THE MIDAS SAGA
Book One: Dark Days

-Chapter One-

(Oak Laboratory, Pallet Town)

The light, cool breeze of autumn dusk was beginning to set in. It flew over the green hills outside Professor Oak's lab, ruffling the black hair of Tracey Sketchit. The young pokémon watcher was sitting outside, drawing a light sketch of Ash's Taurus grazing silently on their grass.
"Sure is a nice day," he said to himself in a soft, cheery voice.
His eyes drifted up from the field to the clear blue sky and further…to where he could see a strange smog floating about around the mountains.
"Huh? What's that?"
Inside the laboratory, Samuel Oak stared with expressionless eyes at the young man across from him. Oakley stared back, his expression concentrated and serious. For several minutes, they remained like this until Oakley's eyes began to water and he started to twitch. A hint of a smile began to play on Samuel's features as he watched the boy squirm. Finally, Oakley could stand no more. He blinked his eyes rapidly, and heard Professor Oak laughed lightly.
"Old Sammy's still got it, heh!"
Oakley smiled weakly at him.
"Yeah, I guess so."
Delia smiled at two guys and giggled. She sat down next to Oakley and put her hand on his back.
"The professor knows he could beat everybody in this town, you didn't stand a chance."
Oakley smirked at her.
"Glad to know I had your support…"
Delia blushed and giggled again. Samuel chuckled. Tracey came up the stairs, his sketchbook clenched at his side.
"Professor, I saw something strange near the mountains!"
Samuel looked over at him.
"Oh? Something strange?"

"Hmm…"
Professor Oak stood at his telescope, examining the large cloud of smog circling the snowy mountain peaks.
"It certainly is unusual. But I don't think it's anything to serious."
Delia was holding onto Oakley's arm.
"Well, that's good!"
"Mind if I take a look?" Oakley asked.
Samuel stepped back from the telescope, allowing Oakley to look into it.
"It's probably some pollution from that city in the mountains," the professor's voice was saying. "I'm sure it's nothing unnatural."
Oakley's body tensed as a red-tinted cloud of smoke puffed out of the mountains, forming two letters- TR. Oakley stepped back with wide eyes as Samuel and Tracey left the room. Delia was about to follow them, but she noted his expression.
"Oakley dear? Is anything wrong?"
Oakley allowed himself to relax momentarily as he faced his lover with a smile.
"No. Everything's fine. I'm gonna go use the phone downstairs, kay?"
Delia nodded.
"All right, but don't take too long."
"I won't. I just gotta make one quick call…"

(New Team Rocket HQ, Viridian City)

Persian stretched out on the floor of Giovanni's office, tensing and relaxing his claws. He looked up as his master hung up his phone. Giovanni ran his fingers along his desk thoughtfully and pressed the button on his intercom. After several seconds, Mark's voice came through.
"Yes sir?"
"Mark. Check the files for me. Do we have a base located anywhere on Indigo Mountain?"
There was a moment of silence.
"You mean Indigo Plateau?"
Giovanni scowled and clenched his hand into a fist.
"No, I mean Indigo Mountain! If I meant Indigo Plateau, I would have said Indigo Plateau!"
"O-of course, sir! Sorry sir!"
There was another minute of silence as Mark searched his computer.
"No sir, we don't have a base. Would you like me to send a team to start a branch?"
"No, that will not be necessary."
"Yes sir."
Giovanni thought for a few minutes, staring outside his window.
"Mark."
"Sir?"
"Are Kidd and Sundance in?"
"Yes sir."
Giovanni reached down and picked up his Persian.
"Send them to see me."
"Of course sir."
"That's all."
Giovanni turned off his intercom.
"This is very strange. Could somebody up there be pretending to be Team Rocket?"
Persian purred as Giovanni stroked him.
"If so, they shall have to be punished."


