Episode 262: Mossdeep Trouble
Night had come as Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth had finally arrived in Mossdeep City and made their way to the Pokémon Center. Meowth was still distraught about losing Jessie and James, but he was coping with it as best as he could."Finally, made to Mossdeep City," Sora said as his stomach growls. "And not a moment too soon since I'm starving," Sora said.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu said.
"Well, we had quite a day," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"Yeah, quite a day," Meowth said.
Kairi looked at Meowth and she fell sorry for him.
"Meowth, I know it's been pretty hectic for you. But I promise that Sora and I will take care of you. Right Sora?" Kairi asked, giving her boyfriend a stern look. Sora knew better than to argue with that look.
"Yeah. We'll do what we can," Sora said.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"And I did mean what I said, I mean, I would be a pretty big hypocrite if I went back on my word," Sora said. Meowth's stomach starts growling.
"Oh, I'm starving," Meowth said.
"Come on. Let's get you something to eat," Kairi said, holding out her hand. The scratch cat Pokémon placed his paw in her hand and they went to the mess hall for some dinner. Meowth ended up scarfing down food faster than a Munchlax.
"Take it easy, Meowth, or else you'll-" Sora told Meowth started choking, "choke." Pikachu gave Meowth a heimlich maneuver. The piece of food came out his throat as Breath took some water and chugged it. "Better?"
"Yeah," Meowth said. He turned to Pikachu. "Thanks for that."
"Don't mention it. Just didn't want to see your face turn blue." - Pikachu subtitle.
"I appreciate it," Meowth said. He took a bite of a hamburger.
"When was the last time you had a good decent meal?" Kairi asked.
"Not counting the meals that you stole," Sora added.
"Don't really remember. Mostly all I had were some pizza and some canned seafood. I mean sure, being a cat Pokémon I like the stuff, but it doesn't fill ya up," Meowth said.
"Doesn't sound filling, but the pizza part is good," Sora said.
"Just why were you with Team Rocket to begin with?" Kairi asked.
"Okay, the boss, Giovanni, has a thing for cat Pokémon, so he would have me on his lap and he would rub my fur. He has gentle hands. And then one day, some snobby Persian comes along and takes my spot. And then, I'm out on the road to swipe some Pokémon along with Jessie and James, and then we met you two," Meowth explained.
"And set your sights on taking Pikachu," Sora commented.
"Yeah, but we stopped caring about that when we found out the boss dropped us like a sack of rotten potatoes," Meowth said.
"Why were you in the Hoenn region? Team Rocket doesn't have any base of operations here," Kairi pointed out.
"The boss wanted us to keep tabs on Team Aqua and Team Magma, only to find out it was a wild goose chase. So, we decided that we would make them pay for it," Meowth said.
"So, they abandoned you, just like that?" Sora asked, feeling disgusted by their betrayal.
"That's a terrible thing to do," Kairi said.
"Tell me about it. There are some members in there who would sell out their own mothers just to make a clean getaway. It goes to show you, there's no trusting people like them," Meowth said.
"I wouldn't trust them as far as I can throw a baseball," Sora said.
"Same here," Kairi said.
"Pika," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"Anyway, thanks for letting me come along with ya. I mean it," Meowth said.
"Not a problem," Sora said.
"It wouldn't be right if we left you with nowhere to go," Kairi said.
"Anyway, enough about the past. Let's focus on right now. I have a Gym battle coming up," Sora said.
"That's right and I have to train for the Grand Festival," Kairi said.
"You know, I heard that the Gym Leader uses Psychic Type Pokémon. What do you have to use against that?" Meowth asked. Sora stroked his chin.
"Let's see, the obvious bet would be Ghost and Dark Types, so Banette, Dusclops, Sableye, Nuzleaf, Crawdaunt, Mightyena, and Mimikyu are those Types exactly. I also have Vikavolt, Dustox and Armaldo since they're Bug Type Pokémon. But the problem with that is Dustox is a Poison Type Pokémon too," Sora said.
"Which ones do you have in mind?" Kairi asked.
"I haven't decided yet, so I'll put that on hold until I make up my mind," Sora said.
"Good thinking," Kairi said.
"At least he thinks things through unlike Jessie," Meowth said in his thoughts. Meowth remembered how much of Jessie's plans would end up failing and the results rather end up humiliating. After dinner Sora laid down on one of the beds in the Pokémon Center with a full belly. Kairi sat down next to her and she giggled.
"I don't think I'm getting up," Sora said.
"That means you're an easy target for this," Kairi said, starting to tickle her boyfriend. Sora playfully flail around as he laughed. Pikachu and Angel smile affectionately as Meowth just tilted his head.
"Come on, Kairi! Stop!" Sora said, laughing.
"No, it's fun," Kairi playfully said. She laughs as well as Sora rolls and he falls off the bed. "You okay?"
"I'm fine," Sora said, getting back up. "I think you play too rough.
"No, you just flail around just like a Bonsly, but that's not your fault, but it's your fault for falling off the bed," Kairi said. Sora smiled sheepishly and he takes off his shoes. Kairi looked over to Meowth. "Would you like to lay on my lap, Meowth?"
"I dunno, wouldn't he be jealous?" Meowth asked.
