Pokémon Anime Remake- Indigo Plateau Cancelled and Replaced

by J.C Lambert

This is a remake of the beloved Pokemon anime, and plenty of changes have been made but the premise of the show and the characters will still represent those featured in Pokemon media. Discontinued and replaced by "Pokemon Anime Remastered", the new prologue is viewable on my stories.

6. Chapter 5: Mysteries of the Woods

Chapter 5: Mysteries of the Woods

And yes, I am aware that I misspelt 'odyssey', that was intentional. It's like 'odyssey' and 'oddity' combine, of course. Anyways, I was going to dedicate a piece of this opening to the genetic Pokémon that debuted in the last chapter but decided to just leave a statement in the reviews section instead. That will do just fine. All I will say is that what I am doing is nothing new to the franchise. Plus I am not claiming that this remake will be 'perfect' or better than the anime, which was never my intention. If that was what you want, I recommend checking out the series 'Road to be a Pokémon Master' by 'FanaticLAguy06'.

Anyways, I am more hopeful that I am doing characters their given justice. Ash is reckless and compassionate which admittedly can be a dangerous combination at times (that is kinda the point). Serena is kind, caring and sweet but very protective and often likes to try and see the best in other people. Lillie is shy and afraid of Pokémon due to past, hidden traumas and is socially inept. But is very comfortable around the people she is familiar with and can trust. Misty, is noticeably not as much as a brat as she can be in the original anime. This is partially due to how Ash didn't total her bike at the start of his adventure and because she is a little bit more level-headed. Kind of. Brock is… not much different. He's literally the perfect character type in the anime. Older, wiser and more like a father figure who helps others. Literally, that's as easy as it gets to write him. I will still do the Brock trope but it will usually be tamer.

Admittedly having five main characters travelling together will be a pain in the backside to write for… but hey, according to someone in the reviews, this is 'might as well be a terrible reboot' like 'lots of terrible shows'. I am learning while writing these chapters how to improve my work and better myself. I only ask for your patience please.

But hey, I appreciate people's kind words and suggestions. Plus fair and/ or constructive criticism. I want it to be clear, if you have questions about my intentions and little parts of the story, just ask in the reviews section or private message me (if you have an account). As long as it isn't some obscure question about cactus man in Hoenn… Harvey was it? And what he could do in the Sinnoh Region and it isn't a spoiler, I will do my best to give answers.

But let's get this show on the road! Chapter Five (Entry Six) Cerulean's Oddyssey

Now having escaped their almost burial site from Mt. Moon, the group sits down a little ways away from the cave. They had done plenty of running, battling and trying to survive. In fact, they did quite a bit of capturing as well.

They now sit at a table as they catch their break finally. Brock is sitting on one side with Misty to his right. Lillie and Serena are sitting on the other side with Lillie to Serena's left. Ash is at the top… or bottom of the table. As if he's the 'head of the table'. How subtle. So Ash has Serena on his left hand side and Misty on his right hand side.

With a chance to breath, Ash asks "Do you mind if I scan your Pokémon please Misty? For my Pokédex please?" as he glances over at the fisher.

Smiling, Misty laid her three Pokéballs on the wooden bench-included table. She says "Sure thing Ash. You do know that you can scan the Pokémon from inside of the balls right?"

This intrigues the boy as he asks "Really? That's awesome, thank you!" as he scans the three Pokéballs.

"Starmie, the Mysterious Pokémon, the evolved form of Staryu, a water and psychic type. Starmie swims through water by spinning its star-shaped body as if it were a propeller on a ship. The core at the centre of this Pokémon body glows in seven colours. Because of its luminous nature, this Pokémon has been given the nickname 'the gem of the sea',"

"Goldeen, the Goldfish Pokémon, a water type. Though it appears very elegant when swimming with fins unfurled, it can jab powerfully with its horn. When the weather grows warm, they form groups and swim upriver. This sight serves as a poetic reminder that spring has arrived"

Brock comments "Still a pure water type trainer then Misty? Like your" and gets cut off.

She glares at him and says "Well yep! Of course Starmie is a psychic type but they are all fine and amazing Pokémon. They are my specialty" with a small grin.

Ash doesn't seem to notice Misty's glare towards Brock but Serena catches it. She thinks to herself 'No seriously why does it seem like she's hiding something from us? He seems to be hinting at something but what?'

Serena then says to Ash "So Ash which Pokémon do you plan on using against… the Sensational Sisters gym Pokémon?"

Misty seems to tense up. She had known that as they were on the league challenge, of course they would need to go to her home city of Cerulean, however it didn't mean that she was excited at the prospect of doing so.

Ash takes about six or so seconds as he then responds "It is a water type gym. So Pikachu would be the logical answer, then Mankey is new so"

Serena cuts him off "You caught the Mankey? You mean the one that stole your oh so prized hat?" while smirking at him.

Ash takes a check and pats his hat, a treasured gift, then answers back "Meh, it was the 'safest' way to protect him from that" as he motions towards the exit of the death trap from which they had come from. He then continues "I was thinking of using Pikachu of course, but since Pidgeotto had to sit the last gym out, I wanted to use him"

Brock comments "Well in theory, the gym leaders Daisy, Lily and Violet will try to have counters to electric and grass type Pokémon. So maybe using Pidgeotto will be the right call against whichever one you end up facing"

Serena considers this as she looks at her own options. Bulbasaur would be the ideal choice but, as Brock said, they would have counters to such obvious strategies. So that leaves only Nidoran and Weedle. Weedle won't be able to stand much of a chance in the battle. He's too frail and slow to do much. Nidoran has speed, power and potential.