(Golden Egg Hotel Lobby, Goldenrod City)

Gary nervously fiddled with the button on his jacket cuff, glancing at the clock on the wall every few seconds. He jumped alittle, feeling a hand on his shoulder.
"Why so nervous, Gary?"
Gary turned to face James. Jessie stood beside him, arm linked with his.
"Guess I can't help it… This is my first date, you know."
Jessie smirked and reached over to tousle his brown hair.
"Aw, our little Gary's growing up!"
Gary blushed and stepped out of her reach.
"W-Well, I just didn't have a lot of time to date!"
He crossed his arms and nodded.
"My pokémon journey took up all of my time."
Jessie and James exchanged glances.
"Right."
Gary looked up at the clock again.
"What's taking Whitney so long? She's late…"
James chuckled.
"This really is your first date," He remarked, making Jessie punch his arm playfully.
Gary smiled at them, then turned hearing little claps of heels on the tiled floor. His heart skipped a beat as he saw Whitney coming towards them, eyes focused only on him.
"Sorry I'm a little late," she apologized when she reached them, wrapping her arms around Gary's.
Gary couldn't seem to speak, so Jessie waved her hand dismissively.
"Don't worry about it. It's a girl's duty to be fashionably late sometimes."
Whitney nodded and smiled. She looked at Gary.
"You look nice tonight, Gary," she commented sweetly.
Gary suddenly managed to find his voice again.
"That makes two of us."
Whitney blushed and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Jessie and James smirked.
"Awww!"
Gary gave them half-moon eyes.
"Knock it off!"
James smiled and turned, heading for the hotel doors.
"Come on, let's go get a taxi."
The others followed him, unaware of the creature above their heads, watching them with its lizard-like red eyes. Once they were gone, it slipped outside, hissing quietly to itself. He watched them get into a taxi and heard a voice in his ear.
"That's her. Giovanni's daughter. Follow them."
The creature followed his master's orders and quickly scurried under their taxi, attaching itself to the underside of the cab.
"Grumly, listen."
Grumly silenced his hissing.
"I am listening, masssster."
"Never let the redheaded one out of your sight. She's going to be very important to us for this to work. But don't let her see you until I say otherwise."
"Yesssir."
"Oh, and one more thing."
Grumly waited.
"Lose her, and you lose something worse."
Grumly shuddered and almost lost his grip.
"Grumly understandssss."
"Good."
Grumly closed his eyes for a moment and remained silent as the cab traveled down the busy streets of Goldenrod.

Another pair of eyes watched the yellow taxi as it drove down the street. A tall man, donned in long, brown trench coat, and a communicator around his wrist.
"Grumly's smart enough in a sense…he just better not lose track of that girl. It could ruin this whole thing."
The man's bright red eyes flashed and a forked tongue slipped out from between his thin lips. He glanced around a little, making sure no one was watching him, and slipped into an alley. He stuffed his hands inside his pockets and raised his head, looking up at the clear night sky.
"Ahhh," he sighed. "Quiet out tonight…"
He felt his foot tap something and stopped. Looking down, he saw a man lying in an uncomfortable looking, twisted position. He kneeled down and turned the man's face towards his. He seemed to be in his early twenties, actually quite handsome.
"Probably wasted…pity."
He leaned down closer, but there was no trace or smell of alcohol near him.
"Odd…"
The trench coat man considered this for a few moments, then picked the man up, slinging him over his shoulder.
"He may come in useful. We'll see what the big man thinks."
In the silence that followed, he heard the man say one word.
"Pie…"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Pie? That's a funny thing to say. Well, I'll get ya some pie soon as ya wake up, okay?"
The man made no reply. So he started walking again, further down the alley. Until you could no longer see him in the shadows.

(New Team Rocket HQ, Laboratories, Viridian City)

"Wow, new suits. What will you think of next, doctor?"
Dr. Brown ignored Cassidy's comment and took two suits out of the uniform closet.
"You just step in, and the suit molds to fit your body perfectly. The best thing- no rips or tears. And these will allow you to slip through any opening without getting snagged."
Cassidy and Butch took the suits and stepped into the strange black material. Butch moved around a little.
"It feels weird," he remarked.
"It's new. You've gotta break 'em in."
Cassidy placed a hand on her hip.
"All right, so now we're styling. What weapons have you got for us, doc?"
Dr. Brown scratched his head.
"I highly doubt you'll be needing any. This is strictly a sneak n' see mission, isn't it?"
He was partly right. The boss had told them to find out the cause of the smoke on Indigo Mountain, and if there were any Team Rocket imitators…
"No, doctor. Trust me, we'll need weapons."
Dr. Brown shrugged and led them to a long table.
"Well, take your pick. These are all the new ones we've got now. If none of these meet your expectations, you're welcome to choose from the older models."
Cassidy picked up a small, silver handgun.
"What's this?"
"A Rocket X7. Pretty small, but pretty powerful. One of my personal favorites."
Cassidy turned it in her hand for a few minutes, then suddenly wheeled around and fired at a table of flasks and test tubes. Several items were shattered; an explosion of glass erupted, almost slicing some test subjects and scientists.
"Hey, watch it!" Dr. Brown exclaimed.
Cassidy blew away the small string of smoke that swirled around the gun and smirked at him. Butch smiled.
"It suits you, Cass."
Cassidy tossed him one.
"We'll take these. Thanks, doc."
Cassidy and Butch left the lab, leaving Dr. Brown to stare at the mess across from him.
"Great kids, those two…" he muttered. "Great kids…"