"It's fine. You said your old boss would pet you, so I'm willing to do what he wouldn't. So come here," Kairi said. Meowth comes to Kairi and lays down her lap. She began to rub her hands against Meowth's fur as gently as she could. Meowth started to smile as he found the feel of her touch to his liking.
"Uh, Kairi, right?" Meowth asked.
"Yes," Kairi said.
"I'm not dead, am I?" Meowth asked.
"No," Kairi said.
"Then, why do I feel like I'm in heaven?" Meowth asked. He sighs in pleasure. "A little to the left." Kairi moved her hand a little bit.
"Here?" Kairi asked.
"Just a bit higher," Meowth said. She moved her hand a little bit higher. "Oh yeah, that's the spot." Meowth was blissed. "You're pretty gentle."
"It works if you know how to handle Pokémon when you're little," Kairi said.
"Yeah, it shows. You must do the same with Pikachu and that Eevee," Meowth said. He looked at the Pokémon couple and felt envious. "Gotta admit, but they're lucky. Just like you two."
"I appreciate it, Meowth," Kairi said.
"Yeah, Jessie used to say that you two didn't stand a Snorunt's chance in Hell, but what did she know? I always thought you were made for each other, just like peanut butter and jelly. James often thought the same thing, but he used bananas," Meowth stated.
"Sounds like Jessie didn't have some good relationships," Kairi said.
"Mostly because of her hostile personality. Also, you remember that Jessibelle. Man, if I was engaged to her, I'd run away too," Meowth said.
"At least he won't have to worry about her now. Unless she'll be chasing after his ghost," Kairi said.
"Yeah. At least they're together in death as they would in life," Meowth said. "I was certain that they were going to get married and have lots and lots babies." Both Sora and Kairi were surprised by this bit of news. Pikachu and Angel shared their surprise.
"You mean they're together?" Kairi asked in surprise.
"Thought I mentioned before," Meowth said.
"I think I would know if you did," Sora said.
"But good for them," Kairi said. "I thought there was something going on back at the Fallarbor Contest." Meowth felt sheepish about the phony PokéBlock scam back then.
"Say, isn't already bedtime?" Meowth asked with a pretended yawn. "We should hit the sack."
"Good idea. I could rest up for up for my Gym battle," Sora said. The couple climbed into bed. Pikachu and Angel did the same thing. Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel looked right at Meowth. "You can join in too." Meowth smiled as he climbed in bed and laid down between the couple. "Goodnight, Kairi."
"Goodnight, Sora," Kairi said. She and Sora kiss each other goodnight as Pikachu and Angel did the same thing. "Goodnight Meowth."
"Night," Meowth said before drifting off into sleep.
Over in Kanto, Jessie, James, Genghis, and Kahnnie had arrived in a port in Vermillion City.
"This is where we depart," Genghis said.
"Just be careful on the inside," Jessie said.
"You do the same thing. Also, be sure to set up a schedule for the wedding," Kahnnie said.
"Don't worry, Kahnnie. When this is over, I'll make you my maid-of-honor," Jessie said.
"And Genghis, you'll be my best man," Jessie said.
With that done, Team Anti-Rocket separate and begin their operations to destroy Team Rocket once and for all.
In Giovanni's office, Matori walked in with a bit of news.
"Giovanni, sir. I have just received word that the Team Magma and Team Aqua organizations has disbanded," Matori announced.
"Such a shame. They would have been valuable allies. But there are always Teams Galactic, Plasma, and Flare. Which reminds me, how is the project coming along?" Giovanni asked.
"It'll take some time. Since Jessie's Arbok and James's Weezing and Victreebel still haven't been found, we have begun to find some subjects to test it. We had little success," Matori said.
"Be sure that it'll be ready," Giovanni instructed.
"Yes sir. I'll keep tabs on it and report to you regularly," Matori said, taking her leave. Giovanni pets his Persian affectionately.
"It'll be worth it when our project is complete. Team Galactic, Team Plasma, and Team Flare will be most impressed. Along with our mysterious new partners, whoever they are," Giovanni said. Persian purs in anticipation.
On the next morning, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth woke up feeling refreshed. Meowth was especially refreshed having finally to have a night's worth of sleep.
"Ah, that was the best sleep that I had since ever," Meowth said. He ended up doing a stretch.
"Thought you would be up all night," Sora said.
"Not me since I'm used to be awake during the day," Meowth said.
"So, how about some breakfast? I know you could use some," Kairi offered. Meowth's mouth began to water at the thought of having a real breakfast. He wondered what he should get. Maybe a hamburger patty with a side of eggs and bacon. Blueberry pancakes swimming with maple syrup and topped with whipped cream. Or maybe some Belgium waffles with melting butter and the same maple syrup.
"Ooh, I feel like a fox in a chicken coop, I don't know which one I want," Meowth said almost drooling.
Once breakfast was over and done with, Meowth was very satisfied as he rubbed his belly.
"I can see that you enjoyed that meal, Meowth," Kairi pointed out.
"The food in that mess hall is much better than all that stuff I used to eat while we were crooks," Meowth said.
"You better start getting used to it because it's a good way to start any morning," Sora said.
"So, any idea on where the Gym is?" Meowth asked.
