to 1!" claimed Clyde.

"Guess again, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charmander, mystery pokemon, GO!!!"

called Ross as

he threw four pokeballs out.

Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander all formed quickly with practiced ease.

The forth

ball of red energy bounced around the lobby and stopped next to Ross's other

three pokemon.

The fourth pokemon stood on its hind two feet, opened its eyes, and said, "Mew."

Bonnie's, Clyde's, and Meowth's jaws all fell upon the sight of the small,

white, psychic

cat.

"It's a rare Mew! We gotta steal it. Focus all attacks on Mew," said

Bonnie, "Lickitung,

stomp."

"Weepinbell, vine whip."

"Charmander, Mew, ember & psychic to Weepinbell. Squirtle, water gun

Meowth,

Bulbasaur, vine whip Lickitung."

Meowth tried to bite at Mew, but Squirtle sprayed water into Meowth's

gaping mouth.

Bulbasaur tangled Lickitung's legs up with its vines. Weepinbell was seriously

hit by both of the

attacks aimed at it.

Now, Weepinbell was burned, Meowth was naucious from drinking too much

water, and

Lickitung was getting tied up by Bulbasaur.

"Lickitung, break free of the vines," called Bonnie.

"Weepinbell, wrap Mew," ordered Clyde.

"Charmander, finish off Weepinbell with scratch. Mew, transform into

Lickitung.

Bulbasaur, Squirtle, tackle Meowth in that order!" called out Ross.

Weepinbell extended its vines to try to wrap Mew, but Charmander scratched

Weepinbell's vines, making Weepinbell faint. Meowth charged up after Mew, claws

ready for

fury swipes, when Bulbasaur hit Meowth over towards Squirtle. Squirtle charged

at the Meowth,

hitting him in the gut. Lickitung managed to escape the vines and Mew turned

into a mirror

image of Lickitung.

Now, Weepinbell couldn't fight, Meowth barfed onto the genuine Lickitung,

temporarily

blinding him, and all of Ross's pokemon were in great shape.

"Weepinbell, return," said Clyde, "I'm out."

"Lickitung, disable," ordered Bonnie.

"Squirtle, trap Meowth in a bubble. Mew, Slam Lickitung," ordered Ross.

Meowth was so out of it, that when it was trapped in the bubble, it got

scared and fainted.

Lickitung managed to use disable to Charmander before it was slammed by the fake

Lickitung.

Clyde ran over to pick up the fallen Meowth as Bonnie's Lickitung tried to

fight off four

attackers at once.

"Lickitung, wrap the fake Lickitung," hollered Bonnie.

"Everyone, stand in front of Mew and scare Lickitung off with growls."

Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle stood in between the two Lickitungs,

facing the

original in a wall formation. Bulbasaur and Charmander let out threatening

growls while Squirtle

did his best to look ferocious. Lickitung hesitated, and then wrapped its

tongue around

Charmander, keeping his tail separate.

"Lickitung, squeeze tighter!" ordered Bonnie as a helpless Clyde tried to

open the back

door.

"Charmander, burn Lickitung's tongue with your flame tail!" cried a

desperate Ross.

Lickitung tried to squeeze Charmander, but was having difficulty standing

the pain of the

fire. Now Clyde was trying to break into the back room by slamming himself into

the door.

"Bulbasaur, Squirtle, stop Clyde from getting to the other pokemon! Mew,

help

Charmander escape by wrapping Lickitung!"

Squirtle and Bulbasaur ran over to Clyde, not absolutely positive as of

what to do.

Squirtle used water gun on the floor in front of the back door. Clyde tried to

charge the door

again, unaware of what Squirtle did. Clyde slipped on the wet floor, basically

head butted the

door, and lost consciousness. Bulbasaur used its vines to tie up Clyde and he

was captured.

Meanwhile, Mew had wrapped Lickitung, who was still having difficulty

holding

Charmander with his flaming tail. Finally, Lickitung dropped Charmander as he

faded out of

consciousness.

Sirens began to sing, as they came closer.

"Gyah!" cried Bonnie, "The police! Lickitung, return."

Bonnie started to make a get away. "Mew, WRAP BONNIE!!!" ordered Ross.

The Mew/Lickitung extended its long tongue and wrapped it around Bonnie.

"Put me

down. This is incredibly disgusting," commented Bonnie.

Bulbasaur and Squirtle walked back, with an unconscious and tied-up Clyde

carried into

the lobby.

Officer Jenny and about 12 other cops came in through the front door.

"Looks like the calvary finally showed up," joked Ross Chapter 14-Time To Hit The Road Joy walked out of the back room and said hello to the police.

"Well, it looks like this boy had everything under control," commented Jenny, "Thanks for

catching this squad of Team Rocket."

"It's not that big of a deal," claimed Ross.

"Could you please come down to the station," asked Jenny, " We'll need you to fill out a

report." A pair of officers arrested each of the two trainers.

"But isn't there usually a boy, a girl, and a talking Meowth?" asked one of the policemen.

Everyone looked around, but the Meowth was nowhere to be found.

Ross, Joy, Jenny, the human members of Team Rocket, and the rest of the police force drove

down to the station. Ross and Joy filled out the reports as Jenny had Bonnie and Clyde stripped

of their pokemon and placed into a jail cell.

"I suggest that you be careful," said Jenny, "Meowth will probably tell the rest of Team

Rocket about your pokemon's strength."

"Okay," agreed Ross.

"One more thing," said Jenny, "there was a reward posted for the capture of Team Rocket

squads, $3000. So here you are." Jenny handed Ross a bulky envelope.

"Thanks, I better get going if I'm gonna get to Viridian by night fall," said Ross.

"Say hi to my cousin when you get to the pokemon center there," requested Joy.

"All right, bye," said Ross as he walked out of the police station.

**************************************************************************** **

Back at Indigo Plateau, Ash was in his pokemon training room, keeping his pokemon in

shape, when a figure carrying a clipboard burst into the room.

"Master Ash!" proclaimed the figure.

"Yes Lance?" asked Ash.

"I just got the preliminary reports on those three trainers you wanted," explained Lance.

"What do they say?" asked Ash.

"Apparently, Ross and Adam are brothers that both got perfect scores on the PTE. Adam has

teamed up with Ricky, who got 99% on his PTE. They've already left for Viridian via Route 1."

