The sun fell down over the horizon, drowning everything in darkness.
Luckily, both Eugene and Eric had prepared for travelling in night-time
conditions. Almost in unison, they brought out flashlights, flipping them
on. Light streamed out from the ends, showing the trail infront of them.
"Welcome to Route 30. Here you'll find convicts, crazed Pokemon, and berry trees," Mistral commented, working hard to keep up with the two.
"Oh, would you lay off it, Mistral," Eric muttered, the beam of his flashlight aiming where his hand told it to. The bushes and tall grasses they walked beside illuminated, showing the eyes, briefly, of Pokemon that only the imagination could comprehend. Of course, there wasn't anything to be afraid of.. Mistral seemed only to be overeacting.
Eric finally stopped, half-way through Route 30, and grabbed her by the shoulders. She was stopped in mid-complaint, and stared at him as his eyes bore into hers, whilest giving her a good shake between sentences. "Listen. We are not going to die or anything, so why don't you just not worry about it, because it's probably just some Beedrill that someone happened to piss off and it went after them because they were too scared to know what it was. "
"Okay, Okay!" Mistral shouted, shoving Eric off her, brushing herself off. If the flashlight had been on her face, he would've noticed her blushing, but her face would've counted as a light anyways. "Yeesh. You don't need to get physical."
"Alright. Let's go, then..." The leaves of a nearby tree rustled violently, causing Mistral to let out a scream, covering her head. A Spearow let out a cry, and abandoned its tree, flying off into the distance. "See? It was only a Spearow. Can we get going now?"
Before the small group could move, a white form leapt from the tree, covering distance between them.
"Damn! Pidgeotto, Quick Attack!"
The Pidgeotto, which had been circling overhead, free of its Pokeball, turned into a blur, and divebombed into the white form, flying straight up after connecting. The white form let out a screech, falling over, circles in its eyes.
"It's only a.. a.." Eric dug out his Pokedex, pointing it at the Pokemon. ~"Mankey, a Pig-Monkey Pokemon. This Pokemon can hardly control its temper, especially in battle. It's been known to claim territory, and viciously attack anyone who comes near it.."~
"So that's what that thing was," Mistral commented, a hand over her heart in a futile attempt to make it slow down. "Well, don't just stand there! Get rid of it!"
Eugene stepped forward, but Eric quickly knocked him out of the way. "My pleasure." With a quick flick of the wrist, the Pokeball that had been prepped in his hand sped in the air towards the Mankey.. it connected, hitting it right in its nose. It let out a yelp of pain, as it was absorbed into its Pokeball in the tell-tale red light. The Pokeball hit the grass with a soft 'fwump', and began to shake, as the Mankey attempted to escape from its confines.
After what seemed like ages, the Pokeball finally stopped moving, giving a soft 'ding', and locking tightly to confine the Pokemon within. "Phew. Finally. What TOOK you so long?!" Mistral complained, watching in amusement as Eric's Pidgeotto landed on his shoulder, giving him a playful nip on the ear.
"It didn't take long, really. Only a few minutes," Eugene commented, watching the Pidgeotto chirp happily at Eric's petting. "Now that we have nothing to worry about, I suggest retreating into the trees to sleep the rest of the night off."
"Great idea," Eric nodded, allowing his Pidgeotto to take flight again. He scooped up his Pokeball, placing it into his pocket, before following them into the trees.
-----
"Rise and shine! The day is new, the trainers are out, and so are the Pokemon. So let's get moving!" Eric demanded. It was only a few hours after sun-up, and Eric was eager to get moving so they could get to Violet City. "I said wake UP!" A swift kick to Eugene's leg still didn't register, and so, the taller trainer continued to sleep.
Mistral slowly stirred, sitting up, rubbing her eyes. "What's the commotion about? Someone dying?"
Even Eric's Pidgeotto was asleep, curled up next to Mistral with its head beneath its right wing. Mistral didn't seem to mind. "No. Trying to wake you guys up so we can get to Violet City. I'm starving."
-----
Violet City was a vibrant town, with many paved roads, and many places for the visitor to visit. Least of all, was the Sprout Tower. Rising four stories above Violet City, it was the tallest building of all, and it shone brightly, almost as if it absorbed the sun that shone down onto it.
"You know, Eric," Mistral said, her eyes moving over to the Pokemon Center. "There's a Pokemon School here. Why don't you go in and learn a little about the Gym Leader here?"