(Pokemon Center, Lobby, Viridian Center)

"Okay, Ash. Your pokémon are all healthy and ready to go!"
Ash smiled and got his pokeballs and Pikachu from Nurse Joy.
"Thanks, Nurse Joy!"
He turned to the rest of his group.
"Come on, let's go! We'll be in Pallet Town in just a few hours if we start now!"
Brock nodded and stood.
"Then let's go. I can't wait to get there and have some of your mom's cooking."
"Is she a good cook?" Max asked him.
"Mm-hmm. I would even say she's better than me."
May leapt up from her seat.
"Then let's hurry!"
"Yeah!"

The kids walked out of the pokémon center into the quiet, but crowded streets of Viridian City. After traveling for a while, Ash had decided that it was about time to pay a visit back home. Besides, he wanted his mother to meet May and Max. But those weren't the only reasons. For a few days now, Pikachu had been a little uneasy about something, and he wasn't sure what. He was always tense and jumpy, and often, Ash would see him looking intently out into the distance in Pallet Town's general direction. And now, in Viridian City, Ash was feeling slightly edgy as well. He just had this feeling…that something was wrong.
"Ash, look out!"
"Huh?"
Ash barely blinked before May grabbed him by his arm and pulled him out of the way of a speeding white car. The car raced on, blowing back a large storm of dust and dirt. The kids coughed and waved the bad air out of their faces.
"Why don't you watch where you're going?!"
Brock's brow furrowed as he watched the car drive off.
"Hey, Ash. Wasn't that those two Team Rocket members? Butch and Cassidy?"
Ash narrowed his eyes and squinted to see their disappearing forms.
"Yeah, it sure does look like them…"
"Who are Butch and Cassidy?" Max asked.
"A couple of rocket members we've run into a few times before," Brock explained. "They're worse than Jessie and James."
May looked at Ash.
"I wonder what they're doing…"
Brock frowned.
"Whatever it is, it's probably no good. And they were headed towards Pallet Town."
Ash clenched his hand into a fist.
"Come on, guys. Let's hurry and get there!"
They all nodded. Pikachu climbed up onto Ash's shoulder and clinged to him as they started running down the same road Butch and Cassidy had gone. His brown eyes narrowed as he stared out towards the mountains beyond Pallet…but he looked away after a while.
"Pika pi…" he muttered.
Ash glanced sideways at him.
"Something wrong, Pikachu?"
Pikachu shook his head after a moment and smiled at Ash. He didn't want his friend to get worked up. It was probably nothing. But those mountains…

(Pallet Town, Ketchum Residence)