"Let me know when they arrive," requested Ash, "And what about Ross?"

"Ross worked at the pokemon center in Pallet Town for a year instead of starting his pokemon

journey when he turned 10. Ross also received an abandoned Charmander from Nurse Joy and

beat a squad of Team Rocket before leaving town."

Ash looked shocked at this news. "Which squad?" he asked demandingly.

Lance checked his papers and said, "Bonnie and Clyde. They've been arrested and stripped of

their trainers' licenses and pokemon. However, their Meowth escaped before the police arrived."

"What is the scheduled result for the pokemon?" asked Ash.

Again, Lance checks the papers. "Devolution and distribution to beginning trainers. Here are

the reports for any more details you might want," explained Lance as he set the clipboard down.

"Thank you," Ash said as Lance left the room.

**************************************************************************** **

Ross walked down the road to Viridian. When passing a stream, he came up with an idea.

Ross remembered a theory paper he once read that pokemon with a good relationship with their

trainers were stronger than those that don't. Ross called out all of his pokemon,

"Hello guys, I have an offer to make to all of you," explained Ross, "If you don't mind walking

unless I offer you a ride, you're all more than welcome to stay out of your pokeballs when its safe

if you promise not to run away."

All of Ross's pokemon looked pleased with this. Squirtle, Charmander, and Mew all put their

right paw on their heart and raised their left paw into the air. Bulbasaur just bowed because he

couldn't support himself on his hind legs. Then all of them started to talk in their own tongue,

but Ross thought that he heard them all in a single voice say, "I promise not to run away and to

return to my pokeball if it is required by Ross."

Ross wondered what was going on. "Would you mind saying something else?" asked Ross.

All of his pokemon looked at each other, then Ross, and said, "Something else."

"Great," said Ross aloud, "Not only am I hearing my pokemon talk in English, they all have

lousy jokes!"

Mew walked up to Ross and asked, "Mew mew Mew?"

Ross heard him ask, "Can you understand us?"

"I think so," said Ross.

Then Squirtle walked up to Ross, pulled Ross's pokedex out of his pocket, and asked Ross to

grant him access.

Ross turned on the pokedex, signed in with his fingerprint, and Squirtle began to search

through the small computer's database.

Ross sat down killed some time by doing some fishing in the stream. About ten minutes later,

Ross thought that he heard his Squirtle say, "Read this," as he held up the tiny computer.

Ross took the pokedex from Squirtle's hand and saw an article on the screen. He read;

"Some people have demonstrated the ability to understand their pokemon and

identical wild species. They have also shown the ability to use some TMs on themselves,

learn maneuvers from their pokemon, communicate psychic and ghost pokemon without

verbal communication. Most of these people however do not turn out to be pokemon

trainers, so they might not ever know of their skills. Professor Oak's current main project

is to develop a translator from a pokedex, however, Professor Oak has only been able to

translate 3 pokemon languages, Squirtle, Pikachu, and Meowth. He is currently trying to

locate anyone with the above abilities."

"This explains why I can understand you and not the pokemon I treated at the pokemon

center," said Ross.

"Yes," proclaimed all of Ross's pokemon.

All of the sudden, Ross's line snagged. "WOAH!" exclaimed Ross, "This feels like a real

strong one. YIKES!" Ross was sliding down towards the water

Mew, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Charmander all grabbed Ross in a chain formation and tried

to prevent him from falling into the stream. Unfortunately, Ross was still sliding into the water.

Ross got an idea, he yelled, "Pokedex, Machamp!"

The small pokedex flashed to life and showed a Machamp on the screen. Mew looked at the

screen and saw the muscular looking pokemon.

"Mew, transform!" proclaimed Ross as his sneakers started to enter the water.

Mew turned white and grew larger with a second pair of arms. When the white light

faded, a Machamp, just like the one in the picture, stood where Mew was. Mew/Machamp pulled

Ross out of the water, straining on the line, until the powerful aquatic pokemon was removed

from its watery habitat.

An orange star with five points and a red core floated over the water. "A Staryu!" exclaimed

Ross, "Bulbasaur, GO! Vine whip!"

Bulbasaur swung his vines at the starfish, seriously injuring it. Staryu began to tackle at

Bulbasaur, trying to fight back. Staryu connected and knocked back Bulbasaur.

"Bulbasaur, tackle," instructed Ross

Staryu tried to use water gun on Bulbasaur, but wound up being tackled. Staryu hit a tree,

and fell down to the roots. "Pokeball, GO!" said Ross as he threw a pokeball at Staryu.

The pokeball shook once, twice, three times, and the struggle indicator light on the pokeball

went out.

"Yes, we caught Staryu!" shouted Ross.

All of the pokemon were also glad to have a new companion. "How do you feel Bulbasaur?"

asked Ross.

"I'm fine," said Bulbasaur.

The party continued down the road when Squirtle stopped in his tracks, and turned as white as

a sheet. "You alright Squirtle?" asked a bewildered Charmander.

Ross raised his head to look at the horizon, and realized what was wrong. An enormous

sound was approaching. It sounded like several wings beating up and down.

"It's the Spearow! RUN!!!" exclaimed Ross.

The party took off, tearing down the road. Squirtle in the lead, followed by Charmander, then

Bulbasaur, and finally, Mew and Ross. Ross picked Mew up and said something to his pokedex.

Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Charmander knew that they wouldn't be able to outrun the Spearow

forever. Squirtle prepared himself for the painful experience about 25 times over. Bulbasaur

knew that flying had the advantage over him. Charmander just didn't want to face all of those

enemies.

Suddenly, Bulbasaur felt like he was flying. "WOAH!" hollered a surprised Bulbasaur.

Charmander turned around, only to also be scooped up. Squirtle kept running as fast as he could,

desperate to escape the flock of fearsome Spearow. Then, Squirtle tripped. He thought that he

was a goner as he closed his eyes, awaiting the first of what was certain to be a slaughter.

When Squirtle opened his eyes, he saw Ross, Bulbasaur, and Charmander, riding a 3-headed

bird. Squirtle looked back and noticed that only 5 Spearow remained chasing them. "Look out!"

hollered Ross.