Serena says to the others "So Weedle is off the table. Which means if it is a two-on-two battle, Bulbasaur and Nidoran would be my ideal options in facing off against their water types"

Lillie and Misty seem quieter than usual. Both for their own reasons.

Lillie is quiet as she is still taking in the events of what happened in the caverns of Mt. Moon. Whatever that creature was… it wasn't natural. It seemed to be some demon-like thing. She thinks to herself 'Was that some next evolution for Pokémon? It seemed invincible. If Brock hadn't been there with Onix… Serena and I probably wouldn't have survived' as she thinks this, her right leg begins to shake. Not too much that everyone else would notice, but enough for one person to at least and one Pokémon as well.

Taking note of her friend, Serena thinks to herself 'She's still shaken up by what happened in there. I can't blame her either. So am I but of course she takes things like this much harder. She's vulnerable… and I need to protect her from that ever happening again. Somehow' she then moves her hand, under the table, to rub Lillie's hand as the girl's arms were positioned in a way where her hands were on her lap.

Lillie subtly glanced at her and gives a small smile.

Now while they had assumed that no one else had noticed Lillie's shaking, as mentioned before, a Pokémon did as well. Two actually. Pikachu is near the table, eating some of Brock's special food. The mouse saw Lillie's leg shaking, and saw Serena grabbing the other girl's hand. Wanting to help out, Pikachu goes over to them and nuzzles against Lillie's leg.

Now while Lillie is okay with the stuff with Serena, as she was deeply close to the honey-blonde girl. Of course this isn't implying that Lillie didn't like Pikachu. But there was the small detail that it was a Pokémon. Coming into contact with her leg.

Lillie jolts and quickly moves her leg away from Pikachu by moving to her right side… slamming straight into Serena's left leg! Panicking, Lillie jumps up and sees that it was Pikachu. This of course doesn't do much to resolve her panicked state. Then as she sees Serena clutch at her leg, she realises what she had unintentionally done. She kicked her friend, quite hard.

Due to the stress from the night before in Mt. Moon (A/N: yeah with everything that had happened since Ash went and challenged Brock, it is fair to suggest a whole day had passed) and her anxiety set the girl off.

Ash gets up to try and comfort her but won't let him get near her. Ash looks at Serena and asks "Are you okay Serena?" with concern in his eyes.

Grimacing, just barely, she answers "Yeah, I'm fine, that was a strong kick Lillie" as she smiles gently at her as she turns towards her friend.

Eyes bouncing around, Lillie counters "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that!"

However before much more can happen, they see a young brunette approach them. Her shoulder length hair covered by her hat as she seems to watch them.

Serena recognises her, as she says "Leaf! You're here"

Leaf eyes her as if sizing them up, before responding "Hey Sere was it? What's happening here?" Silence greets her question as the previous situation looms in the air. Though Serena didn't seem to have much of a reaction to the name 'Sere'.

About ten seconds later, Serena answers "Yep it's me Serena" as she emphasises the full name before continuing as she introduced her friends. Misty, Brock, Ash and Lillie. Oh and Pikachu.

Misty is the first to answer "Hey, my name is Misty, nice to meet you Leaf" with a small smile.

Brock gives a small wave, introducing himself "Brock, Pewter City Gym Leader. Or at least former gym leader I suppose" with a slight chuckle.

Ash looks at her curiously as he seems to recognise her… but from where? 'She looks like someone from my childhood… but no… her parents died and she… died as well right? That house fire in Pallet Town right? The family had all died. What was the girl's name?'

After remembering Lillie, Serena turns to look at her. Serena sees that the girl is really uncomfortable at the moment and seems to be struggling with the situation. Serena asks "Lillie, would you like to go for a walk? Just you and I?" with concern etched on her face.

Not speaking, Lillie nods her head. Serena tells the others that they won't be too long as she grabs her and Lillie's bags. She shoulders Lillie's one as she holds her own one by the handles. Then they start walking carefully in silence, leaving the trio with the newcomer.

Ash, unknowingly, stares at Leaf as he continues to think 'What was that name? And even if she does bare a resemblance, there's no way that this girl could be that one. The girl died from Pallet Town. Right? So why am I so unsure about this right now?'

Leaf notices and becomes uncomfortable as she eyes Ash suspiciously. She thinks to herself 'Is that Ash? Well of course, Serena called him by that name… but is that him? Like the exact same him? If it is, does he recognise me? Whether or not he has, why is he staring at me and not introducing himself? I can't afford to let this all slip away. I am on a mission and that won't be affected by my emotions'

Misty nudges Ash as she whispers to him "Ash! You're staring at her, stop being rude", sounding almost harsh but almost also motherly.

Snapping out of it and coming back to his senses, Ash finally introduces himself "Hey 'Leaf', my name is Ash, from Pallet Town" with a smile. However he puts subtle emphasis on 'Leaf' as if he doesn't believe that to be her real name. Or at the very least not her birth name.

Leaf thinks to herself 'Pallet Town. That would be it then. He's my age, or about the same age, same home town, has that silly cute hair' then catches herself 'No. I can't think about that stuff now. I can't allow for distractions now. I'll play along for now but I can't let my guard down'

She instead of voicing her thoughts, responds "Good to meet you all" but comes up with an idea. She addresses Ash and asks "While your friends are 'busy' in the woods, why don't you and I have a battle?" with a small, almost non-existent smile.

Pumped up and interested, Ash says "Yeah! That sounds great. How many Pokémon are you thinking about using?"