Oakley stood at a window in Ms. Ketchum's living room. He held the curtains aside as his light eyes stared outside aimlessly at the restless twilight. He chewed his bottom lip nervously. Something was up. And it had to do with Team Rocket. Someone or something was signaling them from the mountains, but he had no idea what. Whatever could they want? He thought they had gotten rid of any rival teams that were powerful and foolish enough to challenge them. And the organization didn't have very many allies…and none in this region.
"Mime! Mr. Mime, Mr. Mime!"
Oakley snapped out of his reverie to finally notice Mr. Mime tugging on his sleeve.
"What? What is it?"
Mr. Mime pointed to the floor.
"Mime, Mr. Mime!"
Oakley realized he was standing where Mr. Mime wanted to sweep.
"Oh, sorry."
He stepped aside as Delia walked in and let Mr. Mime sweep to his heart's content. Delia sat down on the couch and motioned for him to join her.
"Dinner will be done soon!"
Oakley smiled uneasily at her.
"Oh, that's good."
Delia looked at him quizzically.
"Is something wrong? You've been acting like something's been on your mind."
Oakley shrugged.
"Well, I…I was thinking about that smoke…up in the mountains."
Delia smiled.
"Oh sweetie, don't worry about that! The professor said he was sure it was nothing unnatural, remember? And he's probably right!"
"Yeah…"
Delia slid her arms around his neck and cuddled close to him.
"Don't think about it…I'm sure he's right!"
Oakley grinned as she brought her face close to his and pressed their lips together. Mr. Mime looked over at them and whistled, turning his back to give them some privacy…
"Mom!"
Oakley and Delia pulled away from each other as Ash and company walked in the house.
"Ever heard of knocking, twerp?" Oakley muttered, annoyed, under his breath as Delia leapt from the couch.
"Oh honey! I didn't know you were planning on visiting! This is such a pleasant surprise!"
She reached over and picked up Pikachu, pulling him into a light embrace.
"And hello, Pikachu!"
"Pika!" Pikachu replied, happily.
Ash looked behind her at Oakley. He plastered on a fake smile and waved at Ash.
"What's he doing here?"
"Isn't he one of Jessie and James' friends?" Brock asked.
Delia blushed and waved her hand dismissively.
"Oh yes, well, um…nevermind that. How have you been? And Brock, it's so good to see you! And…"
She paused and looked at May and Max.
"Oh, Ash! Who are your new friends?"
May smiled.
"My name is May, Ms. Ketchum. And this is my brother, Max."
"It's so nice to meet you both! And you're all just in time for dinner!"
May and Max cheered, but Ash and Brock had something else in mind.
"Mom, did you see a white car speeding through here?"
"Or has there been any trouble going on recently?"
Ms. Ketchum blinked.
"A white car? Any trouble? No, I can't say that I remember any of that happening today. Have you, Oakley?"
Oakley shook his head.
"A white car nearly ran us over on the way here, and it was headed this way."
Delia gasped.
"Oh my! You all weren't hurt, were you?"
Ash shook his head.
"No, we're all okay. And May pulled me out of the way just in time."
May blushed as Ash looked back at her and smiled.
"The people in the car were two members of Team Rocket," Brock continued. "We wanted to make sure they didn't do anything."
Oakley's eyes widened and he looked out the window.
So the Boss did send somebody… he thought to himself. I wonder if he thinks this is as serious as I do.
Pikachu followed Oakley's gaze outside and he sensed a sudden change in the atmosphere.
"Pi…"
He jumped out of Ms. Ketchum's arms and ran out the door.
"Huh?!"
"Pikachu! Where are you going?!"
Pikachu ran into the empty streets and ran past Gary's neighboring house. He raced past Professor Oak's laboratory, towards the very outskirts of town.
"Pikachu! Wait a minute!"
Pikachu suddenly did stop. For seemingly no reason at all, he just stopped. Ash, May, Brock, and Max came to a stop behind him after a few minutes, panting and gasping for breath.
"Pikachu…" Ash started. "What got into you?"
Pikachu pointed ahead of him, apparently really upset about something. Little streaks of electricity sparked from his red cheeks. Ash looked at the empty air in front of them.
"There's…nothing wrong there, Pikachu. What are you talking about?"
He stood up straight and reached an arm out, just to prove his point. But as soon as his fingertips brushed the space directly in front of Pikachu, he was met with a sharp jolt of lightning. He yelped a little and jumped back, clutching his hand. Strange, black volts crackled from what appeared to be a force field of some kind.
"What…what is this?" May whispered.
"I don't…know…"

(Indigo Mountain)


A tall man stood on the sharp rocks of the mountain outside his fortress. His assistant kneeled down beside him, watching something on the road with a pair of binoculars.
"It isn't Giovanni. He's sent some of his field agents. Probably to survey the area."
"But of course. You cannot expect the big man to come on out right away, can you?"
"No sir…but what shall we do with them?"
"Have fun with them. They're disposable. Just make sure they do not return to TR HQ."
"Yes sir."
The man watched his assistant go inside and smirked underneath the shadows that obscured his face.
"Ah, Giovanni. You have yet to catch on to my little game. But I worry not. I'm sure you'll be all to willing to play…once I have your daughter at my control."
He clenched his hand and watched the white car came to a slow stop a few feet below. He turned and went inside his fortress, before the agents saw him.
"Don't want to spoil their fun," he chuckled.

End of Chapter One