So after getting Torchic back in its Poké Ball to keep it safe, the three trainers began dashing in the direction towards Oldale Town. Soon, they came out of the forest, and found themselves climbing a small hill, on top of which were what appeared to the ruins of some old stone buildings, surrounded by a circle of tall stone obelisks.

"I wonder what all those rocks are for?" remarked Ash, as they came up to the ruins.

"It looks like the remains of some old buildings, Ash," said Misty, just as a tall dark-haired man in overalls came out from behind one of the obelisks.

"Well actually, these are the ruins of Oldale," replied the man with a friendly smile. "I'm Professor Alden and I'm here investigating them."

"Hi, my name's Ash," said Ash.

"Mine's Misty," said Misty.

"And my name's May. Hello!" said May.

"Nice to meet the three of you," said the Professor cheerily. "So, tell me, where are you all going in such a hurry?"

"We're trying to find the Pokémon Centre," replied Ash urgently.

"Ah, well you're almost there. It's just over this hill," said Alden, as he gestured to the other side of the ruins, with the Centre in clear view at the bottom of the slope.

"That's great! Thanks a lot," said Misty.

"Yeah, thanks a bunch," added May gratefully.

"Pika!" added Pikachu, as they all hurried down the hill, leaving Professor Alden behind to continue with his investigations.

The sun was already starting to set, but luckily it took just a few minutes for the three trainers to reach the Pokémon Centre, and soon they were all inside, where Nurse Joy was ready behind the reception desk.

"Nurse Joy, could you please help my Torchic?" asked May pleadingly, as she handed over the Poké Ball containing Torchic.

"No problem," smiled Nurse Joy, as she placed the Poké Ball in a medical scanner and began to use the machine to check Torchic's vital signs.

"Does Torchic look okay in there?" asked May in concern.

"One more second," said Nurse Joy reassuringly, as the results of the medical scan came up on the computer screen. "Torchic's fine. A good night's sleep is all your Torchic needs."

"Thank goodness!" said May in relief.

"Feeling better now, May?" asked Ash, who understood how worried May must have been feeling.

May happily nodded, all too glad that Torchic was going to be fine.

"I think a good night's sleep will do you some good as well," suggested Nurse Joy.

"You can say that again," said Misty, as Togepi gave a small yawn. "It's been quite a busy day today, hasn't it, Togepi?"

However, May did not seem quite ready for sleep yet. "Hey guys, I was thinking. Now we're here at a Pokémon Centre, will you show me around?"

"Yeah, of course!" grinned Ash enthusiastically. "But first, I've got to register for the Hoenn League, then make a phone call."

"Oh yeah, I forgot," said Misty as she immediately realised who Ash intended to call. "We haven't actually told Professor Oak how we've gotten on since arriving in Hoenn."

"Pika pika," agreed Pikachu.

"Wait, you know the Professor Oak?" said May in surprise.

"That's right," nodded Misty with a smile.

It took just a few minutes for Ash to get registered, and once that was all sorted, the three trainers made their way over to the video phones, and Ash put in a call to Pallet Town.

"Hey, Professor Oak," said Ash cheerily, as Oak's kindly face appeared on the screen. "I just thought I'd call to let you know that Misty and I have arrived in Oldale Town."

"Wonderful, Ash," smiled the Professor. "It's always nice to hear from you. Hope the pair of you have had a good journey."

"Well, we had a few bumps on the way," said Misty as she recalled the recent hassles they had with Team Rocket, "but we're all okay now. And guess what? I managed to get myself a Mudkip!"

"A Mudkip, eh? That's excellent, Misty!" congratulated Oak.

"I just finished registering to be in the Hoenn League, Professor," continued Ash. "So, I'm ready to go and fight for my first badge."

"It sounds to me like another big adventure for you youngsters," commented the Professor.

"That's right!" said May, as she shoved past Ash and Misty, and brought her face right up to the screen. "We haven't been introduced yet, but I'm May."

"Well hello, May," greeted Oak. "I'm Professor Samuel Oak from Pallet Town."

"I know you," grinned May. "My brother never misses any of your radio lectures and when I tell him that I've been actually talking to you, he'll be so jealous!"

"Well, how nice," said Oak politely.

"Of course, I know I'm just a beginning Pokémon trainer," continued May with steely resolve, "but I promise you, I'll work hard!"

"Well May, with Ash and Misty right by your side, you should do very well," assured Oak. "I wish the three of you a safe and successful journey."

"Thanks, Professor," said Ash, May and Misty in unison, with enthusiastic cries of support from Pikachu and Togepi.

Alas, the journey would not be as simple as Ash and his friends would have liked, for Jessie, James, Meowth and Wobbuffet of Team Rocket were also in the area, still determined as ever to catch Pikachu. As night had now fallen, the four crooks were currently taking shelter in a small telephone booth down the road, and had decided to call up their boss, the despicable Giovanni.

"What? You're in the Hoenn region?" said the head of Team Rocket in surprise.

"That's right," replied Jessie, as James held up the receiver so that Giovanni could clearly hear them. "Still hot on the trail of that rare Pikachu, so that one day soon that Pikachu will be all yours."

"And now that we've tracked him down, we're ever so close to the capture!" boasted James.

"Cause when it comes to the honour of Team Rocket, there's nothing we wouldn't do for yer!" added Meowth.

"Well, since you've taken the liberty of calling me on my private line," said Giovanni with a steely edge in his voice, "I'm assuming that you have some good news, yes?"

At this, Jessie, James and Meowth all looked very nervous, since what they were about to ask Giovanni would undoubtably not please him at all.

"Well, the thing is..." said Jessie slowly.

"Good detective work doesn't come cheaply, so our cash reserves are a bit low," added James apprehensively.

"Could we... get an advance?" asked Meowth timidly.

"NO!" came the angry response from the phone speaker. "You'll receive no more funds!"

Jessie, James and Meowth winced and gave a dejected sigh at this.

"However," continued Giovanni more calmly, "I do have an opportunity for you."

"An opportunity?" asked the three crooks, their hopes immediately getting up.

"Although Team Rocket operates internationally, we haven't been able to set up operations in the Hoenn region," explained Giovanni. "So if you three can successfully accomplish this, that's when we will talk money!"

And with that, Giovanni hung up on his subordinates.

"We're going to start a branch office?" exclaimed the three lesser members of Team Rocket excitedly.

"A direct order from the boss himself to achieve true greatness!" squeaked Jessie happily.

"He's practically saying that we the next in line to take over control of Team Rocket!" chimed in James merrily.

"All those long hard years of struggling was worth it," added Meowth joyfully, before they all exclaimed:

"Yippee! We're getting a promotion!"

"Wobbuffet!" said Wobbuffet.

For the first time in many years, Jessie, James and Meowth felt that everything was finally going their way. However, they would have felt considerably less excited if they knew Giovanni's true motivation for wanting them in the Hoenn region. For the region was the base of two rival criminal organisations known as Team Aqua and Team Magma, and Giovanni wanted to find out more about their activities for his own nefarious reasons. And should Jessie, James and Meowth fall foul of either team in the process...

Then that was just too bad for them.