"I think I would know," a new voice spoke from nowhere. It turned out that it belonged toba lanky teen wearing a blue and white stripped shirt showing his belly and a pair of blue jeans and sandals. "But ya have to beat me to get the answer. Also, let's make it interesting."
"What?" Sora asked.
"If I win, then you have to give me that talking Meowth," the teen proposed. Meowth winced at the proposition
"Don't let him take me!" Meowth begged.
"Don't worry, Meowth, he's not going to have you," Sora assured the scratch cat Pokémon. "I'll battle you if you want, but you can't have Meowth. Also, you have to keep your word about showing us the direction of the Gym if I win."
"Sure, why not? Let's make it a double battle. But you have to use that Meowth in battle!" The teen said. Sora looked at Meowth. "I tried my best to keep you out of it."
"Just my luck," Meowth groaned.
Sora and the teen got into position to battle as Kairi watches. The teen takes out two Great Balls and prepares to toss them.
"Now here we go!" The teen proclaimed. "Go! Golem! Probopass!" He threw the Great Balls and out came his Golem and a Pokémon that resembles a Nosepass, but small round eyes, a red nose that is large in proportion to its body, and a bushy black mustache that appears to consist of iron filings. These iron filings appear to be attracted by its magnetic nose. It has three small objects on its sides and back. It has a big red hat-like magnet on top of its head. Sora takes out his Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.
Probopass, the Compass Pokémon
The evolved form of Nosepass
Type: Rock/Steel
Probopass uses its three units known as Mini-Noses with magnetism to attack its opponents from three different directions. It also radiates a powerful magnetic field that nearby electric appliances become unstable.
"Man, Meowth is gonna have a hard time with both of them since they're Rock Type Pokémon. I know which one to back him up," Sora said, took out a Pokéball and threw it. "Swampert! Go!" Swampert came out ready to battle. He glanced over to Meowth not trusting him one bit.
"Don't look at me like that. Like it or not, I'm on your side," Meowth said. Sora went to Swampert.
"Look Swampert, I know you don't trust him, but give him a chance. Just work with him, okay?" Sora asked. Swampert didn't like this one bit, but he had no choice but to go along with it.
"Swamp," Swampert said reluctantly. Mewoth knew he was going to have a difficult teammate.
"I'm screwed," Meowth said.
"No you're not, Meowth! Just do your best and you'll do fine!" Sora said. Meowth looked right at him. "I have total faith in you!" Sora never thought he would say it to someone who used to be his enemy, but Meowth isn't an enemy anymore.
"I can't believe what I'm hearing. Sora has total faith in me? Wish I can say about Swampert. Not to mention, all of other Pokémon. Come to think of it, I know not one of them will be tickled pink to see me," Meowth said in his thoughts. He imagined him being burned by the Fire Types and drenched by the Water Types. Also Sora's Lycanroc using him as a chew toy. "Ooh, the endless and painful possibilities."
"Probopass and Golem! Begin with your Rock Slide! Aim them at that Meowth!" The lanky teen ordered. Both Pokémon hurled rocks aiming at Meowth.
"Dodge it, Meowth!" Sora called out.
"How?" Meowth asked.
"Run around!" Sora said. Meowth ran around as the rocks had missed their intended target. Meowth was caught in a rock and a hard place as the rocks were coming down on him fast.
"Whoa!" Meowth exclaimed. The rocks came down as Meowth zips and dashed "A-E-I-O-U and sometimes Y"! A rock smacks him on the head. "I'm going to need an bag of ice for this headache."
"Meowth, use your Bite on Golem, and Swampert, your Hammer Arm on Probopass!" Sora ordered.
"Bite on Golem, he says. It would be easier if I could get close enough," Meowth said. "Here goes nothing." Meowth ran towards the megaton Pokémon to land a bite as Swampert comes at Probopass and swings his arm at the compass Pokémon.
"Probopass! Use Magnet Bomb! Golem! Use your Heavy Slam on Meowth!" The lanky teen ordered. Probopass fires Magnet Bomb and it struck the mud fish Pokémon hard. Golem was coming down fast as Meowth stops in his tracks and started to run in the other way. He sighs in relief of having to barely avoid Golem's Heavy Slam. The teen laughs. "You think I'm amateur that you would think I would end up making it easier for you?"
"I would if it wasn't a challenge," Sora taunted. "Swampert! Muddy Water!" Swampert fires Muddy Water to strike at Probopass. The compass Pokémon got struck by the attack. "Now use Mud Bomb!" Swampert fires Mud Bomb and it struck Probopass again.
"Probopass! Use your Mini-Noses!" The lanky teen instructed. The Mini-Noses go everywhere and struck Swampert from left to right. The Mini-Noses even went for Meowth.
"Ouch! Ouch! OUCH!" Meowth yelped. "Oh, this is much harder than I thought." Sora had faith in him and he didn't want to let him down, so he had to do something about those Mini-Noses. "What to do? What to do?" He looked at the Mini-Noses and he got an idea. He could taunt Probopass and have them chase him around. "That's it!" Meowth stood in front of Probopass just when it was gonna finish Swampert off. Meowth stood in front of the compass Pokémon. "Hey Probopass, your mustache is the ugliest thing I have ever seen! I seen a better mustache on those novelty glasses. Probopass got pissed off and sent the Mini-Noses to strike Meowth. He started running for it. Sora and Swampert were at a loss to what Meowth was doing. Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel were watching as Meowth was having the Mini-Noses follow him. Meowth ran towards Golem and stopped. Meowth blew a raspberry at the Mini-Noses. "I'm right here! I'm right here!" The Mini-Noses darted towards Meowth and he dodges at the last minute and they strike Golem instead. Golem had been taken down.