Getting into position on the field, she answers back "How about a best of three vs three battle? It would be three individual singles battles, but the first to get two wins, wins overall"

Ash considers his options. He has four Pokémon, Pikachu, Pidgeotto, Butterfree and Mankey. Which would be good enough for this 'best of three' battle. He agrees and takes his place opposite Leaf. Misty and Brock stay at the benched table as they watched.

Feeling invigorated, Ash says "I'll send my one out first" as he produces a Pokéball from his waist, then tosses it, saying "Let's go Pidgeotto!" as his bird Pokémon escapes from its spherical cage of sorts.

Nodding her head, Leaf throws her own Pokéball out as she says "Let's sprint on through! Go Dodo!" (Intentional btw)

Out comes a twin-headed, bipedal avian Pokémon. Each head has a long, sharp beak and two beady black eyes. It has a bristly, down-like covering of brown feathers on its body and both heads. Both heads are attached to individual brown necks and have two brown stick-like legs. Each foot has four digits ending in a sharp claw. It doesn't appear to have any wings but has a small patch at the back of it that could resemble a tail.

Ash scans the avian creature with Dexter. "Doduo, the Twin Bird Pokémon, a normal and flying type. Doduo's two heads contain completely identical brains. A scientific study reported that on rare occasions, there will be examples of this Pokémon possessing different sets of brains. These brains appear to communicate emotions to each other with a telepathic power"

Focusing, Ash then tells Pidgeotto to use Tackle to start things off. The bird Pokémon glides towards Doduo with the intention of slamming into it. Leaf tells Dodo, to dodge then hit a Quick Attack. The flightless bird swiftly moves out of the way and immediately shoves into Pidgeotto from the side. This ends up sending Pidgeotto to the ground.

However Pidgeotto quickly recovers and stares Doduo down. Thinking carefully, Ash tells Pidgeotto to take flight and go above the trees. Smirking, Leaf tells Dodo to use a Pursuit. As Pidgeotto raises higher, Ash is confused by his opponent's command.

He thinks to himself 'Why would she do that? Doduo can't reach Pidgeotto. It can't fly' however his question is quickly answered.

Using what looked like another Quick Attack, Doduo rushed against the nearby trees and ran up the bark of the tree. Ash's eyes widen at this and before he can react, Doduo leaps out of the tree and slams its feet into Pidgeotto. This once again takes Pidgeotto down to the ground but this time much harder.

Narrowing his eyes, Ash tries to think of something, anything that he can do to counter this unorthodox battle style of Doduo. 'Pidgeotto won't be able to battle up close and personal, and even in the air, Doduo can reach him very quickly… so what about my own unorthodox style?'

As his Pokémon struggles back to its feet, Ash tells him to use Gust on Doduo while she is still in the air just before it could land. Pidgeotto flaps its wings strongly which catches Doduo immediately and sends the bird tumbling to the ground and off balance.

Ash then tells Pidgeotto to use its Whirlwind as he decides on a distance based strategy. The avian once more flaps its wings but more harshly it seems. A strong gust of wind is sent hurtling towards its foe.

Instead of being concerned, Leaf tells Dodo to use Echoed Voice. The bird then starts to screech as air waves are sent towards the wind. Now usually that move is intended to deal damage, however with the soundwaves of the move, are rather strong and are able to bounce the wind back enough to disperse the energy of the wind.

Then as Pidgeotto and Ash are taken aback by this, Doduo rushes forwards and slams into Pidgeotto with its Quick Attack once more. Then Leaf orders a Peck Attack. Both heads… um… peck against the shorter bird.

Ash, knowing he needs to think fast, tells his flying type to use Quick Attack to escape the reach of the other one. Pidgeotto does manage to do so but Doduo follows after with its own Quick Attack. Almost rendering the move useless.

However, Ash saw this coming and tells Pidgeotto to soar upright. Now Pidgeotto follows through with this and Doduo is told to follow once more. See now Ash saw this coming and tells Pidgeotto to hit a Whirlwind. Because of the distance being much smaller this time, as the strong gust was sent out, the flightless bird has no time to react and is hit directly this time. Doduo is sent up into the sky.

Ash tells Pidgeotto to hit a Tackle. Pidgeotto soars towards his opponent and slams into it. Well because of the angle, instead of a Tackle attack it seems to hit a Wing Attack instead!

This takes Ash aback as he says to himself "Wing Attack? Is that what that move was?" he sees as Doduo seems knocked out in the sky. Not wanting to hurt his opponent's Pokémon, he shouts to Pidgeotto to grab a hold of Doduo. Quickly the normal type complies and grips Doduo. As he does so, Ash tells him to gently bring her down to the ground.

This confuses Leaf as she asks "Why did you do that?" as her head is tilted to the side. She is visibly confused as she cannot comprehend why he would have done that.

Ash remarks "I saw that after Pidgeotto hit its last attack that Doduo had been knocked out. I figured that instead of allowing her to forcefully be slammed into the ground from that height, to help you out a bit" with a smile.

Leaf thinks to herself 'Still as when he was younger then. Just as thoughtful and caring as before it seems'

She nods her head and says "Thank you for that then Ash" as she returns her Dodo to its ball. Then puts it into her satchel at her hip.

Ash thanks Pidgeotto as he returns his Pokémon to its ball as well.

Leaf then smirks as she says "Good first shot Ash. Now let's see how round two goes. Storm the field Nidorina!" out comes a quadrupedal, light-blue Pokémon with dark-blue patches. It has red eyes, large spiny ears, and has two pointed teeth protruding from its upper jaw. It possesses large spikes which would presumably be poisonous. Its paws have three claws each, and it is able to stand on its hind legs. Its hind legs are longer and thicker than its forelegs.

