Pokémon – Thunder Yellow
Fanfiction By – Spirit Reader
Pokémon Original Creator – Satoshi Tajiri
Chapter 17: The Defender of the Forest – Part 1
Takashi's Pokémon
Pikachu (Male)
Froakie (Female)
Pidgeotto (Male)
Gym Badges
Boulder Badge (Brock)
"Looking good, guys! Keep it up!"
With his adventures in Pewter City now behind him and his first Gym Badge safely in his possession, one would think that Takashi Nakamura would take it easy now that he's accomplished his goal. However, that couldn't be any further from the truth. Although he won his battle against Brock and his Rock-Types, Takashi knows that it was just the first hurdle that he needed to overcome if he wants to compete in the Pokémon League. There were still 7 more Gym Badges that he needed to win and the battles that he would face in order to obtain them would only become progressively more difficult. In order to be ready for that, both he and his Pokémon needed to continue on with their training.
To that end, as they were making their way towards their next stop in Cerulean City, Takashi and his Pokémon were taking some time out of their journey to get some work done. Thanks to the training that they went through back in Pewter City, all three of them have become much stronger and learned some powerful new moves. This is especially true for Pidgeotto, who just recently evolved from Pidgey not that long ago. Because of his increased power and speed, Takashi wanted to see just how strong Pidgeotto has become now that its evolved to the next stage.
"Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Takashi ordered. "And Froakie, use Water Pulse!"
Upon receiving their respective orders, Pikachu and Froakie proceeded to build up power until they were able to create an orb of electricity and water respectively. Once both attack were fully formed, both Pokémon fired them directly at Pidgeotto, who was busy flying high in the air.
"Pidgeotto, knock it back with Gust!"
As the two attacks were making their way towards him, Pidgeotto nodded his head in response to Takashi's command and proceeded to flap both of its wings repeatedly. By doing this, the Bird Pokémon was able to create a powerful windstorm that not only blew back both of the attacks, but also caused both Pikachu and Froakie to leave their feet and fly off. Thankfully, before they could get too far, Takashi ran up and managed to catch both of his Pokémon in his arms.
Once Pidgeotto finally finished unleashing his attack, the Bird Pokémon flew down and began making his way towards Takashi and the others. As soon as he reached him, Takashi let out a small smile and began petting the top of his Pidgeotto's head. Back when he was still a Pidgey, he had nowhere near the power that he has now. But that he's evolved, Takashi knew that Pidgeotto will become an even more valuable asset as they make their way over to the Pokémon League.
"Great work, everyone." He said as he placed both Pikachu and Froakie back on the ground. "We're really starting to gel together. Let's keep it up so that we can win our next battle in Cerulean City!"
Pikachu, Froakie, and Pidgeotto all cheered in response to Takashi's words, causing their Trainer to simply smile at all of them. They then went on to continue with their training for another hour, trying their best to utilize their moves to their absolute limit. After that hour passed though, Takashi decided that now was good time for them to rest and get something to eat. It's still going to be a bit until they reach their next destination and he didn't want his Pokémon to be burning the candles at both ends.
After calling them over and handing them their food, Takashi decided to have some lunch as well and went on to eat the meal that Darla prepared for him before he left Pewter City. As he did so, the young man also took the opportunity to reach over and polish the Pokémon Egg that he saved. Although the egg hasn't hatched yet, Takashi wanted to make sure that it was properly taken care of so that the Pokémon inside it would be comfortable when it finally did come out.
While all of this was going on, Takashi was also taking the time to look over the map app that was on his PokéGear in order to see how much further he had to go until he finally arrived at Cerulean City. Since he just started his trek, the city was still quite a ways away and so he will be walking for quite a bit. Although that would normally seem quite daunting, Takashi took the long trip in stride as it would allow him to do something that's been on his mind for a bit.
"Maybe this would be a good opportunity…to try and catch a new Pokémon."
Because he spent so much time in Pewter City, the last time Takashi captured another Pokémon was nearly 1 month ago when he caught Pidgey. Although Pidgey has since evolved into Pidgeotto, the fact still remained that Takashi only had 3 Pokémon currently in his possession. Also didn't count the Pokémon Egg that he was carrying as the Pokémon inside hasn't hatched yet and couldn't be used. He needed to capture more Pokémon because didn't want a repeat of what happened back when he faced Brock the first time.
"Back when I first faced Brock…" He thought quietly to himself. "I lost because most of my Pokémon were simply a bad matchup against his. Thankfully, I was able to win the rematch thanks to the new moves Rebecca taught my Pokémon, but I might not be so fortunate next time. I need to be prepared for any type of situation that I may face…and that means catching Pokémon that help fulfill certain roles that I require. But…how do I go about doing that?"
As these thoughts ran across Takashi's mind, the young man took a moment to look over at his Pokémon and watched them as they eat their food. At this moment he had an Electric-Type in Pikachu, a Water-Type in Froakie, and a Normal/Flying-Type in Pidgeotto. That's 4 out of the 18 Types that a Pokémon can have, which is not even a third. He needed to increase those numbers.