"No! My Golem!" The teen cried.
"Great thinking, Meowth!" Sora said. Meowth felt proud having to be praised by Sora. "Okay Swampert! Hammer Arm!" Swampert swings his arm right on Probopass and knocked it out. Meowth was happy to see that he had won for a change.
"This must be the kinks for siding with the good guys," Meowth said.
"No! And I wanted that talking Meowth so badly!" The teen cried.
"I won, so keep your word. Where's the Mossdeep City Gym?" Sora asked. The teen sighed.
"Just down this road, make a turn to the left and you'll see it," the teen said.
"Okay," Sora said.
With that done, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth headed down to the Mossdeep City Gym to win his seventh Hoenn Gym Badge.
"Gotta admit, I thought I was gonna blow it on my very first battle with you," Meowth said.
"Told you that you'll do fine," Sora said.
"I know I had faith in you, Meowth," Kairi said.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said.
"It was clever of you to use that Probopass's things against it," Sora said.
"I just tricked it to get them to chase me," Meowth said.
"And it worked," Sora said. Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel,and Meowth had reached the Mossdeep City Gym. "And here it is, the Mossdeep City Gym." He turned to his partner. "Ready, Pikachu?"
"Pika," Pikachu nodded.
"We're rooting for you Sora," Kairi said. "You too, Pikachu."
"Eevee!" Angel said.
"Knock 'em dead!" Meowth added.
Just when they were about to go in, a woman with dark blue hair wearing a lime green blouse, a cyan long skirt and a pair of glasses came running out of the Gym in such a hurry.
"Oh dear, oh dear, I need to hurry!" The woman said. He passes by the couple and the Pokémon. "Hello, goodbye!"
"Um, excuse us!" Sora called out. The woman made a stop to turn and look at them.
"Yes, what is it?" The woman asked.
"I came here for a Gym battle, so we were wondering if you would point us to the Gym Leader?" Sora asked.
"There's no one inside at all. So, I imagine everyone has already gone to the space center," the woman said.
"Space Center?" Sora asked.
"Yes, for a space shuttle launch going on today," the woman said.
"A space shuttle launch is today?" Kairi asked.
"Yes. Everyone is going to be there. And that's why I'm in such a hurry. Bye, gotta run!" The woman said.
"I didn't know there was a space center in Mossdeep City," Meowth said.
"Me neither," Kairi said, pulling out a guidebook. "Here it is. According to the guidebook, Mossdeep City is known for its Space Center."
"I never would have figured that," Sora said.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"That would also mean that there are loads of planets that has loads of extraterrestrial Pokémon living out there," Meowth said.
"Just like that Deoxys we saw not too long ago," Sora said as he remembered the battle between Rayquaza and Deoxys. Deoxys did win the battle as Rayquaza sank into the sea until it was healed and quelled the fighting between Primal Groudon and Primal Kyogre when they were trying to stop Team Magma and Team Aqua. "I don't even wanna think about how ugly it would be if Rayquaza hadn't come back and put a stop to the fighting just like before."
"I don't either. I'm just glad it's over," Kairi said.
"Yeah, I just wish Jessie and James would say the same if there were still with us," Meowth said sadly.
"I know," Sora said. "Anyway, let's head on over to the Space Center and see for ourselves. It'll be loads of fun, also there's a chance that we'll bump into the Gym Leader there."
"That'll be like looking for a needle in a really big haystack, because we don't know who the Gym Leader is or what the guy looks like or what kind of powerful Pokémon he might have," Meowth pointed out.
"He's right, Sora. It could be anyone inside the place," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"We can cross that bridge when we come to it. Also, seeing that shuttle launching could be a really good experience," Sora said. Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth like the idea and decided to go along with it. They started to make their way to the Space Center to find the Gym Leader and witness the shuttle launch. They would be killing two birds with one stone.
Over to the Space Center, the commander and his crew were going over the manual settings.
"Launch in T minus ninety minutes and counting!" One of the staff announced.
"Main thursters and secondary boosters, check. Onboard optical sensors, check. All flight sytems are a go. How is our com linkup, Rachel?" The commander asked. In mission control, the woman from earlier speaks into the com.
"You're coming in loud and clear, Commander Jim. And confirm visual," Rachel said.
"Visual confirmed. That's it for the preflight checklist run. I'm leaving the deck now and heading back for the command center," Commander Jim said.
"Roger," Rachel and the staff confirmed.
Commander Jim stepped out and is greeted by Rachel.
"So, you think the kids are gonna be here to witness the launch?" Commander Jim asked.
"Tate and Liza wouldn't miss this for the world. Even though they have their differences, they both can agree that you have the best job there is," Rachel said.
"Where are they, anyway?" Commander Jim asked.