Ash takes out his Pokédex to scan her. Dexter tells him "Nidorina, the Poison Pin Pokémon, the evolved form of Nidoran, a poison type. When feeding its young, it first chews and tenderizes the food, then spits it out for its offspring. When resting deep in its deep in its burrow, its barbs always retract. This is proof that it is relaxed"

Considering his options, Ash decides that he wanted to use Pikachu against whatever her last Pokémon would be. So out of Butterfree and Mankey, which one would he use? Butterfree would be the obvious answer as it would almost definitely win against Nidorina. However this is a 'best of three' battle and he did want to see what other Pokémon she may have.

"Right" he starts, as he takes a Pokéball from his belt and looks to it hopeful "this will be our first real battle or well anything together buddy" as he readies himself "Let's go Mankey!" as he tosses the ball forwards and out comes the Pig Monkey Pokémon.

Leaf looks at Ash, interested yet dumbfounded, as she inquires "Why would you use Mankey against my poison type Catherine?"

Smirking, Ash responds "Hey I just beat Brock" as he points over to the rock type specialist "with Butterfree and Pikachu. It's not always strictly about type advantages and disadvantages. Especially at face value"

She considers this as she nods to say "I s'pose you're right. Well let's start this off then" as she becomes serious.

She tells Catherine to start things off with Toxic Spikes. Nidorina then launches out a flurry of purplish spikes across the field. It engulfs the field. Ash had Mankey dodge as well as possible. It took advantage of being a primate and climbed the same tree that Doduo used prior in order to dodge.

Ash looks upon the field as he considers 'Now while the move didn't reach Mankey… it is covering the field, which doesn't look like it will go away. That makes me assume that it is similar to Stealth Rock. So Pikachu will need to be careful. The other problem is that Mankey is a direct up-close attacker. Distance isn't going to help at all'

Seeing no other options, he tells Mankey to climb down. Then tells Mankey to rush at Nidorina. As such the fighting type does charge against the poison type. Of course during which Mankey does try to avoid the poisoned ground. For now he does so. Once close enough to Nidorina, Ash tells him to go for Fury Swipes. Instantly the furry Pokémon leaps into the air to try and descend upon its foe. Leaf tells Nidorina to block it with Poison Tail.

Nidorina with swiftness spins and raises its tail to strike Mankey down. Which as it does so, Mankey is thrown into the poisoned spikes area. Mankey pulls itself up to its feet. Nidorina is then told to use Skull Bash into a Bite. Turning once more, Nidorina does what only can be described as an intense and more forceful head butt. Then before Mankey can properly recover, the Poison Pin beast goes to bite down on Mankey.

Desperate, Ash tells Mankey to block it with Karate Chop. Just barely does this work as the fighting type thrusts the side of its hand against the jaw of the poison type. Then Ash tells Mankey to grab Nidorina. Which Mankey obeys, and then tells him to use a Body Slam and Seismic Toss combo. Mankey does try this. He does manage to lift Nidorina into the air however before Mankey can follow through, it is momentarily stopped by the poison damage.

Leaf take advantage of this and orders a Body Slam from the falling Pokémon. It connects fully. Then Nidorina moves off of Mankey to reveal that Mankey has been fainted.

Catherine walks back over to Leaf as the girl thanks her Pokémon. Ash returns Mankey at a distance due to the toxins on the field. He also thanks Mankey before reattaching the ball to his belt. Now it is one all in this 'best of three' battle.

Ash sends his Pikachu carefully onto the field as his last combatant.

Taking a deep sigh, Leaf takes her final Pokéball from her bag for the battle as she sends the Pokémon out. It is a slate grey, fox-like Pokémon with red and black accents. Its ears are triangular with darkened insides, and it has a large tuft of fur tipped with red on top of its head. It has greenish-blue eyes with red eyelids. There are circular, red markings above the eyes that seem to resemble eyebrows. Its muzzle is short and tapered with two small fangs seen in the upper jaw when its mouth is open. It possesses a ruff of black fur around its neck and four short limbs tipped with red. Its tail is short and bushy.

(A/N: By the way, this is one of my all-time favourite Pokémon, fun fact)

Ash doesn't recognise the Pokémon at all. He takes his Pokédex out to scan it. Dexter says "Zorua" and that's it. Confused, Ash says "Why didn't Dexter tell me more about that Pokémon?"

Brock suggests "It's because Zorua is from another region. Unova to be exact"

Misty then chimes in to offer "Maybe Professor Oak didn't expect to you to see Zorua while here in the Kanto region"

Nodding his head, Ash says "Yeah that's more or less correct. Maybe I will bring it up to him when I see him next" then focuses back onto the battle.

Now the final part of the battle commences while we go and check in on Serena and Lillie (A/N: see that's a common tactic that writers use).

As the two girls walk a ways into the wooded area, (A/N: ((Last one for now I promise)) Which if you look at a map of Kanto, you may notice that there is technically land connecting Viridian Forest to Route 4/ Cerulean City) while trying to keep track of where they are going as to not get lost. Hopefully.

Serena, taking a careful glance at her friend, asks "Were you shaking earlier because of last night?" with a look of uneasiness on her face as she herself is still deeply concerned. Whatever that thing was couldn't have been natural, so what was it?

Lillie shakily responds "What was that thing?" with trepidation in her voice. They both know that they didn't check to see if the beast had been… properly taken care of.

Her eyes downcast, Serena answers "I don't know Lillie. It looked similar, kind of, to a Scyther but that was no Scyther. It was all bony and horrifically disfigured" as she feels a shiver run through her body.

