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The bite didn't come.
Ash could still hear his heavy breathing, still feel the cold snow falling onto his back, still feel the pain that coursed through his veins from the poison. When he heard the loud roar, he looked up, and smiled at his friend before passing out.
Dragonite had Arbok tied in a knot, and was spinning the snake around and around, hitting Weezing 'til the so called big-ball-of-gas fell from the sky and landed on the snow, eyes rolling. Beating great green leathery wings, Dragonite soared into the sky, further and further up into the rolling snow, before Team Rocket could no longer see it.
"Arbok! It stole my Arbok!"
"I wouldn't count on that Jessie… Meooowwth!!" Meowth cried, beginning to run away on all fours, keen cats eyes had already seen the Dragonite, wings folded to its sides, plummeting back to Earth full speed, and with gravity at its back. James followed Meowths lead, re-calling Weezing and heading after the feline
"Jessie, c'mon!" Jessie was moaning about Arbok, but followed "It's a legend in the pokémon world… we can't beat it. Look on the bright side though… Boss'll be so please if we capture it!"
There was a crash behind as Dragonite finished the attack. Snow exploded in all directions, and when it cleared, Arboks tail was sticking straight out of the ground. Dragonite could be seen flying off into the distance with strong wing beats.
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Charizard swooped down, and landed inside the fence around the large white building. As Crobat landed beside it, Brock and Misty dismounted, jumping over to knock on the door. A second later, there was no door. Charizard pulled its fist back, grinning sheepishly, pointing at Ivysaur and Crobat, who shrieked and pointed back at the fire lizard. Brock rolled his eyes 'pathetic'.
"What's going on out here?" Tracey, their friend of old emerged, and looked at them "Misty! Brock!…" A little more hesitantly "Hello Charizard…" Brock and Misty smiled, Charizard roared and offered its wedge head for a pat, which Tracey gave nervously, pulling back each time Charizard rumbled with pleasure.
"Where's Ash?" He asked suddenly, looking at the group. It was answered a moment later by a roar in the sky. All heads snapped up, including Charizard, who spread his wings and crouched, ready for a battle, but saw a familiar figure.
Dragonite landed with a crashing thud, muscles rippling and wings flexing. Pikachu jumped off the dragons back and onto the ground [Hurry, get Ash!]
Easier said than done. Whenever a move was made to take Ash off the Dragon Pokémons back, it roared and slashed the air with long claws, beating its wings. In the end Pikachu threatened it with a Thunder, and while Dragonite was distracted, Charizard plucked Ash off its back, setting him on the ground beside Tracey and Brock, waiting until they'd be able to support the unconscious boy
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After explaining the entire thing to Professor Oak, both the Professors and Tracey's smiles had dropped from their faces. Brock asked about this, and when neither of them spoke, Pikachu offered a small electric jolt.
"We have to get Ash fixed up… you don't know what happened?" They all shook their heads. Pikachu had been out cold at the time, and of course, Brock and Misty had no idea
A Blissey rushed in, one that had been tending to Ash in the lounge room. Dragonite had been returned, and was in the rejuvenation room, inside a large tube. Pikachu had begrudged letting his tail and cheeks be bandaged. Suddenly Pikachu spoke up
[There was an Arbok! It was Team Rocket, I think Arbok bit him!] The room went silent, and the Blissey's eyes went wide
"Bliss Blissey!" [I was right!] It charged from the room, and Pikachu followed. They all stared, worried. Each and every one of them knew Arboks where poisonous
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Misty was on her knees beside the couch that Ash lay on. He was pale and shivering. The poison it seemed, had set in. As fast as Dragonite flew, it hadn't gotten there quite in time. Now the poor teen needed some special antidote, and Tracey had gone to get it. Suddenly Ash broke into a fit of coughing and retching, Misty took his hand gently, looking at his pained face. She placed a hand on his forehead, and felt it burning, while at the same time he shivered with cold. Ash… I'm here… I'm here beside you…
Brock and Pikachu came in, Brock standing in the doorway with the Professor. Pikachu ran to Misty's side, looking at Ash with ears lowered flat back to his skull. Ash had a strange blue tint.
"Bliss Blissey!" The Nurse Pokémon charged in, holding a small vial in its front paws. When it saw Misty it smiled and handed her the vial "Blissey!" And turned, hurrying from the room.
Misty stared at the vial, and took the cork stopper from the top, taking a small sniff, and recoiling. "Ugh! It stinks!" She yelled, as if it wasn't obvious. Looking at Ash, she could almost feel something inside her well up and take over. She took a deep breath and placed a hand on his face, moving his mouth open to place the lip of the glass vial on one of his own lips. Putting an arm behind his back to sit him up, she gently poured the thick liquid down his throat.
There was an almost instant reaction. Ash's eyes sprung open and he stared unseeing for a moment, gasping for breath. Blissey cheered, pointing to Tracey who grinned sheepishly, holding another vial in his hands, and tried to hide it behind his back. Ash moaned, closing his eyes and Misty laid him back down, and blushed, wondering at what she had just done. Why could none of the others, or the Blissey do it?
Misty blinked, looking back to Ash, then standing. His breathing had returned to normal, and he was no longer shivering or sweating. What was in that vial? Why… how did I do that? She smiled, then turned and stormed towards Tracey, placing her hands on his chest and pushing him backwards, going rather red and frowning.