Squirtle turned around to see a Pidgey, Rattata, and a Pikachu, sitting right in the way. "Mew,

pick up all of the pokemon with your three heads," ordered Ross. All of the three heads lowered,

each aimed at a different pokemon. Squirtle realized that Ross must have had Mew turn into

Dodrio, one of the fastest pokemon known to exist. When the three wild pokemon were close

enough, all three of the heads rose, picking up all of them.

Pikachu wasn't too happy about the intrusion, and started to charge up for an electric attack.

But when the Pidgey and Rattata pointed out the five angry Spearow, chasing all of them,

Pikachu relaxed and tried to become as aerodynamic as possible.

It was starting to get late, about 4 o'clock, and 3 Spearow was still following them.

Unfortunately, Mew/Dodrio was starting to get tired and the Spearow were gaining on them!

The lights in Viridian came into view. If their ride could just last a little bit longer.

Finally, Dodrio turned white and shrank right underneath everyone. Mew hade reverted

to its natural form and fainted.

"Mew, return," ordered Ross as he held up Mew's pokeball.

Mew turned into a red beam of light and went into the pokeball.

"Charmander, Bulbasaur, Staryu, Squirtle, GO!!!"

The three pokemon that had been riding on Mew stood ready to fight as Staryu left his

pokeball to join them.

The Spearow saw their adversaries, formed a V-shape, and began the battle.

"Squirtle, Staryu, water gun together. Bulbasaur, tackle. Then Charmander, scratch the same

Spearow!"

The two water pokemon sprayed water at one Spearow while Bulbasaur and Charmander

attacked another. Ross was wondering where the 3rd Spearow was when he saw it coming from

his right.

Ross dived out of the way as Spearow missed. "Keep fighting together!" ordered Ross, "I'll

handle this chump."

"Spear-row!" yelled the bird as he came around for another pass. Ross realized that the

Spearow attacking him was the same one that he fought off earlier that day.

As Ross and his pokemon fought off the angry Spearow, Pidgey and Rattata ran for the safety

of tall grass while the wild Pikachu just watched, amazed at how strong Ross and his pokemon

were.

"Spea-row," said the Spearow fighting Charmander and Bulbasaur. Then it fainted.

Charmander and Bulbasaur were heading over to help Ross, but he told them to help their watery

companions.

Charmander and Bulbasaur looked over at Staryu and Squirtle and noticed that they weren't

fairing as well as they did and rushed over to help. Ross swung a fist at Spearow, trying to fend it

off. Spearow easily dodged Ross's attack and slapped him with its wings.

Ross shook off the pain and turned to face his attacker. Spearow was getting ready to

start pecking Ross when a high pitched voice said,"Pi-ka-CHU!"

Spearow fell out of the sky, paralyzed. Ross turned to see only the small Pikachu with after

sparks on his cheeks. Ross took out a couple of pokeballs and threw one at each of the fainted

Spearow. They both shook three times and sealed.

The last Spearow, greatly outnumbered, made a run for it, flying back for Pallet Town. All of

Ross's pokemon looked exhausted. Ross picked up the two now full pokeballs and put all of his

pokemon back into their respective pokeballs. Ross looked at the cute little electric mouse as he

started talking, pulled out his pokedex, and selected the Pikachu translation program.

"I was most impressed at how strong your pokemon are, I was wondering if I could come

along with you."

Ross checked his pocket for another pokeball and found his last one and the great ball. Ross

set it down for Pikachu to get in. The Pikachu walked up to the pokeball and got in. Ross picked

up the pokeball containing his eighth pokemon, attached it to his belt, and jogged the last 500

yards to Viridian City Chapter 15-Viridian City! Ross staggered into town and asked the first person he saw where the pokemon center was.

The citizen pointed to a road and said that it was just down it.

Ross walked a couple of blocks until he saw a large building. He walked in and up to the front

desk.

"Hi Joy," said Ross.

"Hi Ross," said Nurse Joy, "I was wondering when you would show up."

"It's a long story," replied Ross, "Here's my pokemon,"

"Your number is 16, your brother made it here just fine, the trainer's buffet is over there, "

explained Joy, pointing at a long table with all sorts of food on it.

"Great, I'm famished," proclaimed Ross.

Ross walked over to the table, grabbed a paper plate, loaded it up with food, and sat

down on a bench to eat.

As Ross was munching on a piece of chicken, he overheard a pair of voices talking.

"I can't believe that I spent an entire day in the field, and couldn't find a single Spearow!"

complained the first voice.

"Too bad," said the second voice, "Maybe you can trade for one."

"Good idea," said the first voice, "What should I trade?"

"Maybe your Machop? Or your Grimer?"

"Number 16, your pokemon are ready," announced Joy.

Ross walked up to the counter and got his pokemon. 'I probably oughta go do some

shopping,' thought Ross.

Ross got his coupon book from the computer, grabbed a street map, and walked towards the

door when he was stopped by two trainers.

"Do you have a Spearow?" asked one of the trainers.

"Yes," said Ross.

"Want to trade it for a Machop?" asked the same trainer.

'Sounds good,' thought Ross, 'It would come in handy when I get to the rock gym of

Stone Town.'

"Sure," agreed Ross.

They walked to a huge computer and put each put a pokeball in a little holder. The other

trainer pushed a button and the computer picked up the pokeballs. Some information flashed

across the screen, and the computer set the pokeballs into the other one's opening.

Ross picked up the pokeball in front of him and attached it to his belt. Ross and the

other trainer thanked each other and Ross walked out of the pokemon center to do some

shopping.

**************************************************************************** **

"Do you REALLY think that you should have traded away your Machop?" asked the

boy's companion, who was named Nick.

"I didn't, I traded away that loser Magikarp," explained the boy that traded with Ross, who

was named Mike.

"But I thought that Magikarp was in THIS pokeball," said Nick, pointing to a pokeball on

Mike's belt.

The boy looked at the pokeball and realized that his friend was right. He had gotten his

pokemon mixed-up and didn't trade Machop or Magikarp.

**************************************************************************** **

Ross walked out of the pokemon center, glad to have gotten rid of the Spearow that hated

him so much and gotten a new pokemon.

"Hey loser." said a nearby voice. Ross turned and saw Adam and Ricky waiting in line to

use a telephone.

"I challenge you to a battle," said Adam, "3 on 3."