Lillie, thinking on what else it could have been, asks "Well, are there any 'bone' Pokémon?"

Considering the question for about thirteen seconds, Serena tells her "There are a few but here in Kanto? Only Cubone and Marowak. Which I know for a fact, that thing was not a Cubone or a Marowak"

Lillie suggests "What if a Scyther and Marowak produced offspring?"

This catches Serena off guard, both due to the bluntness in the girl's voice and by what she said, as she stumbles and trips over, falling forwards. She face plants as Lillie looks at her confused and worried. She asks "What happened Serena? Are you okay?"

Pushing herself up from the ground, Serena begins laughing, as she says "Sorry Lillie, it was how you said that. You said it so casually and that was funny" then as she stands up fully, she dusts herself off from the residual dirt.

Lillie then asks sheepishly, "But is it possible for that then?"

Considering her question, Serena says "See, oddly enough when different Pokémon species, breed, they typically have offspring based off of the female of the pair. Besides" as she takes out her Pokédex, and types some names into the Pokémon Index. As it pings a few times, Serena continues "Scyther is part of the Bug egg group and Marowak is part of the Monster classification egg group. So, no, they are incompatible"

"So what, do you think it was created then?" Lillie asks with narrowed eyes as she tries to figure out how the creature could have possibly come into existence if its mere existence is 'impossible'.

Serena answers, truthfully, "I don't know Lillie" then she remembers something that she had been wondering since they were last at Pewter City's Pokémon Center. She asks "So come on, did something happen at the Pokémon Center with Ash? You were blushing Lil"

Before Lillie is able to answer back, she sees a Pokémon up ahead. She slows down as she becomes uncomfortable.

Serena takes notice and looks towards where the Pokémon is. It seems to resemble a blue plant bulb. It has a round body, beady red eyes, a small mouth, and ovoid feet. Five large, green leaves sprout from its head. Other than that, not much to write home about.

Serena scans with her Pokédex. Dexter says "Oddish, the Weed Pokémon, a grass and poison type. During the daytime, Oddish buries itself in soil to absorb nutrients from the ground using its entire body. The more fertile the soil, the glossier its leaves become"

Meekly, Lillie asks "Are you going to try and capture it?" as she turns her gaze to the honey-blonde female.

"I guess so. Let's give it a go" as she pulls out a Pokéball as she sends out her Weedle. However just before she can initiate the encounter, another Pokémon comes storming out of the nearby bushes and stands between Weedle and Oddish.

Serena recognises the new grass type as another Bulbasaur. The grass type uses a Razor Leaf against Weedle, which as the flurry of leaves makes contact, the bug type is sent hurtling backwards as it is knocked out.

The starter Pokémon is rather powerful. Serena returns her poison type as Bulbasaur glares at her. Then uses its Vine Whip to grab at Lillie. However Serena steps in the way and blocks its target. The vines slashed against her wrist as blood trickles from her small cuts. Then they grab at her handbag in her hand and forcefully snatches it away.

Serena yells at it, ordering "Hey! Give that back!"

But the Bulb Pokémon rushes off as does the Weed Pokémon as well.

In shock, Serena is frozen at first. Then turns to Lillie and says "Go back and get the others, I am going after Bulbasaur and Oddish myself"

Lillie questions "Wait, wasn't all of your Pokémon in that bag?"

Serena's eyes widen as she realises and then confirms "Yes. So that only leaves me with Weedle now, and an empty Pokéball"

Lillie tells her, as she glances at the rucksack on Serena's shoulder, "Take my bag with you, you'll have more balls and supplies with you"

Serena asks, concerned "But what about Nebby?"

Giving her friend a smile, Lillie tells her "Take him with you and just focus on getting them back"

Serena thinks for a moment and says "Thank you!" as she gives Lillie a tight, brief hug and runs off after the two grass types.

Taking a deep breathe, Lillie rushes back towards the rest of the group and Leaf.

Now with the aforementioned last round, that has NOW commenced.

Ash tells Pikachu to use Quick Attack. The electric type surges swiftly towards the fox-like Pokémon. The dark type dodges out of the way with ease. Leaf then orders a Scratch, at which her Pokémon claws at its foe. It connects with Pikachu's back, sending him to the ground.

With that, Zorua begins to 'Torment' its opponent. This now prevents the electric type from using the same move twice in a row for a temporary time. Ash however doesn't know this, as he tells Pikachu to strike Zorua with a Quick Attack while it is busy. Pikachu goes to do so, but Zorua's move frightens him too much to do so. This results in Pikachu essentially flinching.

Off in the treeline, two people and a small feline watch from afar. The male asks "Should we bother to try and steal any of their Pokémon?"

The long-haired female tells him "No, there are four trainers there. That's too many Pokémon to account for"

The feline remarks "Don't yous find it weird that they survived that cave-in?"

James counters back "Well, if they did die in that cave, we wouldn't have a show here would we?"

Both Jessie and Meowth look at him like he's nuts.

Jessie, now ignoring his comment, says "Whatever, I say we go and round up some Pokémon from in the woods. You already got that Zubat in the caves"

With that the three of them head off in search of Pokémon.

Ash thinks to himself, quickly, 'So that must be what torment does. It works to prevent Pikachu from using Quick Attack'

Leaf then tells Zorua to use Attract, which pink hearts emanate from the dark type and move towards the mouse. In reflex, Pikachu dodges out of the way to save himself. Pikachu is then told to use Agility. Leaf tells Zorua to do the same. Both speed up as they begin running across the field, side by side as they try and fail to hit the other, over and over.