"They're probably having their practice battle again. No matter how many times Tate tries, he could never get the best of Liza," Rachel said.
"I know he'll do it one day. He just needs to be patient," Commander Jim said.
"I know. And Liza should ease up on the tautings," Rachel said.
Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth had entered the Space Center and entered a room filled with astronaut training machines.
"Just look at those gizmos," Meowth said.
"They must be for training astronauts," Kairi pointed out.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"Must be really cool to be able to go out into outer space," Sora said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said.
"I know, right? And I bet space is really pretty just like the night sky," Kairi said.
"Roaming through the stars, the galaxies, and the rest of the universe. The first stop I would make is to the moon to see if the moon really made of cheese," Meowth said, making Sora laugh.
"Meowth, the moon isn't made of cheese. It's just a big floating rock just like the planets all around," Sora said, laughing.
"Hey, don't laugh, I was little when I heard it from some little kids!" Meowth argued.
"Pika, Pika, Pi, Pikachu," Pikachu deadpanned.
"Don't you make a crack at me! And what is that supposed to mean?!" Meowth exclaimed.
"What did Pikachu just say to you, Meowth?" Kairi asked curiously.
"He just said that I still believe it just like a little kid would," Meowth said.
"Eevee, Eevee, vee," Angel said.
"Thank you! And yes, that was a mean thing to say to me," Meowth translated.
"Eevee, vee, Eevee, Eevee," Angel said.
"It wasn't funny at all!" Meowth exclaimed. Sora and Kairi could only laugh. "Why do I feel like I'm gonna be the butt of the jokes?" Meowth huffed as he saw some glowing through some small windows. "Hey, what's that?" Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel follows the scratch cat Pokémon to the windows and saw what looks like a Pokémon battle going on. The battle was between a Solrock and a Lunatone. Surrounding the battlefield was four Baltoy using their psychic powers. Battling with each other were two kids that almost looked identical, one being a boy and one being a girl. They both had dark blue hair, and gray eyes. The girl has pigtails. They both wore an outfit that consists of a puffy-sleeved white and blue shirt with two stars on it and black cuffs, matching blue pants with a planet-like symbol on the thighs, and blue flats. The boy has green stars on his chest while the girl has magenta stars on hers. Their ankles appears to be strapped in shackles.
"Solrock! Use Stone Edge!" The boy ordered.
"Lunatone! Stone Edge!" The girl ordered. Solrock and Lunatone both Solrock and Lunatone used Stone Edge and they both collide into each other just like actual metoers. "You'll have to better than that, Tate." Tate growled in frustration.
"I'll show you, Liza! Solrock! Sandstorm!" Tate ordered. Solrock uses Sandsotrm to cover the whole battlefield with a sandstorm, but Lunatone isn't the least bit phased. Tate was stunned to see how it failed.
"Have you forgotten? Sandstorm won't even make my Lunatone flinch," Liza taunted. "Lunatone, use Psychic!" Lunatone uses its telepathic attack and sends the sun-like meteorite Pokémon flying against a wall.
"Hang in there, Solrock!" Tate called out.
"Those two are going at it like cats and dogs," Meowth said.
"Let's see how he makes a comeback," Sora said.
"Counterattack with Solar Beam!" Tate ordered. Solrock begins to build up energy to fire Solar Beam.
"Gotcha now! Lunatone! Use Stone Edge!" Liza ordered. Lunatone fired Stone Edge and it hits Solrock on the spot.
"Fire it now, Solrock!" Tate ordered.
"Lunatone! Fire Ice Beam!" Liza ordered. Lunatone fires Ice Beam and Solrock fires Solar Beam. Both beams collides with each other. Lunatone's Ice Beam pushes Solrock's Solar Beam back and it freezes it into a block of ice. Tate knew he lost the battle. He calls Solrock back. "Don't worry about it. We'll get 'em next time." He growls in anger. "I was so close!"
"Yes, but close just doesn't cut it," Liza taunted. "And how many times in a row does that make it?"
"If you hadn't threw that Stone Edge at me, I could've absorbed enough sunlight!" Tate argued.
"You should have known by now that Solar Beam takes long to charge up. And that made you an open target! You're never gonna beat me until you get your timing just right," Liza countered.
Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth walked in the battlefield.
"Hey there," Sora greeted. The twins gasped when they all walked on and started to float. "Hey! What's going on?!"
"Don't move, I'll be right up!" Liza said, undoing her shackles. She heads right up for Sora. She grabs him by the arm and she blushed a bit as she became captivated by his cute face. "Okay?"
"Yeah, but why are we floating like this?" Sora asked.
"It's our Baltoy using Confusion, so it creates zero gravity," Liza said.
"That explains it," Sora said. He chuckled a bit. Tate floats up to Kairi and takes her by the hand. Tate became captivated by Kairi's beauty.
"Hope you're doing okay, miss," Tate said.
"Thank you," Kairi said.
"Anyway, my name's Tate, and what's your name?" Tate asked.
"Kairi," she replied.
"So, her name is pretty as her face," Tate said in his thoughts as his face turned red.
"I'm Sora," he introduced.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said.
"As in Sora Ketchum, right?" Liza asked.
"Uh-huh," Sora said.