Eric stopped, glancing over at the item shop. He dug into his pockets, pulling out a few zenni. "Hmm.. That would be a good idea, but, I already know alot about Falkner."
"Is that so?" Eugene quirked an eyebrow, digging into his backpack, which he had moved to his front for easier accessibility. "Then what type of Pokemon does Falkner use? And what types are good against that type?"
"Flying," Eric replied, matter-of-factly. "Electric, Rock, and Ice attacks do the most damage against his type of Pokemon."
Eugene moved over to the item shop, Eric and Mistral soon following. "Good job. However, if you've noticed, you only have three Pokemon, not to mention one that hasn't been properly trained yet.."
"Yeah, so?"
Mistral seemed to be enjoying listening to the conversation, as she had stopped her muttering once they entered the item shop. "I'm just saying, in order to stand a chance against Falkner, you're going to need either alot of luck, or a Rock Pokemon," Eugene replied, moving over to a rack of potions. A few people stopped their shopping to watch Eric as he stepped up next to the taller trainer.
"You seem to know alot more than I do. Tell me where I can find a Rock Pokemon on such short notice," Eric challenged, picking up a Potion, looking it over. A label read, 'Super Potion', and it had an orange tint to the bottle, instead of the usual blue.
"There aren't any around here. Unless you can find a trainer that doesen't want one, or will trade you for that Slowpoke," Eugene pointed out, picking up two Potions, moving up to the front counter. Eric stayed close, Mistral following on their heels, listening.
"I'm not trading anything for my Slowpoke, no matter how desperate people are for one," he muttered, folding his arms across his chest. "I have plans for my Slowpoke, thank you-"
"You gonna pay for that?" the clerk asked, eyeing the Super Potion in Eric's hand.
"I.. uh.. whoops. No. Sorry."
"Then put it back where you found it, please." The clerk rushed to ring up Eugene's potions.
"Yeah, yeah, i'm going." Eric moved over to the potion rack, and put the potion back where he had picked it up, leaving both Mistral and Eugene behind as he stepped out the door. His Pidgeotto was waiting, perched atop the nearby sign that read, 'Items'. The tell-tale bag hung from its beak. "Excellent! Who needs shopping, when you have the greatest Pokemon in the world, eh?"
He stroked the bird Pokemon gently on the head, and took the bag. He looked inside.. two Pokeballs, and a potion. He'd had better hauls, but he couldn't complain; it WAS free.
Eric glanced up at his Pidgeotto. "Alright! You finally established a mental link!"
"Talking to yourself again?" Mistral mused, moving up to him as she exited the item shop, with a small bag of things herself. She seemed slightly amused about something, but he couldn't tell if it was the fact he was talking to his Pidgeotto, or that the Pidgeotto had brought back a bag of items that she had spent a fortune for only previously. "So THAT was how you got your items! Ingenius!"
"I read somewhere that the Pidgey and Spearow family of evolutions are attracted to shiny things. I only directed it to put round shiny things into the bag, and sprays. I get potions and Pokeballs. I'm extremely thankful," Eric smiled, patting his Pidgeotto, who took flight soon afterwards. "Oh, and it established a mental link with me."
Mistral seemed to become confused at the words, 'mental link'. "What's a mental link?"
Something that Mistral didn't know that he knew? This was too good. Eric glanced over his shoulder, as Eugene stalked past, sorting through his backpack, heading straight for the Pokemon Gym. "Where's he going?"
"You answer my question first!"
"Only when you answer my question."
Mistral balled her right hand into a fist, and clenched her teeth, as if mustering all the will power she had not to knock his block off. "Grrr.. He went to challenge Falkner!"
"Thought so.. now.. what was your question?"
GONG! A fist drove itself with enough force to nearly break his skull. "You THOUGHT SO?!"
"Temper, temper," Eric grinned sheepishly, rubbing his head in a vain attempt to dull the pain. "A mental link is a rare event between a Pokemon and its trainer. If the Pokemon spends a prolonged time outside of its Pokeball, around its trainer, and even other trainers, for long periods of time, it establishes a mental link. You can hear the Pokemon's thoughts."
Mistral's eyes wandered from Eric, up to the sky, where his Pidgeotto was doing a flip in mid-air. "Doesen't that reduce its tameness? Keeping it out of its Pokeball?"