"Agreed," said Ross.

"I'll start with Pidgey," said Adam, dropping a pokeball.

"Then I'll choose Pikachu, GO!!!" called Ross, also dropping a pokeball. Chapter 16-Battle of Viridian The small bird pokemon appeared as well as Ross's Pikachu.

"Pidgey, gust," ordered Adam.

"Pikachu, thunder shock," said Ross.

The small bird started to beat its wings fiercely to try to blow Pikachu off of his feet.

Pikachu wasn't affected and released a bolt of electricity at Pidgey. Pidgey was seriously hurt and

fell out of the sky.

"Pidgey, return, Diglett, GO!!! Dig attack," said Adam.

"Pikachu, hop onto that wall," said Ross.

"What do you think that will accomplish?" asked Ricky.

Pikachu climbed the decorative wall as ordered to, and waited for Ross's next command.

Diglett dug the hole and went after Pikachu from underground.

"Oh-no! Diglett, stop!" hollered Adam.

"Relax for a while Pikachu," Ross said calmly.

Unfortunately for Diglett, he couldn't hear Adam from underground. Diglett wound up

trying to emerge under the wall and wound up with a serious headache.

"Diglett, scratch," said Adam.

"Pikachu, quick attack," said Ross

Diglett tried to scratch Pikachu but missed the quick Pikachu. Pikachu ran around to the

opposite side of Diglett and crushed him between Pikachu's body, and the wall. Diglett wound

up fainting from that blow.

"Diglett, return. Bellsprout, GO!!! Sleep powder," ordered Adam.

"Pikachu, thunder shock," said Ross.

Pikachu started to charge up for his thunder shock, but was dusted by Bellsprout's powder.

Pikachu began to snore loudly.

"Pikachu, return, Charmander, I choose you, ember!" said Ross

"Bellsprout, growth," said Adam.

Bellsprout started to grow when Charmander launched a small ball of fire onto

Bellsprout's head, burning Bellsprout in the process.

"Bellsprout, wrap!" ordered Adam.

"Charmander, scratch at Bellsprout's burn," stated Ross.

Bellsprout extended its vines to wrap around Charmander, but wound up wrapping

Charmander's tail flame, burning itself. Charmander scratched at Bellsprout's head, nearly

decapitating it.

"Bellsprout, return," said Adam, "Here's your winnings you cheat." Adam threw some

money onto the ground and walked into the pokemon center. Chapter 17-Shopping Spree in Viridian Ross picked up his winnings, about $500, and looked at the street map he got from the

pokemon center. He knew that the local gym was closed until a new gym leader was chosen.

Ross also noticed a mall marked on the map only about 3 blocks away.

Ross walked the short distance and walked to the mall directory. He saw five stores that he

wanted to visit: a pokemart, a food store, a outdoor store, a pokemon pet store, and a pharmacy.

Ross walked down to the first store, the pokemart. He walked around, picking up 12

pokeballs, a revive, and a couple doses of repel. "That will be $2500," said the cashier. Ross paid

the cashier and picked up his sack of purchases.

The next store Ross visited was the outdoor store. Overjoyed that they were having a sale,

Ross bought an inflatable pillow, a new flashlight, some extra batteries, a battery powered alarm

clock that can both buzz and vibrate, a shovel for digging up evolution stones, a tent, and a thick

sleeping bag. Ross paid only $1000 for his supplies.

Ross walked down the length of the mall to the pharmacy and got some more medical supplies

for himself and his pokemon.

Next door, Ross bought some of his favorite snacks, meals, and pokemon food. Ross walked

down to the last store he wanted to visit, the pokemon pet shop. Inside, Ross saw Eevees,

Growlithes, Ekans, and Porygon in different bins. In the back of the shop, several tanks of water

pokemon swam around.

Ross looked at each of the different pokemon, admiring all of them for their own unique

beauty. He especially liked the Growlithes. Ross was kneeling over to pet one when he

heard a harsh voice from the entrance.

"HOLD IT!" Chapter 18-Return Of The Rockets Ross looked up and saw an oriental man and woman, dressed like Bonnie and Clyde with a

Meowth. They were holding rifles and wearing backpacks full of pokeballs.

"To protect the world from devastation," said the female.

"To unite all people within our nation," said the male.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love," said the female.

"To extend our reach to the stars above," said the male.

"Lee," said the woman again.

"Christian," said the man again.

"Team Rocket, blast off at the speed of light," said the female.

"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" said the male.

"Meowth, that's right!"

"This is a stick-up," claimed Christian.

"We're here for your pokemon and cash!" stated Lee.

Since Ross was having difficulty seeing Team Rocket and neither of them had a riffle aimed at

him, Ross figured that he hadn't been spotted yet. As Christian was emptying the register while

Meowth and Lee gathered up the pokemon, Ross snuck around to the owner of the store, untied

him, and snuck both of them into the storage room.

"Thanks," said the grateful man.

"Don't thank me yet, I've still got to save your store," said Ross, "Do you happen to have a

Magnemite?"

"Just one," said the man. He pulled down a carrier, opened it, and removed a Magnemite.

Ross explained his plan to the Magnemite and the owner of the store. Ross took the

Magnemite and a key from the owner of the store.

**************************************************************************** **

Ross peeked out the door. Seeing Christian leave the counter to help his companions with a

reluctant Eevee, Ross snuck out of the back room, leaving the owner in the back room. Ross

worked his way to the entrance where no one had walked by in a while. Ross had Magnemite

attract the metal gate down with its electrical forces.

CLANG!

"What was that?" asked Lee.

Ross closed the gate the rest of the way and locked it down with the key he had gotten from

the owner.

"I don't know," said Christian, "Meowth, go check the entrance."

Ross realized that his plan would crash if Team Rocket found the key. Ross hid the key on the

underside of a shelf and hid on the opposite side of a bin of Porygon. Meowth reached the gate

and saw that it was closed.

Meowth promptly ran back to his human companions and whispered something to them. Ross

then heard two pokemon call out.

"ZU-BAT!"

"DEW-GONG!"

"Spread out and find the trouble maker," ordered Lee.

A Zubat flew up and started to fly around the store as the humans of Team Rocket ducked

down out of sight.

'Time for phase 2,' thought Ross.

"Just as we planned," Ross whispered to Magnemite.