"Why did I have to do that? You could have given that to one of the Chansey or Blissey!" She panted, then took an embarrassed step backwards
"Well… do you think he would have woken up for a Chansey?" Tracey said softly, and Pikachu sniggered
"Of course he would have! Pikachu could have done it too! You can be stupid sometimes Tracey. What's so funny?" She looked at the giggling people around her, but her gaze fell on Ash, who had opened his eyes and was looking around in confusion.
"Pikapi!" [Ash!] Pikachu charged to the couch, and leapt into Ash's arms. The boy caught Pikachu with a great come back of agility and grinned, giving him a hug. Brown eyes then traveled up to meet Misty's.
"Thank you Misty…" He said softly, and she went as pink as a Jigglypuff, and could feel it
Ash went to sit up, but the Blissey was beside him, telling him to do no such, thing, and to rest up before the antidote truly had completely healed him. Ash coughed faintly, and groaned It sounds like my mother He thought, but lay back down, only to hear Professor Oak tell him to get up. "We need both you and Pikachu for something…"
Tracey whispered something in the Prof. ear, and he shrugged as Tracey darted off "Ash, Pikachu, could you come this way? Misty, you're to go with Tracey for a moment"
Misty glanced at Ash, who lifted Pikachu onto his shoulder and was smiling at his pokémon as Pikachu began to tell him about the note they had both missed out on receiving. She ran out of the room after Tracey.
Oak led Ash and Pikachu down a dimly lit hall to a large room
"In here Ash…" He turned to see Professor Oak motioning to a large seat, like one of those bosses leather chairs, except it was metal. A small wire came from the side with a rather sharp looking tip. Ash stared
"Hurry up Ash. Can you sit in the chair? This needs to be done quickly…" Ash wondered at the rush, but picked up Pikachu and headed for the chair. As soon as he sat down though, shackles appeared around his wrists, and despite his struggles he couldn't get out of them. The piece of wire with the spike on the end came awfully close to the side of his head, and he closed his eyes, gripping Pikachu tight… hang on
"What's happening?" Ash's eyes sprung open and he saw a metal claw gripping Pikachu a little way away. There was a searing pain in Ash's left arm as he felt the spike drive under the skin and he yelled out.
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Back in the lounge room Brock looked up from the game of Checkers with Ivysaur at a loud screaming like sound, though it sounded muffled. "What was that?"
Ivysaur shrugged [How should I know?]
Brock stood up, looking out into the hall, and stepped back as Misty streaked past him towards the door where the cry had come from. He unintentionally grabbed her arm and stopped her
"What happened?"
"It's Ash… they… They think he's got a power within him…" Ivysaur had come up behind Brock and stared at Misty also
"Ash? Power? Why do those words just not work right together?"
A bright flash lit up the entire hallway, and they all covered their eyes and dropped to the floor covering their heads as Misty and Brock heard the unmistakable crackle of electricity and a loud, unmuffled 'CHU!', that was clearer now as the glass panels on the lab door had shattered with the power of the attack.
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[Ash! What are you doing Professor??! Let him go!] As Oak shook his head, worry creased his forehead, but he grinned as Pikachu clenched its paws into fists. It would have been so simple just to gather a little of Pikachu's energy, but to get Ash's as well? They had to make sure that he could be attacked by the pokémon he was most connected too, and that when he was hit by the charge, they captured that power as well, hence the embedded spike.
Maybe if I attack that chair… How dare the Professor hurt Ash… goodbye chair… He thought. "Pikapikapikapika… CHUUUU!!!!!!" Thunder sparked from the red cheek pouches, and lanced around the room like knives of power. Oak seemed to have greatly underestimated Pikachu's power, especially when angered. Covering his face with an arm, he dropped to the ground in the corner.
Uncontrollable electricity spun around the room, wood splintered and glass shattered, the metal melted in some places. Ash jumped from the electric surge that ran through his body when the attack hit the back of the metal chair. But he was relieved to find it barely hurt, then felt any tingle leave his body almost instantly. Oak watched the tiny light globe on top of the power collector light up blindingly bright, then explode, glass went everywhere.
Mumbling the professor went to a large red button and pressed it, releasing Ash from the chair, but Pikachu remained in the clamp.
"Ash, please, stop Pikachu! I'll explain all this later!" Ash glanced at the Professor, and nodded, rubbing his arm where the long spike had gone, but shook his head to clear it. Without thinking twice he stood up from the floor where he had fallen after being let out of the chair, and walked over, plucking the Pikachu from the clamp, and it stopped the attack. Ash's hair stood up at strange angles, and anyone else, even if the pokémon was their own would have been knocked into a coma or even death, but Ash just smiled and ruffled his pokémons ears fondly.
Once the electric fizzle had faded from the room, Professor Oak stood up, blinking and staring at Ash. This was more serious than Tracey or he had ever thought. He glanced at the shattered light bulb, then to the melted metal and shook his head in disbelieve at Ash's actions.
It took a while for everything to come back into focus, and Ash was standing next to the professor, rubbing the back of his head anxiously "Sorry 'bout that Professor…"
"Pika pi…" Pikachu said embarrassed "But why…?" Ash began.
Oak just blinked, and saw Tracey standing in the door with exactly the same expression, looking at the shattered glass of the door, before walking in and looking at the large round spherical shape which held a mass of golden light, giving the thumbs up to the Professor, who smiled weakly back.
"I see we have some explaining to do Tracey…"