"Hardly. From what i've seen, they seem to become alot more tame when they're out of their Pokeballs."
"Then how come your Mankey and Slowpoke aren't out of their Pokeballs?" Mistral inquired, looking back down at him.
"Because Slowpoke is too slow, and Mankey isan't tame enough to keep outside its Pokeball."
Eugene stepped up to the two of them, flashing a shiny badge. "Well, look who's one step ahead of the competition. Zephyr Badge."
"Congratulations!" Mistral squeaked, giving Eugene quite an awkward hug. "Now, all we need to do is push Eric through his first challenge!"
"His other Pokemon would get eaten up," Eugene commented, folding his arms across his chest, as if it would help him become more intimidating. Certainly, it did, but not to the other two trainers whom had become aquainted to him already. A female trainer let out an odd noise, and scuttled away, apparently changing her mind about going into the item shop.
"How's that?" Eric asked, glancing up at him.
"First off, your Mankey is Fighting. Falkner's Pokemon would eat it for breakfast."
"So that leaves me with only Pidgeotto and Slowpoke?"
"Slowpoke might be able to defeat its first, but its second.. I think even your Pidgeotto would have trouble with it," Eugene shrugged. "Though, as I was fighting the trainers he's been teaching, I thought of an excellent idea for you."
Eric's ears perked up. He was ready for a good idea. "Do you see Sprout Tower?"
His eyes wandered over to Sprout Tower, that largest, and most easy to see, building in Violet City. "Yeah. What about it?"
Eugene shrugged again, as if what he was about to say had little or no importance. "It's been known that Gastly reside inside that tower."
-----
"Gastly? Well, I can say that a few of us have seen them floating around the tower at night. But they leave us Monks alone. They seem to respect that we are here to worship Pokemon, like my Bellsprout here," the bald monk smiled happily, bringing his hands together. His Bellsprout did a quick jump, and scuttled around him happily. "But there's long been an infestation of Rattata. If you can get rid of a few, we would be glad to direct you to our leader, who would be happy to introduce you to our resident Gastly."
"It's a deal. Do you two want to help?" Eric asked eagerly, pulling out a small Pokeball. A press of a button, and the Pokeball enlarged to fit snugly in his right hand.
Mistral dug into her pouch, and pulled out a Pokeball. "Sure thing. Eugene?"
Again, Eugene shrugged, as if the idea didn't mean much. He, too, pulled out a Pokeball. "Alright."
"Go, Butterfree!"
Mistral's Pokeball was the first to hit the ground. It opened with a bright light, revealing the Pokemon inside. The Butterfree's wings glittered, with the many toxins its wings concealed.
"Alright, give it your best, Hitmonchan!"
To the amazement of the other two trainers, out of the Pokeball, sprung a tamed, rare, Hitmonchan. It took a few quick jabs at the air, and glanced back at its trainer. "We're looking for Rattata. Mistral's Butterfree will stun them, and I want you to help Eric's Pokemon."
It took the orders with an understanding nod, and looked up, waiting for the Butterfree.
However, Eric was too busy scanning the Pokemon to bother summoning his own just yet.
~"Butterfree, a butterfly Pokemon. Its wings hold a special powder that can do a variety of things to the opponant. It tends to eat Oddish for its diet, but the Oddish, in turn, is able to spread its seeds."~
~"Hitmonchan, a punching Pokemon. The Hitmonchan's jabs are incredibly powerful, but its kicks are weak. A trained Hitmonchan can focus energy into elemental attacks."~
"Eric! Put that thing down and bring out your Pokemon so we can start!" Mistral demanded, looking irritated, as if his scanning of her Pokemon had insulted her.
"Yeah. Sure. Alrighty, then. Go, Mankey!" His Pokeball hit the ground, and out popped the pig-monkey Pokemon that Eric had caught only the previous night. It glanced around, in shock, then quickly let out a screech, rushing off around the room.
"CONTAIN YOUR MANKEY!" a monk shouted, hunching over, as the Mankey climbed atop him, slapping him silly over its bald head. "Ah! Mankey, return!" The red beam of light shot out of his Pokeball, only to strike the wall.. the Mankey didn't seem to want to go back in quite yet. Not until the job was done. The Mankey sped off behind the supports for the tower, and soon, it was raining Rattata.