Magnemite silently floated off to do its task. A few moments later, Lee spoke out.

"My gun is gone!" proclaimed Lee.

"Mine too!" added Christian.

"Quiet!" hissed Meowth.

Ross smiled as Magnemite floated off to the back room's door. It opened, let Magnemite in,

and closed again.

'Time for phase 3,' thought Ross.

Just then, a bat cried out, "ZU!!!"

"Pikachu, Machop, Staryu, GO!!!" ordered Ross as he dropped 3 pokeballs.

Pikachu and Staryu came out of their pokeballs, ready to fight. Then another pokemon came

out of the third pokeball, but it certainly wasn't a Machop. It was too tall and had boxing gloves

for fists.

"Pika!"

"Hi-Yu!"

"Mon-Chan," said the tall, lean pokemon. Chapter 19-Blast off to Revenge "Meowth, that's him! That's the kid with the Mew...and a Hitmonchan!?!" exclaimed Meowth.

"We gotta steal it," hollered Lee, "Everyone, attack Hitmonchan, Dewgong, head butt!"

"Zubat, BITE!"

"Staryu, tackle Meowth, Hitmonchan, fire punch Dewgong, Pikachu, thunder shock Zubat!"

Ross ordered his pokemon.

Staryu knocked Meowth off of its feet before he could even choose his attack. Dewgong,

being part ice pokemon, took serious injury. The flying Zubat also took serious injury from

Pikachu's thunder shock.

"Zubat, leech life," ordered Christian.

"Dewgong, aurora beam," said Lee.

"Staryu, water gun, Hitmonchan, thunder punch, Pikachu, thunder wave, same targets!" said

Ross.

Staryu's water gun intercepted Dewgong's aurora beam, freezing into a spike of ice. The ice

spike hit Meowth, making him faint. Hitmonchan hit Dewgong with a punch that sounded like

lightening, this time taking advantage of Dewgong's water semi-type. Zubat was luckier than it's

companions. Pikachu's thunder wave missed Zubat, but hit Dewgong, paralyzing it.

"Dewgong, return," said Lee. Lee then went to get Meowth before trying to make a getaway

in the vent system, with Meowth, several full pokeballs, and all of the cash.

"Zubat, supersonic!"

"Hitmonchan, comet punch Zubat, Pikachu, Staryu, stop Lee with water gun and thunder

wave!" ordered Ross.

Zubat released a supersonic at Hitmonchan. But the quick Hitmonchan dodged it and started

punching Zubat until he fainted.

"Uh-oh," said Christian when he saw that his only pokemon fainted.

Christian started to run for the vent grate, but encountered the owner, holding a riffle, with

Magnemite.

"I give up," said Christian. Then he dropped a strange ball, the room filled with the same

strange smoke that Bonnie and Clyde had used.

When the smoke cleared, all of Ross, all of his pokemon, Magnemite, the shop owner, Lee,

and Meowth was still there. But Christian and Zubat were gone.

**************************************************************************** **

At the police station, Ross and the owner of the pet store had just finished filling out the

report. "I oughta get to the pokemon center," said Ross.

"Before you go, here's your reward money for helping us catch Meowth and Lee," thanked

Jenny.

Ross stepped out the door with a police officer that offered to give him a lift to the center

when the store owner stopped him.

"Before you leave town tomorrow, come by when we open at 6 a.m., I have to thank you for

your help," explained the owner.

"Thanks, I will," said Ross. He then climbed into the car and rode to the pokemon center.

**************************************************************************** **

"What's wrong Jenny?" asked a police officer.

"It's just that kid. I checked his record and so far, he's helped us catch 4 members of Team

Rocket," explained Jenny.

"You think that he's an ex-member?" asked the cop in front of her.

"I just don't know..." replied Jenny.

**************************************************************************** **

"You've got to get your Hitmonchan back," said Nick back at the pokemon center.

"I can't," complained Mike, "If I bring up the trade, it would just be our word against his, and

if its discovered that I tried to cheat in a trade, I could lose my trainer's licence. I'm afraid that

I've lost my Hitmonchan." Chapter 20-A Friendly Reward Ross woke when his little alarm clock uncomfortably beat against his hip. Ross looked around

and saw that everyone else in the trainers' quarters was fast asleep. Ross shut off the vibration

alarm and checked the time, 5 a.m.

Ross rolled up his sleeping bag, packed up his gear, and left for the male's restroom. Ross

groomed himself, put on a new set of clothes, and started for a nearby fast food, 24 hour

restaurant.

Ross bought some a breakfast, some orange juice, and ate on the way to the mall. When he

checked his watch, it read 5:45. Ross sipped some of the citric liquid and popped the last bite of

biscuit into his mouth. Ross walked up to the mall and checked the door.

It was locked for the moment. Ross checked his watch again, 5:58. Ross finished of his

breakfast and put his trash into the nearby trash can. All of the sudden, Ross heard a loud click.

Ross turned around and pulled on the glass door. It opened easily. 'The door must be on an

automatic timer or something,' thought Ross.

Ross walked in and proceeded to the pokemon pet store. The mall seemed eerily quiet, only a

few stores were open. Ross felt a little funny, walking in such an empty building.

When Ross reached the pokemon pet store, he was greeted by the owner of the store. "Hello

again," said the cheerful man for such an early hour.

"Hey," said Ross, "what is it that you wanted to see me for?"

"Come on in," said the owner, letting Ross into the lit up store. "As a show of appreciation

for saving my store, I am going to let you have any pokemon in my store, choose."

"Are you sure?" asked Ross.

"Yes," replied the owner, "If it wasn't for you, I would have lost everything. This is the least I

could do."

"Gee, thanks," said Ross.

Ross started to look at the three pokemon that he really liked yesterday, Eevee, Growlithe, and

Porygon. About a minute later, Ross decided to have a Growlithe.

There were five Growlithes in the bin. Three of them were asleep, but the other two were

wide awake. Both of them were very aggressive and wound up awakening the other puppies.

Ross decided not to take one of the rowdy Growlithes. 'They might keep me and all of my

pokemon up,' thought Ross.

One of the Growlithes that woke up had a really bad attitude as he joined the other wild

puppies. Ross looked at the other two. One was hiding in a corner, while the other one was on

his hind legs, leaning against the side of the bin.