"Thought you looked familiar. The Pokémon League Champion of Kanto and Johto. And you're even cuter in person," Liza said in a flirting tone. Sora blushed as Kairi started to get jealous. Meowth started to snicker earning a glare from Pikachu and Angel. Not wanting to earn a shock and a Headbutt, Meowth kept his mouth shut. "Anyway, my name is Liza and this is my little brother, Tate." Tate became infuriated.
"Why do you always have to introduce me as your little brother? We both share the same birthday!" Tate argued.
"Only because it makes you mad, also because I was born a few minutes before you," Liza taunted. Tate growled.
"Why did I have to be born second? If only it had been the other way around and then I'd be the big brother and you would be my little sister!" Tate vented. Sora and Kairi didn't want to risk saying the wrong thing, so they thought it was best to stay out of the squabbles between brothers and sisters.
"Uh, I hate to interuppt this little family fued, but I was wondering how much longer are we gonna be floating like this?" Meowth asked. Tate and Liza were stunned to hear a talking Meowth.
"No, it's not a parlor trick, it really does talk," Sora said.
"Wow, a talking Meowth. That is so cool!" Tate said.
"And I thought Pokémon couldn't talk," Liza said.
"Just not to people," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"Anyway, we were here looking around and we thought maybe we could have a word with the Gym Leader about having a Gym battle with me," Sora said.
"Sure, Sora, but wouldn't it be better if you waited until after the launch?" Liza asked.
"I'm cool with it if he is," Sora said.
"You mean when they're cool with it," Tate corrected him. Sora raised a brow.
"They?" Sora asked.
"You don't know it, but you already know the Gym Leaders. Tate and I act as co-Gym Leaders for the Mossdeep City Gym," Liza said.
"And we now offically accept your challnge-" Tate started.
-"of Sora Ketchum, the Pokémon League Champion!" Tate and Liza said in unison.
"Two Gym Leaders of the same Gym? How does that fly?" Sora asked.
Tate and Liza took them on a tour of the Space Center, showing them around their favorite spots. The twins explained that their Baltoy are used to simulate a Pokémon battle in outer space. They also told them that their dad is the Space Center's director and lead astronaut. The couple were astounded to hear it. Tate and Liza were stunned to hear when Sora and Kairi were a couple. They were both shot down, but they bounced right back.
"Sora, I thought I would tell you that it'll be much diffrent than the Gym battles you're used to," Liza said.
"How different?" Sora asked.
"Tate will use Solrock and I will be using Lunatone, so it'll be a double battle between three trainers," Liza explained.
"So, I'll be up against the both of you?" Sora asked.
"Yup," Liza said.
"Just don't expect it to be a walk in a park," Tate warned. Sora took out his Pokédex and thought about which ones to use. He figured that Solrock and Lunatone are both Rock and Psychic Types, he thought of going with Pokémon that has an edge over both. He exchanged Vibrava and Metang for Crawdaunt and Sableye. He thought about of using Nuzleaf since Grass Type Pokémon has an edge over Rock Types as well, but he decided to save Nuzleaf for his next battle along with Lombre, Manectric, and Vikavolt.
"Done," Sora said.
"So, which ones will you be using, Sora?" Tate asked.
"You're gonna have to wait and see for our battle," Sora said.
"We can respect that, Sora. It'll be better for us to be in suspense when you present to us tomorrow," Liza said. Sora nodded in agreement.
"So, that's how he was able to get them here so fast. If we were still bad guys, we would have made an attempt to swipe his Pokédex and then he have our tushies handed to us," Meowth said in his thoughts. "Good thing we turned over a new leaf when we saw Genghis and Kahnnie. Speaking of which, what happened with them?" Meowth had to wonder what happened to Genghis and Kahnnie since he hadn't seen them since their fight with Team Magma and Team Aqua.
It was getting close to launching time as the twins brought thr couple and the Pokémon to witness the shuttle launch. Commander Jim smiled as he saw his kids.
"Liza, Tate. I knew you wouldn't miss this for anything," Commander Jim said.
"You know it, dad!" Liza said.
"It's way too good to miss!" Tate said. Commander Jim smiled. He notices Sora, Kairi, and the Pokémon with them.
"Who are your new friends?" Commander Jim asked.
"I'm Sora and this is my girlfriend Kairi. We came here together so I challenged your kids into a Gym battle," Sora said.
"I thought you were a challenger. Just don't give my kids too much trouble in your battle," Commander Jim said.
"I'm more worried about them giving me trouble," Sora said, making the head astronaut laugh.
"It was nice meeting you. I'm going to head off to the shuttle, so could you join your mom in mission control?" Commander Jim asked.
"Sure thing, dad," Tate said.
"Just come back to us in one piece," Liza added.
"I pormise," Commander Jim said.
They went into the control room, figuring that the woman they bumped into earlier was the twins mother. She recognized the kids and Pokémon from earlier.
"Hello again. Come here to witness the shuttle launch?" Rachel asked.
"Uh, yeah," Sora said.
"Mom, this is Sora," Liza said.
"And he came all this way to challenge us to a Gym battle," Tate said.
"I thought as much," Rachel said.
"Rachel, your husband had just entered the shuttle grounds. We're ready to launch at anytime," one of the staff said.