"MANKEY!"
"Aw, damn.. this can't be good," Eric sighed, slapping his forehead. The Mankey, satisfied with what it had done, quickly returned to the monk to give him another good slapping around. This time, however, Eric managed to catch the Mankey in the red light, returning it to the confines of its Pokeball.
Mistral helped the monk up, brushing him off. "Aiyah. That was a most terrifying experience.." The monk let out a gasp, and clutched his heart, trying to catch his breath.
"Sorry."
"Yes, yes.. You've done enough damage for one day. Go to the top of the tower, and visit our leader, Li," the monk gasped, leaning against the wall. "Quick, before he decides to release that Mankey again."
-----
The top room was definetely interesting, compared to all the other bland rooms. Scrolls of ancient texts lined the walls, and more Bellsprout statues littered the room than any of the previous ones. A monk, looking much like the others, was seated between two large Bellsprout statues, meditating. His eyes opened, as the three trainers entered the room.
"Ah. Welcome, my friends, to Sprout Tower. My name is Li.. I was informed by the others that you helped us lessen the Rattata population in our tower," Li began, clasping his hands together peacefully.
Eric nudged Eugene gently in the side. "This guy don't miss a beat, does he?"
"I normally make trainers fight my Pokemon.. but for today, i'll make an exception, for your act of selfless kindness. First, take this HM.." Li smiled, producing a small, cube-like machine. He flicked it over towards Eugene, who caught it, looking at it. There was a small sticker on the front that read, 'HM 05: Flash', informing the trainer what move it taught when used. "Second, I was to introduce you to our neighborly Gastly. He's out alot more than the other Gastly are, and much more tame. You'll find that, if you can catch him, he will be a vital addition to your quest."
Before the monk was finished talking, Eric's Slowpoke was out, and looking around in confusion. Not like that was a rare thing.
"Gastly! Come meet our visitors!"
Out of the wall, came a small black ball.. it soon produced two white eyes, with beady little pupils, and a slit for a mouth, in which two fangs slid out, in a vampiric look. It began sprouting an odd purplish smoke, before looking at the trainers before him.
"Gastly, these trainers would like to try to capture you," Li informed the Pokemon, releasing his hands from their grip on each other. "I'm sure you'll find them most interesting to fight.."
----------
End Chapter 4
"Welcome to Route 30. Here you'll find convicts, crazed Pokemon, and berry trees," Mistral commented, working hard to keep up with the two.
"Oh, would you lay off it, Mistral," Eric muttered, the beam of his flashlight aiming where his hand told it to. The bushes and tall grasses they walked beside illuminated, showing the eyes, briefly, of Pokemon that only the imagination could comprehend. Of course, there wasn't anything to be afraid of.. Mistral seemed only to be overeacting.
Eric finally stopped, half-way through Route 30, and grabbed her by the shoulders. She was stopped in mid-complaint, and stared at him as his eyes bore into hers, whilest giving her a good shake between sentences. "Listen. We are not going to die or anything, so why don't you just not worry about it, because it's probably just some Beedrill that someone happened to piss off and it went after them because they were too scared to know what it was. "
"Okay, Okay!" Mistral shouted, shoving Eric off her, brushing herself off. If the flashlight had been on her face, he would've noticed her blushing, but her face would've counted as a light anyways. "Yeesh. You don't need to get physical."
"Alright. Let's go, then..." The leaves of a nearby tree rustled violently, causing Mistral to let out a scream, covering her head. A Spearow let out a cry, and abandoned its tree, flying off into the distance. "See? It was only a Spearow. Can we get going now?"
Before the small group could move, a white form leapt from the tree, covering distance between them.
"Damn! Pidgeotto, Quick Attack!"
The Pidgeotto, which had been circling overhead, free of its Pokeball, turned into a blur, and divebombed into the white form, flying straight up after connecting. The white form let out a screech, falling over, circles in its eyes.
"It's only a.. a.." Eric dug out his Pokedex, pointing it at the Pokemon. ~"Mankey, a Pig-Monkey Pokemon. This Pokemon can hardly control its temper, especially in battle. It's been known to claim territory, and viciously attack anyone who comes near it.."~
"So that's what that thing was," Mistral commented, a hand over her heart in a futile attempt to make it slow down. "Well, don't just stand there! Get rid of it!"