Ross picked up the little pokemon which proceeded to lick Ross's face over and over again.

Ross couldn't help but laugh as the little dog squirmed in his hands. Ross turned to the owner and

said, "I'll take this one."

The owner walked up, checked the puppy's tag and handed Ross a pokeball and a sack of

pokemon food specially designed for fire pokemon.

"It's been nice knowing you," said the owner.

"Same here," replied Ross. And with that, Ross put Growlithe into its pokeball and walked for

the exit.

**************************************************************************** **

"Hi Misty," said Lorelei.

"Hi Lorelei. Ash sent me to pick up the latest reports on those trainers," explained Misty.

Lorelei picked up a folder and said, "Here they are. They're definitely shaping out to be

pokemon masters, and they haven't even started to compete for badges yet!"

When Misty delivered the folder to Ash and Pikachu, he was most impressed at what he

saw. "Maybe he should keep an eye on this Ross kid," suggested Ash.

"Pika, pi," replied Pikachu.

**************************************************************************** **

Chapter 21-On The Road Again Ross reached the outskirts of town and started to walk down Route 2. The sun wasn't up

yet and there wasn't any street lights to disturb the wild pokemon, so Ross had to go by the light

from his flashlight.

Once Ross thought that he was out of town enough, Ross let his pokemon out and gave

the same proposal to his newest pokemon: Staryu, Pikachu, Spearow, Hitmonchan, and

Growlithe.

Staryu and Spearow preferred riding in their pokeballs, but Pikachu, Hitmonchan, and

Growlithe chose to walk with the others for a while.

A Pidgey and Rattata appeared. Ross sent out Pikachu and Hitmonchan to fight them.

"Pikachu, thunder shock Pidgey, Hitmonchan, comet punch Rattata," ordered Ross.

Pidgey was seriously hit and dropped to the ground to catch its breath while Rattata was

knocked back by the powerful punches launched by Hitmonchan. Ross threw a pokeball at each

of them and easily caught both of them.

Ross attached the pokeballs to his belt and continued on his way with all of his

companion. The trip was uneventful until a trainer challenged Ross.

"2 on 2," explained the trainer, "I'll start out with Caterpie, GO!" The trainer tossed a

pokeball and out came a green worm.

"I'll start with Charmander, GO!!!" said Ross. Charmander walked out while the other

pokemon sat down to watch the battle.

"Caterpie, tackle," said the trainer.

"Charmander, ember," said Ross.

Caterpie charged up at Charmander, but was easily hit by Charmander's ember. Caterpie

was seriously burned and was called back.

"I was just warming up," explained the trainer, "Now you'll face a real challenge, Weedle,

GO!" A yellow bug with a stinger on its head emerged from a pokeball.

"Weedle, poison sting," ordered the bug trainer.

"Charmander, another ember" said Ross.

Weedle was seriously injured, but was still in it.

"String shot Weedle," commanded the trainer.

"Scratch attack," ordered Ross.

Weedle sprayed some fine white string at Charmander, tying him up.

"Charmander, return, go Rattata," stated Ross.

"Weedle, poison sting."

"Rattata, Quick attack."

Rattata hit Weedle easily, making it faint.

Ross collected his winnings, and untied Charmander before continuing on his way.

Ross encountered a few more trainers, beating them easily before a stream joined the path.

Ross and pokemon stopped to rest Ross let his other pokemon out to get some fresh air and

exercise. Ross's pokemon played hide-and-seek, swam in the stream, and otherwise had fun.

Ross set out lunch and explained things to Pidgey and Rattata. After everyone finished eating,

Pidgey chose to stay inside for now while Rattata walked.

"Let's go," said Ross as he got to his feet.

Ross and company continued on their way, easily defeating other trainers that challenged

them on their way. All of them had fairly weak bug pokemon.

Ross and pokemon reached a fence and gate house at about 3.

"This is the entrance to the Viridian Forest. This is a bug pokemon preserve. We need

you to sign in so that we know to send a search party if you don't come out in 5 days," explained

the guard.

"Okay," said Ross as he signed a clipboard the guard handed him, "Here you go." Ross

handed back the sign-in sheet.

"Thanks," said the guard, "You're more than welcome to capture any pokemon that you

would like, but don't get too greedy." He then pushed a button and the gate opened. Chapter 22-Into The Forest Ross and pokemon stepped through the gate and looked around. They were in a plush

forest. The air was full of the cries of bugs calling out their names. The gate closed behind them

with a clang.

Ross looked behind them and warned Charmander to mind his flame tail before starting to

walk into the lush green underbrush. It wasn't too long until Ross and party encountered a purple

bug with antennae that walked on its hind legs.

"Venonat," said the bug.

"Spearow, go," Ross said softly to avoid scaring the small bug, "Peck attack."

Ross dropped a pokeball and out came Spearow. Spearow hit Venonat with its beak

before Venonat could retaliate.

"Fury attack," commanded Ross.

Spearow started to hit Venonat over and over until it was ready to faint. Ross threw a

pokeball at the weak bug and easily caught it.

Spearow was called back but wanted to stay out for a while.

"Fine, but I won't carry you," said Ross and they continued on their way.

Ross and his pokemon fought a few more trainers, but they were no match for Ross and

his pokemon. Ross also tried some fishing for a while, but didn't have any bites.

Ross was looking for some new pokemon when he encountered a Weedle fighting a

Caterpie. Ross watched as the Caterpie was knocked hurt and poisoned by the also weak

Weedle. Ross just threw a pokeball at each of them and caught both of them without any trouble.

It was getting late and the immediate area was filled with growling stomachs. Ross

realized that it was time to set up camp. He set down his backpack and said, "this looks like a

good place to set up camp."

All of Ross's pokemon cheered, Ross had chosen a glen with a nearby stream. All of them

thought that it was a good choice of campsites.

Ross let all of his pokemon out and said, "Alright, everyone's going to have to help to get

everything done. Bulbasaur, make some kindling with razor leaves. Charmander, go look for

rocks to surround the campfire and for your tail. Mew, you, me, and the three bugs will set up

the tent. Rattata, Hitmonchan, and Spearow will go get some firewood. Pidgey, Growlithe, and

Squirtle, go find some fruit and berries. Staryu, you fill a pot with water and then help

Charmander. Let's get to work."