"Then, let's get the show on the road," Rachel said. Commander Jim and his crew entered the shuttle and strapped themselves in as they prepared to launch. They do a routine check of the equipment as the clock runs.
"T minus ten seconds and counting," another staff member said.
"Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. Blast off!" Rachel called out. The engines started roaring as the shuttle had lifted itself into the air. "We have lift off!"
All the staff members all cheer as the mission has officially begun.
"Dad has blasted off into space," Tate said.
"To boldly go where no man has gone before," Sora said.
"To go and discover space Pokémon," Kairi said.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
The twins both turn to Sora with grins on their faces.
"So, Sora, since the space shuttle's been launched, how about that battle?" Liza asked.
"You do remember that it'll be you against us," Tate reminded him.
"Oh, I haven't forgotten. Just don't throw any punches with me," Sora said.
"Wouldn't fream of it," Tate said.
"Just don't end up regretting it," Liza said.
With that said, Sora was now up against two Gym Leaders instead of just one. He knew it'll be a difficlt challenge despite Crawdaunt and Sableye being Dark, Water, and Ghost Type Pokémon. He was ready for them, but he had to be careful at the same time. On the very next morning, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, Angel, and Meowth all returned to the Mossdeep City Gym, ready to battle.
"Here we are. My seventh Hoenn Gym battle," Sora said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said.
"Just how is Sora gonna fair against those two since they'll be up against him right at the same time?" Meowth asked.
"Since Sora is up against Gym Leaders who happens to be twins, he knows it'll be a hard one. He was up against some tough Gym Leaders in the past. Whenever he gets into a fix, he finds a way to bounce back, I just know it," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"You're not just saying that just because he's your boyfriend, ain't ya? I mean, did you see how they battled yesterday? Those two are tough contenders," Meowth said.
"You're right about that. I have every bit of confidence in him," Kairi said. They entered the Gym and saw Tate and Liza waiting for him. They saw the gym looked like a second space center.
"Took you long enough, Sora," Liza said.
"Are you ready for your beating?" Tate asked.
"The battle hasn't even started yet and your already so cocky," Sora said. Rachel came in, acting as the referee for the battle.
"Listen, Sora, the Mossdeep City Gym battlefield includes not just the playing field you're used to, but also the planets floating in mid air," Rachel explained.
"What are the rules?" Sora asked.
"All battles here are modified into double battles. The Gym Leaders, Tate and Liza will be using Solrock and Lunatone while you, Sora, will be using two Pokémon to battle against them. Neither the Gym Leaders or the challenger will be allowed to substitute Pokémon during the battle. The battle will be over when both of either the Gym Leaders or the challenger's Pokémon are unable to battle further! Is that understood?" Rachel asked.
"Yes," Sora, Tate, and Liza agreed.
"How do those planets affect the battle?" Meowth asked.
"I have a feeling we're gonna find out," Kairi said.
"Sora, let out the two Pokémon you will be using," Rachel instructed. Sora took out his two Pokéballs and threw them.
"Go for it! Crawdaunt and Sableye!" Sora called out as Crawdaunt and Sableye both came out right at the same time. The twins both took out their Pokéballs and threw them.
"Solrock! Go!" Tate called out.
"I choose you, Lunatone!" Liza called out.
Both Pokémon came out right at the same exact time.
"Let the battle begin!" Rachel announced.
"Solrock! Use Stone Edge!" Tate ordered.
"Lunatone! You use Stone Edge too!" Liza ordered.
Both Solrock and Lunatone used Stone Edge at the same time and the rocks heads right towards both opponents.
"Sableye! Dodge and use Shadow Claw! Crawdaunt! You block with your Crabhammer!" Sora ordered. Sableye avoids Stone Edge as Crawdaunt bats the stones away with Crabhammer. Sableye swipes at Solrock with Shadow Claw.
"Dodge it!" Tate called out. Solrock avoids Sableye and slams into one of the planets instead. "Now use Sandstorm!" Solrock uses Sandstorm on Sableye and got pelted by the sand attack.
"Lunatone! Use Ice Beam on Crawdaunt!" Liza ordered. Lunatone fires Ice Beam right at the rogue Pokémon.
"Crawdaunt! Dodge with Dig!" Sora ordered. Crawdaunt digs into the battlefield to avoid Ice Beam.
"That Crawdaunt is gonna come out at any moment," Liza said.
"And when it does, we'll be ready," Tate said.
"Sableye! Use your Power Gem on Lunatone!" Sora ordered. Sableye fires Power Gem at the moon-shaped metoerite Pokémon.
"Dodge it, Lunatone!" Liza ordered. Lunatone avoids Sableye's Power Gem with ease.
"Man, this is even harder than I thought it was gonna be!" Sora said. Crawdaunt comes out of the ground. "Crawdaunt! Bubble Beam at Solrock!" Crawdaunt fires Bubble Beam right at the sun-shaped meteorite Pokémon.
"Solrock! Block with Psychic and send it back to Crawdaunt!" Tate ordered. Solrock blocks the bubbles and sends them back right at the crustacean Pokémon, getting pelted by his own attack.
"Wow, that Solrock just blocked Bubble Beam with Psychic," Meowth said, amazed.
"They knew Psychic Type attacks won't phase them since they're both Dark Types. Using it on Crawdaunt's attack is a clever strategy," Kairi said.