They seemed to be identical. Both trainers had their respective Pokémon use Double Team, which causes several clones to form around each other. Ash tells Pikachu to use Thunder Shock. He does so as the electric type sends a bolt of electricity aimed at one of the clones. It disappears.

However Leaf had planned all of this. The Trickster Pokémon had moved away from the others, and out of view. Both she and Zorua watch the clones as they try to decipher which one was the real one.

Ash tells Pikachu to use Thunder Shock again. This was his biggest mistake. Of course because of Torment, he doesn't realise it won't work. The clones perform Thunder Shock, however one in particular did nothing as it could. Leaf's eyes snap towards that one and tells Zorua to use Swift.

Ash's eyes widen as he realises 'Torment didn't prevent me from using Quick Attack specifically, it prevented me from repeating the same move twice in a row. Which means' and with that he watches the real Zorua leap into the air and set off a flurry of stars at his partner.

Ash thinks fast and considers the movements of the stars. He then tells Pikachu to run under the stars. Pikachu does so using its Quick Attack. However while it did have the desired effect of dodging, Zorua had a counter. Leaf tells Zorua to use its own Quick Attack again and then to use Swift. The two once again run against one another as Zorua sends more distanced attacks against its fast foe.

Ash tells Pikachu to counter with Thunder Shock. At the same time, Leaf tells Zorua to use Copy Cat. Which results in both sending bolts of electricity against one another and exploding in the middle. Both order a Quick Attack and both rush at one another. They both connect and the force throws them both backwards.

Misty then asks Brock "Hey whatever happened to that Toxic Spikes anyways?"

Brock comments "I think because Nidorino was going across the field so much, it more or less absorbed the toxins. That meant that it had powered Nidorino up but nullified their purpose. Which seemed to have been smart due to what Pikachu and Zorua just did"

Just as Misty is about to respond, something catches her eye.

Before they can continue any further, Lillie comes running out of the tree line, out of breath and alone. Ash concerned, runs over to Lillie, essentially stopping the battle in its tracks. As he gets close to her, he asks "Lillie, are you okay? Where's Serena?" as he panics.

Brock, Misty and Leaf rush over as well.

Panting, Lillie says "We were attacked by a wild Bulbasaur" as she tries to calm her breathing. Then continues "It had protected Oddish from a battle with Serena's Weedle, then knocked Weedle out. Next it used Vine Whip, aimed at me but Serena took the impact, which cut her arm up, then lastly it took her bag and she went after it" as she finishes she is even more out of breath.

Ash tells the others "We need to split up and find her and that Bulbasaur before he can…" then realises as he asks "It took her bag? That's where all of her Pokémon are!"

Lillie tells him "I told her to take my bag and took… my belongings with her. She still had her Weedle and their Pokéball with her"

Brock tells them "Right, Misty, Leaf and I will go one way and you two" pointing to Ash and Lillie "will go the way that you believe she went Lillie"

They are all in agreeance. However just before they all split up, Leaf tells Ash "We'll call it a draw Ketchum, and finish it another time" with a wink and a smile.

He agrees with her as he runs off with Lillie. He didn't seem to realise what she had just called him. For… he had never told her his surname.

Misty thought to herself 'Wait. When did any of us mention Ash's surname?'

Now as we follow Ash and Lillie, they get to talking.

Ash asks with a look of concern and fear, "How bad was the cuts on her arm?" as he scans around him for any signs of either of the grass types or his friend.

Keeping an eye out as well, she responds "While it wasn't serious but there was blood. I don't know if Bulbasaur had intended to cause that though" as she takes into consideration that it of course did seem to try and protect Oddish.

Ash clenches his fist to an extent as he tells her "Then we need to find them both. She could be in danger and we need to sort this potentially dangerous wild Pokémon"

"Of course we do. And there's something I am wondering at the moment" Lillie responds to him as she thinks to herself.

He glances towards her as he asks "And what's that Lillie?"

She answers "Well, what if the Bulbasaur isn't legitimately dangerous? Like if they're just protecting something here?"

Ash is silent for about a dozen or so seconds as he pounders this possibility. He then answers "Maybe you're right Lillie" with a smile as he adds "however, we do need to find Serena. Because if Bulbasaur was willing to attack to defend one Oddish, what would it do to protect several more Pokémon or its home?"

Elsewhere in the woods, deeper into the woods. Serena is tired as she stops in some attempt to catch her breath. She hears a sound come from inside Lillie's bag. Feeling bad, she unzips it as she says "Sorry Nebby. I'm just trying to find that Bulbasaur" as she watches 'him'.

The strange and rare creature comes floating out of the bag. It seems to be made up of gases which could resemble a nebula. Because… get it? Cosmog, cosmos. Nebby, nebula. Yep Pokémon is deep. The gases that make up its body range in colour from violet to light-blue. The very centre of its body is black both in front and back. The black space on the front contains its face which consists of beady yellow eyes, circular blue cheeks, and a small mouth. The space on the back has only a single blue dot. There is a golden half-circlet on both the top and bottom half of its body, which divides it exactly in half. Two wispy extensions containing starry specks serve as its arms.

Nebby seems to speak back (A/N: Now listen, when Nebby 'speaks' it is a reference and joke. Not to be taken seriously and is for fun. If that isn't your cup of tea, please just move on with the story and pay it no mind) as it says "AVRIL LAVIGNE IS DEAD AND A CLONE TOOK OVER HER ROLE"

Serena looks at him, confused as she says "Okay Nebby, I'll be honest, I didn't understand any of that"

In response, Cosmog says "BIRDS ARE THE GOVERNMENT'S DRONES!"