With everyone working together, setting up camp didn't take too long at all. Soon,

everyone had a full stomach. While Ross worked on the TM kit, his pokemon were off doing

their preferred thing. Squirtle and Staryu were playing in the water with Bulbasaur. Hitmonchan

was shadowboxing. Charmander, and Growlithe were talking by the fire. Mew and Rattata were

playing hide-and-seek. Caterpie, Weedle, and Venonat were watching Ross as he tinkered with

this and that. The birds were sitting in a tree, watching everyone. But no one knew that a pair of

eyes was watching all of them from a few feet away. Chapter 23-Don't Bug Me

It was about 1 o'clock. Ross and pokemon had just finished lunch after a morning of

battling. Ross finished off a few of the TMs and managed to make them have multiple uses. Ross

also used them to teach some of his pokemon the new moves. Caterpie and Weedle were acting a

little weird, so Ross started to carry them on his shoulders.

Ross and company were starting to leave when they heard a voice.

"To protect the world from devastation. To unite all people within our nation. To

denounce the evils of truth and love. To extend my reach to the stars above. Christian. Team

Rocket, blast off at the speed of light. Surrender now or prepare to fight."

Christian jumped down from a tree with a pokeball in hand.

"Where's the rest of them?" asked Ross.

"Who?" asked Christian.

"Duh, your squad," answered Ross.

"There's a shortage of members at the moment," replied Christian, "1 on 1, if I win, I get

your Mew and Hitmonchan."

"But what if I win?" Asked Ross.

"If you win, I'll turn myself in," replied Christian.

"I say go for it," chimed in Mew. Christian not being able to understand Ross's pokemon,

was waiting for Ross to decide.

"Me too," added Hitmonchan.

"Are you two sure?" asked Ross.

"Why are you talking to your pokemon?" asked a confused Christian.

Mew and Hitmonchan nodded and said, "If we can put an end to another member of Team

Rocket, it's worth the risk."

Ross smiled, turned to face Christian, and said, "I accept."

Christian threw out a pokeball and said, "Pokemon, GO!!!"

"Pikachu, I choose you!"

Pikachu ran out from the pack of pokemon while Christian's pokemon took shape. The

beam of light from Christian's pokeball turned into a purple bat, this one however had eyes and a

bigger mouth than Zubat.

"GOL-Bat!" exclaimed the bat.

"Pikachu, thunder shock," said Ross.

"Golbat, screech attack," ordered Christian.

Golbat let out an ear-piercing sound, Ross and Pikachu covered their ears trying to block

out the horrible sound. Pikachu was seriously annoyed by the terrible sound and let electricity fly

at the source of the terrible sound. Golbat was hit, but was still in it.

"Golbat wing attack" said Christian.

"Pikachu, swift."

Golbat flew down and knocked Pikachu back into a tree with its wings.

"Golbat, leech life," commanded Christian.

"Pikachu, use the thunderbolt!!!!!" hollered Ross.

Pikachu stood up and raised its arms. Thunder could be heard in the distance. Everyone

looked up and saw that dark clouds were blocking out the sunlight. Christian looked worried as

white light blinked in the clouds.

Golbat charged at Pikachu, mouth wide open, fangs ready. Pikachu yelled and lightning

struck Golbat. When the light from the bolt faded, Golbat was lying motionless on the ground

and Pikachu was resting against a tree.

"NO!!!" exclaimed Christian.

"Yes, you lost now get out of here," said Ross. Christian called Golbat back into its

pokeball, turned on his heel, and marched off.

Suddenly, a drop of moisture fell on Ross's hand. Then another, and another. It was

raining. Chapter 24-Rained Out

'Uh-oh,' thought Ross.

"Everyone return," said Ross. All of Ross's pokemon turned into red energy and flew into

different pokeballs on his belt. Ross took off his backpack and pulled out his tent.

About 10 minutes later, Ross was huddled in his tent, working on his TM kit and keeping

an eye on Caterpie and Weedle, which he called back out to keep an eye on.

Outside, rain could be heard coming down fiercely. It didn't sound like it was going to

stop any time soon, and Ross figured that he was only about halfway through the forest. Caterpie

and Weedle were staying very still until they started to cover themselves with string shot.

'What on Earth are they doing?' wondered Ross.

The two bugs both turned white and Ross stopped working on his TM. When the white

faded, two different pokemon lied where Caterpie and Weedle was.

"Ka-kun-a," said one of the pokemon.

"Met-a-pod," replied the other pokemon.

'THEY'VE EVOLVED!' thought Ross.

Ross put the two cocoons into their pokeballs and went back to work. Ross had gotten a

lot of progress made when it was time to eat dinner. Ross fed his pokemon 3 at a time due to the

limited space in the tent. Ross got some more work done before it was time to go to sleep.

Ross rolled out his sleeping bag, inflated his pillow, and drifted off to sleep to the sound of

rain landing on the tent's roof. Chapter 25-The Next Day

The next day, Ross woke up to his alarm clock and a beautiful sunrise. The ground was

still a little damp, but it wasn't raining anymore.

Ross ate with his pokemon, gathered up his things, and continued on his way. Most of

Ross's pokemon enjoyed the extra humidity, but the Charmander and Growlithe chose to stay in

their pokeballs.

The party continued on their way, heading for the Pewter side of the forest. Soon, Ross

and company found a Scyther, foraging for berries.

"Metapod, go, harden as much as you can," instructed Ross.

Scyther attacked and chipped its blades. Scyther started to cry over its damaged wings

and began to attack again.

Scyther kept hurting itself on Metapod's hard shell before it finally used a quick attack and

cracked Metapod's shell. Scyther tried to attack Metapod again but a white light from the crack

blinded him. A butterfly emerged from the opening.

"Metapod evolved into Butterfree!" exclaimed Ross, "Use sleep powder."

Butterfree released a bright blue powder onto Scyther, who promptly fell asleep.

Ross threw a pokeball at the Scyther. It didn't even struggle! Ross picked up the

pokeball and attached it to his waist. They continued on their way, fighting trainers as they went.

They eventually encountered a Pinsir.

Ross sent out Kakuna and using a similar technique, evolved Kakuna into Beedrill and

caught Pinsir.