Eugene stepped forward, but Eric quickly knocked him out of the way. "My pleasure." With a quick flick of the wrist, the Pokeball that had been prepped in his hand sped in the air towards the Mankey.. it connected, hitting it right in its nose. It let out a yelp of pain, as it was absorbed into its Pokeball in the tell-tale red light. The Pokeball hit the grass with a soft 'fwump', and began to shake, as the Mankey attempted to escape from its confines.
After what seemed like ages, the Pokeball finally stopped moving, giving a soft 'ding', and locking tightly to confine the Pokemon within. "Phew. Finally. What TOOK you so long?!" Mistral complained, watching in amusement as Eric's Pidgeotto landed on his shoulder, giving him a playful nip on the ear.
"It didn't take long, really. Only a few minutes," Eugene commented, watching the Pidgeotto chirp happily at Eric's petting. "Now that we have nothing to worry about, I suggest retreating into the trees to sleep the rest of the night off."
"Great idea," Eric nodded, allowing his Pidgeotto to take flight again. He scooped up his Pokeball, placing it into his pocket, before following them into the trees.
-----
"Rise and shine! The day is new, the trainers are out, and so are the Pokemon. So let's get moving!" Eric demanded. It was only a few hours after sun-up, and Eric was eager to get moving so they could get to Violet City. "I said wake UP!" A swift kick to Eugene's leg still didn't register, and so, the taller trainer continued to sleep.
Mistral slowly stirred, sitting up, rubbing her eyes. "What's the commotion about? Someone dying?"
Even Eric's Pidgeotto was asleep, curled up next to Mistral with its head beneath its right wing. Mistral didn't seem to mind. "No. Trying to wake you guys up so we can get to Violet City. I'm starving."
-----
Violet City was a vibrant town, with many paved roads, and many places for the visitor to visit. Least of all, was the Sprout Tower. Rising four stories above Violet City, it was the tallest building of all, and it shone brightly, almost as if it absorbed the sun that shone down onto it.
"You know, Eric," Mistral said, her eyes moving over to the Pokemon Center. "There's a Pokemon School here. Why don't you go in and learn a little about the Gym Leader here?"
Eric stopped, glancing over at the item shop. He dug into his pockets, pulling out a few zenni. "Hmm.. That would be a good idea, but, I already know alot about Falkner."
"Is that so?" Eugene quirked an eyebrow, digging into his backpack, which he had moved to his front for easier accessibility. "Then what type of Pokemon does Falkner use? And what types are good against that type?"
"Flying," Eric replied, matter-of-factly. "Electric, Rock, and Ice attacks do the most damage against his type of Pokemon."
Eugene moved over to the item shop, Eric and Mistral soon following. "Good job. However, if you've noticed, you only have three Pokemon, not to mention one that hasn't been properly trained yet.."
"Yeah, so?"
Mistral seemed to be enjoying listening to the conversation, as she had stopped her muttering once they entered the item shop. "I'm just saying, in order to stand a chance against Falkner, you're going to need either alot of luck, or a Rock Pokemon," Eugene replied, moving over to a rack of potions. A few people stopped their shopping to watch Eric as he stepped up next to the taller trainer.
"You seem to know alot more than I do. Tell me where I can find a Rock Pokemon on such short notice," Eric challenged, picking up a Potion, looking it over. A label read, 'Super Potion', and it had an orange tint to the bottle, instead of the usual blue.
"There aren't any around here. Unless you can find a trainer that doesen't want one, or will trade you for that Slowpoke," Eugene pointed out, picking up two Potions, moving up to the front counter. Eric stayed close, Mistral following on their heels, listening.
"I'm not trading anything for my Slowpoke, no matter how desperate people are for one," he muttered, folding his arms across his chest. "I have plans for my Slowpoke, thank you-"
"You gonna pay for that?" the clerk asked, eyeing the Super Potion in Eric's hand.
"I.. uh.. whoops. No. Sorry."
"Then put it back where you found it, please." The clerk rushed to ring up Eugene's potions.
"Yeah, yeah, i'm going." Eric moved over to the potion rack, and put the potion back where he had picked it up, leaving both Mistral and Eugene behind as he stepped out the door. His Pidgeotto was waiting, perched atop the nearby sign that read, 'Items'. The tell-tale bag hung from its beak. "Excellent! Who needs shopping, when you have the greatest Pokemon in the world, eh?"