Serena, even more confused and weirded out says "Right, I get you Nebby" as she looks away to roll her eyes in disbelief at the oddness in Nebby's personality. She thinks to herself 'Is this what Lillie has to put up with, with him? I'd lose my sanity pretty quickly. Next thing you know he'll'

Nebby interrupts her thoughts to say "VACCINES CAUSE AUTISM!"

Dropping her head, Serena says "Say something even more ludicrous" then looks at the psychic type saying "Nebby! Get in the bag!" and with that, the conspiracy theorist is locked away again. Thankfully.

Raising her head towards the sky, Serena lets out a loud sigh then groans out of frustration. Never again.

Now with Misty, Brock and Leaf.

As they walk along, Misty decides to get down to the bottom of her confusion as she asks "Leaf, how did you know Ash's surname?"

Brock turns to her with a strange look as he realises that yes, Misty was right. When Serena introduced them all, she didn't say a surname.

Leaf also at the same time realises her own mistake. She considers her options as she says "Ah, back in Viridian City Serena told me about her, Lillie and Ash" while clearly nervous.

Brock then asks "What are Serena and Lillie's surnames then?" as he grows suspicious that there is more going on here than she's letting on.

Seeing no other options… Leaf takes out a Pokéball and tosses it to the ground. Out comes a bipedal Pokémon. It has tired-looking eyes, a short trunk above its mouth, and triangular ears with brown interiors. The upper half of its body is yellow and the lower half is brown. A wavy line separates the two. It has a round belly and short legs. Its feet are brown, except for its two toes which are yellow. The bottom of each foot has a small, round, pink pad in the middle of it. There are three fingers on each of its hands.

Leaf becomes serious as she stares them both down.

Misty, becoming rather frightened asks "What are you planning on doing Leaf?" as her voice is shaky as her eyes widened.

Leaf plainly states "I can't have you two spilling my secrets to the world. No. That won't do. Drowzee" as she turns to her psychic type "Use Hypnosis and then use Confusion"

Before they can react, Drowzee is already in motion and hypnotizes them as it stares at them and… wiggles its fingers. Then as they are both frozen, the Hypnosis Pokémon uses confusion to alter their memories. He erases their memories of hearing her say 'Ketchum' and the previous conversation. Then once Leaf is satisfied, she has Drowzee stop its powers.

As Brock and Misty seem to recover, Leaf returns her Pokémon to its Pokéball, as she believes she is in the clear.

However a new individual is off to the side as he watches this unfold. He narrows his eyes as his ginger-hair is swept out from in front of his eyes. While he did want to intervene, he decides not to. He can see that this girl is rather powerful and not someone to mess with.

He has black tracksuit bottoms with a familiar looking pattern on the left leg in the thigh area. He also has black and white trainers on. Then he has an unzipped blue jacket with yellow around the front of it where the zips are. There is a yellow '111' pattern at his right breast area. The inside of the hood also is yellow. Then his black shirt, has two male Nidorans surrounding a black sphere and shield. Above said shield is a Pokéball. There are capital wordings of 'Newcastle Nidokings' underneath said design. On his shoulders is a black backpack. The design on his tracksuit bottoms? Subnoodle.

The guy, fearful for his own safety, clutches two Pokéballs in his grasp. One of which was a Cherish Ball by the way. He thinks to himself, 'I have both Growlithe and Squirtle, but I don't think I could stand a chance handling her. Besides I need to protect that Pokémon… Animal-like creature that I had saved. I still don't know how he was created by the design of what I made on YouTube'

As the two of them come out of their hypnosis, Leaf looks at them in fake concern. She asks "Hey are you both okay?" as she tilts her head to the right, mimicking worry.

As Brock looks at her, he rubs his eyes as if he hadn't blinked for quite a long while. Frowning he says "Why did we just stop here Leaf?"

Internally Leaf thinks to herself 'The hypnotic manipulation seems to have worked just right. Now that I was able to do it this time, it will be just a matter of using Confusion next time. They're kinda like my sleeper agents. Ready to obey when I may need them to'

Misty says "Yeah why are we here again Leaf?" as she looks around, trying to piece things together.

Softly and sweetly, Leaf answers them back "Lillie and Serena had been attacked by a Bulbasaur, and we're helping look for Serena after she went after it. Lillie and Ash are on their own looking elsewhere for her too" and with that, she slips Drowzee's Pokéball back into her bag with a smirk as she turns away from them.

Now back with Lillie and Ash. Lillie, becoming desperate for answers of where their friend was, as she then suggests "What if you sent out Butterfree and Pidgeotto?"

Ash considers her suggestion as he plays the scenarios over in his head. What if that Bulbasaur attacked them? What if Pidgeotto hasn't recovered from the battle with Leaf yet? What if anything had happened to Serena?

He tells her "Pidgeotto probably hasn't rested long enough yet" however he does take out Butterfree's Pokéball and tosses it into the air. Out comes the bug type as he says "Butterfree, I need you to find Serena, she's chasing after a Bulbasaur carrying her bag"

The bug type nods and flies off to try and find its owner's friends.

Serena spots the insect flying above as it seems to be searching for something. She considers if it was Ash's one. Just as she is about to try and get its attention, something runs out in front of her. She throws a Pokéball out. She assumed that she had thrown Weedle's ball. But instead, she threw her empty ball instead.

The Pokémon seemed to resemble a blue, spherical tadpole, it has large eyes and pink lips. Its skin is very thin, but flexible. There is a black and white swirl on its abdomen, which seemed to show its internal organs… what the hell?! It has short, newly developed legs but no arms. It has a long, thin tail surrounded by a light-blue, semi-transparent fin.