At about 5:30, Ross and pokemon reached their goal, the Pewter side of the forest. It was

only a short jog to Pewter City. Ross put all of his pokemon into their pokeballs to avoid

attention from thieves.

Ross had his pokemon healed at the pokemon center before going to the gym. The doors

were locked. Ross noticed that the gym hours were 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. According to his watch, it

was 6 p.m.

'DANG,' thought Ross, 'I'm too late to battle today.'

Ross was disappointed, but decided to take advantage of his free time. He walked down

the street to a pokemon mart and market complex and bought fresh supplies.

On his way back to the pokemon center, Ross encountered two familiar faces. "Hey bro,"

said Adam.

"It's my turn to fight you Ross," demanded Ricky, "2 on 2.

"Agreed," said Ross. Chapter 26-Power Of Pewter

"Nidoran, I choose you," cried Ricky. A purple creature with long ears emerged from the

pokeball.

"Scyther, take to the skies," said Ross as Scyther flapped its wings and readied its blade

arms.

"Horn attack," ordered Ricky.

"Slash," said Ross.

Nidoran ran up and tried to stab Scyther with its horn, but lost its horn when Scyther cut it

off with a slash. Nidoran looked at the stub where his horn used to be, and started crying.

"Nidoran, return, Geodude, go, rock throw!"

"Scyther, double team."

Scyther seemed to be in two places at once. Geodude looked at the two bugs and

attacked the wrong Scyther.

"Tackle," commanded Ricky.

"Quick attack Scyther."

Scyther hit Geodude as it came after him, knocking Geodude off course. Geodude wound

up tackling a lamp post.

"Geodude, return," Ricky said, realizing that he couldn't win. "Here's your money."

Ricky threw some money at Ross and walked off with Adam.

Chapter 27-The Insect Badge

Ross woke up before any of the other trainers so that he could be the first to

challenge the gym leader. Ross gathered his things, went through the rest room,

grabbed some breakfast from the trainers' buffet, and left the pokemon center.

The street lights were dimming as the sun rose over the top of the massive

building that was the pokemon gym. It was a boulder like shape with glass

doors. On the lawn in front of the building, several decorations in the form of

bug pokemon stood. Metapods and Kakunas lined the walk. A Caterpie fountain

was on one side of the concrete walk with a Weedle fountain on the opposite

side.

Ross walked up to the doors and grabbed the Parasect doorknob.

'Here goes something,' thought Ross as he turned the bronze knob and stepped

inside.

The interior of the gym looked had an oriental design. Swords were hung with

great care in holders on the walls. A faint smell of incense floated down the

hall. The doors were made out of some sort of paper in a wooden frame. Ross

kept walking until he reached a pair of doors labeled, 'Main Gym, Leader is IN.'

Ross took in a deep breath and stepped inside. He was in a large room, a

rectangle on the floor represented where the pokemon would battle. At the far

end of the arena, a shrine stood with a figure kneeling before it.

The figure was dressed in armor with a curved sword at his left side. "My

first challenger of the day," said the figure.

The man stood up to his full height and turned around. "I am Samurai, leader

of the Pewter City Gym," stated the man, "I have been waiting for you Ross."

"How did you know my name?" asked Ross.

Samurai ignored Ross's question and said, "This will be a 3 on 3 battle. My

first pokemon will be Butterfree, GO!!!"

Samurai dropped a pokeball and a butterfly popped out.

"I will use Charmander," said Ross. Charmander popped out of his pokeball from

Ross's belt.

"Butterfree, stun spore," ordered Samurai.

"Charmander, ember," called Ross.

Butterfree flapped its wings, releasing a strange dust. Charmander easily

dodged it and hit Butterfree with an ember.

"Butterfree, tackle," commanded Samurai.

"Charmander, slash," said Ross.

Butterfree moved at Charmander, but was knocked away by a powerful swipe of his

claw. Butterfree was having trouble flying when Samurai called it back and sent

out a Beedrill.

"Beedrill, twineedle,"

"Charmander, fire blast!"

Beedrill charged at Charmander, but was caught in the blast, forcing him to

land.

"Fury attack," said Samurai.

"Ember," said Ross.

Beedrill moved towards Charmander and hit him until Charmander fainted.

"Charmander, return," ordered Ross holding up Charmander's pokeball, "Squirtle,

GO!"

The tiny turtle appeared, facing the bee. "Bubble beam," said Ross

"Beedrill, poison sting," said Samurai.

Beedrill moved towards Squirtle, but lost sight of him when the bubbles blocked

its vision. Beedrill wound up trying to attack the floor and bent his stinger.

"Beedrill return, go Pinsir, vice grip!" hollered Ross's armored opponent.

"Water Gun," commanded Ross.

Pinsir tried to get close enough to obey its trainer, but was kept back by

Squirtle's water gun. Pinsir was getting weak.

"Pinsir, guillotine!"

'WHAT!?!' thought Ross.

Pinsir ran at Squirtle, ready to use its powerful claws. "WITHDRAW!" hollered

Ross, desperate to keep his pokemon in one piece.

Squirtle hid in its shell just as Pinsir was bent over to close its claws.

When Pinsir stood up straight, it got confused when Squirtle's head wasn't on

the ground. Pinsir looked into Squirtle's shell when...

POW!

Squirtle did a skull bash, leaving Pinsir dazed.

"Pinsir, return," said Samurai, holding up a pokeball, Pinsir became a ball of

red energy and vanished into the pokeball. "You have beaten me, you really are

as good as they said you are."

"Who are 'they'?" asked Ross.

Like last time, Samurai doesn't answer his question. "You have earned the

Insect Badge, congratulations," Samurai turned to his shrine. A panel in the

roof opened and a small case lowered from the opening.

Ross looked in the case and saw a badge shaped like an Egyptian scarab. Ross

took the badge and left, he knew that he wouldn't be getting the answers to the

questions he found here.

************************************************************************

Samurai watched Ross leave in a mirror on the shrine before he tapped a button.

Suzie's face flashed onto the screen.

"What is it Samurai?" asked Suzie.

"Ross just left with an Insect Badge. He should be at Mt. Moon before too

long. Better tell Seymour to be ready for them."

"Okay, talk to you later," said Suzie.

"Good day," said Samurai before the screen went black.

TO BE CONTINUED