He stroked the bird Pokemon gently on the head, and took the bag. He looked inside.. two Pokeballs, and a potion. He'd had better hauls, but he couldn't complain; it WAS free.
Eric glanced up at his Pidgeotto. "Alright! You finally established a mental link!"
"Talking to yourself again?" Mistral mused, moving up to him as she exited the item shop, with a small bag of things herself. She seemed slightly amused about something, but he couldn't tell if it was the fact he was talking to his Pidgeotto, or that the Pidgeotto had brought back a bag of items that she had spent a fortune for only previously. "So THAT was how you got your items! Ingenius!"
"I read somewhere that the Pidgey and Spearow family of evolutions are attracted to shiny things. I only directed it to put round shiny things into the bag, and sprays. I get potions and Pokeballs. I'm extremely thankful," Eric smiled, patting his Pidgeotto, who took flight soon afterwards. "Oh, and it established a mental link with me."
Mistral seemed to become confused at the words, 'mental link'. "What's a mental link?"
Something that Mistral didn't know that he knew? This was too good. Eric glanced over his shoulder, as Eugene stalked past, sorting through his backpack, heading straight for the Pokemon Gym. "Where's he going?"
"You answer my question first!"
"Only when you answer my question."
Mistral balled her right hand into a fist, and clenched her teeth, as if mustering all the will power she had not to knock his block off. "Grrr.. He went to challenge Falkner!"
"Thought so.. now.. what was your question?"
GONG! A fist drove itself with enough force to nearly break his skull. "You THOUGHT SO?!"
"Temper, temper," Eric grinned sheepishly, rubbing his head in a vain attempt to dull the pain. "A mental link is a rare event between a Pokemon and its trainer. If the Pokemon spends a prolonged time outside of its Pokeball, around its trainer, and even other trainers, for long periods of time, it establishes a mental link. You can hear the Pokemon's thoughts."
Mistral's eyes wandered from Eric, up to the sky, where his Pidgeotto was doing a flip in mid-air. "Doesen't that reduce its tameness? Keeping it out of its Pokeball?"
"Hardly. From what i've seen, they seem to become alot more tame when they're out of their Pokeballs."
"Then how come your Mankey and Slowpoke aren't out of their Pokeballs?" Mistral inquired, looking back down at him.
"Because Slowpoke is too slow, and Mankey isan't tame enough to keep outside its Pokeball."
Eugene stepped up to the two of them, flashing a shiny badge. "Well, look who's one step ahead of the competition. Zephyr Badge."
"Congratulations!" Mistral squeaked, giving Eugene quite an awkward hug. "Now, all we need to do is push Eric through his first challenge!"
"His other Pokemon would get eaten up," Eugene commented, folding his arms across his chest, as if it would help him become more intimidating. Certainly, it did, but not to the other two trainers whom had become aquainted to him already. A female trainer let out an odd noise, and scuttled away, apparently changing her mind about going into the item shop.
"How's that?" Eric asked, glancing up at him.
"First off, your Mankey is Fighting. Falkner's Pokemon would eat it for breakfast."
"So that leaves me with only Pidgeotto and Slowpoke?"
"Slowpoke might be able to defeat its first, but its second.. I think even your Pidgeotto would have trouble with it," Eugene shrugged. "Though, as I was fighting the trainers he's been teaching, I thought of an excellent idea for you."
Eric's ears perked up. He was ready for a good idea. "Do you see Sprout Tower?"
His eyes wandered over to Sprout Tower, that largest, and most easy to see, building in Violet City. "Yeah. What about it?"
Eugene shrugged again, as if what he was about to say had little or no importance. "It's been known that Gastly reside inside that tower."
-----
"Gastly? Well, I can say that a few of us have seen them floating around the tower at night. But they leave us Monks alone. They seem to respect that we are here to worship Pokemon, like my Bellsprout here," the bald monk smiled happily, bringing his hands together. His Bellsprout did a quick jump, and scuttled around him happily. "But there's long been an infestation of Rattata. If you can get rid of a few, we would be glad to direct you to our leader, who would be happy to introduce you to our resident Gastly."
"It's a deal. Do you two want to help?" Eric asked eagerly, pulling out a small Pokeball. A press of a button, and the Pokeball enlarged to fit snugly in his right hand.