The ball engulfs the Pokémon as she had a feeling what it was. She wasn't excited. It wobbles for seven seconds as it dings. Feeling a sense of disappointment to some extent, she picks the ball up. She thinks to herself 'I'm not upset but why did it need to be a Poliwag?'

Then hears Lillie and Ash talking nearby as she works her way towards them.

At that moment, they see rustling coming from in front of them. A small bulb seems to emerge from the bushes. Well… it is thankfully attached to a small body with legs, a quadruped. And in its vine-grasp? A rucksack, its colour? Pinkish. And what do you know, its Serena's bag!

Ash quietly sneaks towards the grass type as he grabs a hold of the bag, forcefully, as he tries to tear it from the poison type's grasp. Since Bulbasaur hadn't expected it, Ash was able to snatch it fairly easily.

Taken by surprise, the grass type spins around, as its vines retracted. The Pokémon stared at Ash… possibly in resentment? As this happens, Serena comes running into the small clearing as she stops as she sees Lillie, Ash, Bulbasaur and Pikachu.

Lillie sees Serena as she says "Hey Serena! Glad you could make it" the two meet in the middle as Ash is focused on the Bulbasaur.

He demands from Bulbasaur "Why did you take my friend's bag?"

Glaring at the boy, Bulbasaur takes a defensive stance.

Lillie offers "Ash, I told you, he could be trying to protect something or someone. He did seem to do so with that Oddish" as she hesitantly watches the poison type.

Ash approaches the Bulbasaur, trying to be much calmer as he tries to seem less threatening to the Bulbasaur. He tells the starter "We aren't here to hurt you or the others Bulbasaur"

Serena adds from off to the side "It is normal for trainers to come and capture Pokémon Bulbasaur" then an idea hits her. She approaches Ash as she fiddles around in her bag. Ash stays still as she does so. Serena pulls out a ball.

Bulbasaur seems to be even more on guard and protective at this. Giving a small smile, Serena sends out her own Bulbasaur. Her one spots the other Bulbasaur and approaches him happily. She doesn't seem to notice his cautiousness or apprehension as she does so.

He seems to feel more comfortable as the girl's Pokémon is now around. They seem to converse and interact with one another. Now the wild Bulbasaur seems to calm down and almost seems approachable. Pikachu even goes towards the Bulbasaur. The three Pokémon start to converse with one another. They seem to come to an understanding over the course of whatever they are saying.

As they do this, Serena hands Lillie's bag back to her as Ash gives Serena's bag to her as well. Lillie stays back as she observes her two friends along with the trio of Pokémon.

Then Ash lowers himself so that he is level with the two grass types and Pikachu. Then says "Bulbasaur" the three of them look at him as he continues "I get what you're doing. It seems like you want to protect the wild Pokémon. Believe me, that's awesome! But you are hindering them as well. You see, you can't always be everywhere in these woods all the time. Maybe it is time for you to leave and grow on your own while they try and do the same" with a smile.

However at this same moment, two people and a Pokémon come out into the clearing. They have a large collection of Pokéballs in bags that they are carrying.

Bulbasaur growls at them in anger as it could easily tell what they had done.

The trio look over in confusion and surprise at seeing the gang.

Jessie says to them with a smirk "Oh it's the twerps!" and there they go with the redundant, over-the-top, totally unnecessary and pointless motto. Trouble. Double. Devastation. Nation. Love. Above. Jessie. James. Light. Fight. Meowth. Right. Yep that whole thing.

Bulbasaur goes to attack them but James sends Koffing out and orders a Smokescreen. And instantly the small clearing is engulfed in thick smoke. The group are severely coughing as they try to escape it. However it wasn't that easy as the trees around them prevented them from being able to safely get out of the smoke. Eventually as it does clear, they find Team Rocket gone. They had escaped with all of the Pokémon!

Bulbasaur is clearly frustrated as it seems to want to go after them. Quickly, Ash suggests "Wait! Bulbasaur, what if you come with me? We are after them as well, since they stole my Spearow as well"

Bulbasaur stares at him. Then nods. Ash was allowed to then detach an empty ball from his belt and pressed it against the grass type. The ball wobbles after it took Bulbasaur and dinged after six seconds.

Serena tells them "We can't let them get away with this" as she refers to Team Rocket.

Determined and focused, Ash says "I know and we will make them answer for what they did. They can't get away with this much longer"

At this point, as they start walking, they after maybe fifteen minutes run into Leaf, Brock and Misty.

Leaf says to Serena "It was nice to battle your boyfriend there" as she points to Ash. This causes Ash and Serena to both blush deep red.

Lillie, as she feels bothered by that for some reason, thinks to herself 'Why does that bother me? It's not true. But could it be one day?'

Serena, stammers out "I… we're not dating!"

Leaf, smirking, gets close to her as she whispers just barely "Maybe you should make your move before I do" then gives her a quick almost non-existent hug and then runs off shouting "I'll see yous around"

But Serena doesn't hear that as she now thinks 'She wouldn't take him would she? Wait why am I bothered?' as she feels deeply troubled now.

That's it for this episode. Now I have to apologise, both for the fact that this chapter was MEANT to be the Cerulean City gym battles and because this is being uploaded on a Friday. Embarrassing. However I am working on the Gym stuff as soon as I upload this. I promise. And if I get it done soon, then I should be able to upload the next one fairly soon. I hope. But see yous next time. Oh and remember, any questions, requests or suggestions, just leave them in the comments. But PLEASE do not get the impression that everything you suggest MUST be included or should be included. I have a pretty good idea of what I intend on doing with this story. But hey, see ya'll next time.