"That was good thinking using Psychic to block Bubble Beam," Liza complimented her brother.
"Thanks. I know you would have done the same thing," Tate said. "Ready for our combo attack?"
"Sure am," Liza nodded. "Lunatone! Use your Ice Beam!"
"Solrock! you use Solar Beam!" Tate ordered.
Solrock and Lunatone fire their beam attacks right at the same exact time. Knowing there was no way of blocking it and how powerful they were in a combination attack both Sableye and Crawdaunt would be taken out right at the exact same time, unless he thought of something fast. Before the combo attack could land a hit, Crawdaut grabs Sableye and headed for the hole he dug earlier in the battle and headed inside the hole. Both attacks had landed a hit. Sora and Pikachu braced themselves as the blast had occurred. Kairi, Angel, and Meowth did the same thing. Tate and Liza smiled, feeling confident that their attacks had landed. It creates a giant dust cloud, covering the whole battlefield.
"That should do it," Liza said.
"The end of the match!" Tate added. The expression of the twins had changed when their targets are nowhere in sight. "What?!"
"No way!" Liza gasped.
Sora knew Crawdaunt and Sableye had taken refuge underground. Both of Sora's Pokémon came out when they saw the dust had cleared.
"They avoided that?!" Tate exclaimed.
"How could that be?!" Liza exclaimed.
Sora looked at the battlefield and saw how Solrock and Lunatone battlefield. He figured out that it was three-dimensional, so he figured he could use that against them. He needed to use the right moves.
"Maybe, Bubble Beam all around," Sora said to himself. "Crawdaunt! Bubble Beam, but fire it everywhere!" Tate, Liza, and Meowth were confused by this strategy.
"Bubble Beam all over? Has he flipped his lid?" Meowth asked.
"If I know Sora and I do, he has an ace up his sleeve," Kairi said.
Crawdaunt fires Bubble Beam all over the battlefield as instructed. The bubbles go everywhere, catching Solrock and Lunatone off guard.
"Could he just be toying with us?" Tate asked.
"He's gotta be. Otherwise, he wouldn't have thought of this outrageous plan. Lunatone! Ice Beam! Freeze all those bubbles!" Lunatone fires Ice Beam to freeze the bubbles. The balls of ice starts falling, much to Sora's plan.
"Now use Crabhammer on the ice balls!" Sora ordered. Crawdaunt bats them with his pincers and they strike both Solrock and Lunatone, much to the dismay of the twin Gym Leaders.
"Now Sableye! Shadow Ball!" Sora ordered. Sableye forms Shadow Ball and hurls them at both Solrock and Lunatone.
"Crawdaunt! Use Razor Shell on Lunatone! Sableye! Use Shadow Claw on Solrock!" Sora ordered. Crawdaunt and Sableye used their attacks on the two meteorite Pokémon. That has earned Sora a double knockout.
"Solrock and Lunatone are both unable to battle! Crawdaunt and Sableye win! The challenger, Sora Ketchum wins the match!" Rachel announced.
"I don't believe it! Your boyfriend actually pulled it off!" Meowth said.
"Sora must have figured Lunatone would use Ice Beam to freeze Crawdaunt's Bubble Beam and used them to pelt Solrock and Lunatone. They both took loads of damage from those," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
Tate and Liza walk up to Sora with a chest in Tate's possession. Sora congratulated both Crawdaut and Sableye for the win.
"I knew I picked the right ones for this one," Sora said.
"Congratulations, Sora. You're even better than we thought you were," Liza said.
"And we thought you were good before," Tate added.
"So, here's a little something to prove that you battled the Mossdeep City Gym and won," Liza said.
"We're happy to give you the Mind Badge," Tate said, opening the chest and handing him a badge shaped like a heart. The top is colored pink and the bottom is colored yellow. There is a dark pink pearl in the center. Sora accepts his badge.
"Thanks you guys. I gotta be honest, I thought you had me when you fired Solar Beam and Ice Beam right at the same time. And I could see why you two are the Gym Leaders in Mossdeep City," Sora said. The twins smiled warmly. "Now, the next stop is in Sootopolis City for the final Hoenn Gym battle."
"That's right, there's only one more challenge since I already have all my Contest Ribbons," Kairi said.
"Good luck in the Grand Festival, Kairi," Liza said.
"And good luck in your next Gym battle, Sora," Tate said.
"Thanks, but we won't need luck," Sora said.
Now, with seven Gym Badges earned, Sora only needs one more to enter the Hoenn Pokémon League. Even though Wallace is no longer the Gym Leader there, he knew he won't find it so easy. He just needs to work on a plan on how he's going to win it. Also, how will Kairi manage in the Grand Festival? And who are these mysterious partners Giovanni spoke of? Those answers will come soon enough as the story continues.
How was that? I was thinking of having Sora and Kairi going through another interdimensional adventure, but mostly with characters from other video game series. I was thought of using Super Mario and the Legend of Zelda, maybe. Also, from Donkey Kong, Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man (original and X). That's going to take place after Sora and Kairi comes back to Kanto and dealing with Team Rocket, also adding some new Pokémon for Sora and Kairi to have. Let me know on what you think. Until then.