Mistral dug into her pouch, and pulled out a Pokeball. "Sure thing. Eugene?"
Again, Eugene shrugged, as if the idea didn't mean much. He, too, pulled out a Pokeball. "Alright."
"Go, Butterfree!"
Mistral's Pokeball was the first to hit the ground. It opened with a bright light, revealing the Pokemon inside. The Butterfree's wings glittered, with the many toxins its wings concealed.
"Alright, give it your best, Hitmonchan!"
To the amazement of the other two trainers, out of the Pokeball, sprung a tamed, rare, Hitmonchan. It took a few quick jabs at the air, and glanced back at its trainer. "We're looking for Rattata. Mistral's Butterfree will stun them, and I want you to help Eric's Pokemon."
It took the orders with an understanding nod, and looked up, waiting for the Butterfree.
However, Eric was too busy scanning the Pokemon to bother summoning his own just yet.
~"Butterfree, a butterfly Pokemon. Its wings hold a special powder that can do a variety of things to the opponant. It tends to eat Oddish for its diet, but the Oddish, in turn, is able to spread its seeds."~
~"Hitmonchan, a punching Pokemon. The Hitmonchan's jabs are incredibly powerful, but its kicks are weak. A trained Hitmonchan can focus energy into elemental attacks."~
"Eric! Put that thing down and bring out your Pokemon so we can start!" Mistral demanded, looking irritated, as if his scanning of her Pokemon had insulted her.
"Yeah. Sure. Alrighty, then. Go, Mankey!" His Pokeball hit the ground, and out popped the pig-monkey Pokemon that Eric had caught only the previous night. It glanced around, in shock, then quickly let out a screech, rushing off around the room.
"CONTAIN YOUR MANKEY!" a monk shouted, hunching over, as the Mankey climbed atop him, slapping him silly over its bald head. "Ah! Mankey, return!" The red beam of light shot out of his Pokeball, only to strike the wall.. the Mankey didn't seem to want to go back in quite yet. Not until the job was done. The Mankey sped off behind the supports for the tower, and soon, it was raining Rattata.
"MANKEY!"
"Aw, damn.. this can't be good," Eric sighed, slapping his forehead. The Mankey, satisfied with what it had done, quickly returned to the monk to give him another good slapping around. This time, however, Eric managed to catch the Mankey in the red light, returning it to the confines of its Pokeball.
Mistral helped the monk up, brushing him off. "Aiyah. That was a most terrifying experience.." The monk let out a gasp, and clutched his heart, trying to catch his breath.
"Sorry."
"Yes, yes.. You've done enough damage for one day. Go to the top of the tower, and visit our leader, Li," the monk gasped, leaning against the wall. "Quick, before he decides to release that Mankey again."
-----
The top room was definetely interesting, compared to all the other bland rooms. Scrolls of ancient texts lined the walls, and more Bellsprout statues littered the room than any of the previous ones. A monk, looking much like the others, was seated between two large Bellsprout statues, meditating. His eyes opened, as the three trainers entered the room.
"Ah. Welcome, my friends, to Sprout Tower. My name is Li.. I was informed by the others that you helped us lessen the Rattata population in our tower," Li began, clasping his hands together peacefully.
Eric nudged Eugene gently in the side. "This guy don't miss a beat, does he?"
"I normally make trainers fight my Pokemon.. but for today, i'll make an exception, for your act of selfless kindness. First, take this HM.." Li smiled, producing a small, cube-like machine. He flicked it over towards Eugene, who caught it, looking at it. There was a small sticker on the front that read, 'HM 05: Flash', informing the trainer what move it taught when used. "Second, I was to introduce you to our neighborly Gastly. He's out alot more than the other Gastly are, and much more tame. You'll find that, if you can catch him, he will be a vital addition to your quest."
Before the monk was finished talking, Eric's Slowpoke was out, and looking around in confusion. Not like that was a rare thing.
"Gastly! Come meet our visitors!"
Out of the wall, came a small black ball.. it soon produced two white eyes, with beady little pupils, and a slit for a mouth, in which two fangs slid out, in a vampiric look. It began sprouting an odd purplish smoke, before looking at the trainers before him.
"Gastly, these trainers would like to try to capture you," Li informed the Pokemon, releasing his hands from their grip on each other. "I'm sure you'll find them most interesting to fight.."
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End Chapter 4