"Let's see…Maybe I should capture a Fire-Type. A Grass-Type Pokémon would be pretty cool too. As a matter of fact, having a Dragon-Type Pokémon would be awesome so perhaps I should get one of those."
While Takashi continued to think about all of this, something was busy observing him from the trees that he was sitting next too. In particular, it was busy looking down at the food that both he and his Pokémon were eating. Because Takashi was so deep in thought, he failed to notice that something was approaching him. Thankfully, one his Pokémon happened to notice and promptly to action.
This Pokémon was none other than Froakie, who suddenly stopped eating and threw a piece of her Frubbles at a piece that was just behind Takashi. When he saw that, Takashi barely managed to move out of the way and was about to question his Pokémon about why she did that. However, before he could do so, he noticed that the bushes were beginning to rustle. Something was hiding within them and that's what Froakie was alerting him too.
"Who's there…?!" He questioned. "Show yourself!"
There was no immediate response to Takashi's question, causing both him and his Pokémon to brace themselves. Something was definitely inside that bush, but they didn't make itself known yet. For a moment, Takashi contemplated having one of his Pokémon launch an attack so that whoever was hiding would reveal themselves. But, just as he was about to do so, he watched as it walked out the bush on its own.
Takashi saw that it was a wild Pokémon, who looked a small, green reptile. It had yellow eyes with long, narrow pupils, a red throat and belly, and three digits on its hands and feet that was covered with tiny spikes. However, the most notably trait about this Pokémon was the large, dark green tail that had two separate lobes. Having never seen a Pokémon like it before, Takashi immediately pulled out his PokéDex and used it to look up this Pokémon.
"Treecko, the Wood Gecko Pokémon." Dexter stated. "The tiny hooks on Treecko's limbs allow it climb straight up walls. With its calm attitude, it coolly stands up to bigger opponents. Treecko is a Grass-Type Pokémon."
Following Dexter's explanation, Takashi took a moment to fully examine Treecko. Right away he could tell that his PokéDex was right as Treecko didn't seem intimidated by him or his Pokémon at all. It's calm and collected demeanor almost gave the impression that it could defeat any of them without any effort. While most would take such an attitude the wrong way, Takashi found it to be really cool. He then realized that this was the kind of Pokémon he needed on his team and decided to capture it.
However, before he could even attempt to have one his Pokémon battle against it, Treecko responded first by firing off a barrage of tiny energy bullets from its mouth. When they saw them, Takashi and his Pokémon immediately jumped out of the way in order to avoid getting hit. Then, while all of them were distracted, Treecko raced over and picked up some of the food Takashi was eating with its tail. Once it was secure, Treecko ran off into the forest.
"Hey…Where are you going?!" Takashi said as he picked himself back up. "We're not done yet!"
Refusing to allow this extremely awesome Pokémon to get away from him, Takashi immediately grabbed his things and chased after Treecko. With his Pokémon following close behind, the young man did everything within his power to catch up to Treecko so that it wouldn't get away. He didn't really care that it stole his lunch. Instead, Takashi was more interested in catching Treecko as he felt that having it on his team would definitely be cool.
Soon, Takashi and his Pokémon were finally spot Treecko and watched as it was jumping from tree to tree inside the forest. While Froakie attempted to chase after it by using the same method, Pidgeotto pulled ahead thanks to his ability to fly. Once he saw that he was close enough, Pidgeotto dived towards Treecko like a bird trying to catch its prey.
"Pidgeotto, use Steel Wing!" Takashi commanded.
Responding accordingly to his Trainer's command, Pidgeotto quickly built up power within his wings, causing them to glow brightly. Once he gathered enough power, the Bird Pokémon attempted to strike Treecko down with them. However, at the very instant that was about to happen, Treecko gracefully jumped up and avoided the attack. Then, while still in the air, it slammed its tail right in the back of Pidgeotto's head, causing him to fall and crash onto the ground.
Stunned by this swift exchanged, Takashi immediately rushed over towards Pidgeotto in order to see if he was okay. While this was happening, Froakie attempted to attack Treecko with her Bubble attack. Noticing this, Treecko responded with the energy bullets that it unleashed earlier. The two attacks collided, but Treecko's was easily more powerful and simply flew past the bubbles. This forced Froakie to jump down from the tree that she was on in order to avoid getting hit.
Upon seeing this, Pikachu realized that it couldn't stand by any longer and raced over towards Treecko as quickly as he could. Once he got close enough, the Mouse Pokémon attempted to attack his target with an Iron Tail. However, instead of attacking Treecko itself, Pikachu aimed his attack on tree branch that it was standing on. The attack easily snapped the branch, causing Treecko to fall. Despite that however, Treecko was able to easily land on the ground didn't sustain any damage.
"Good work, Pikachu!" Takashi said as he looked on at this scene. "Now use Thunderbolt!"
Nodding his head, Pikachu unleashed a powerful electrical blast from his body and directed it towards Treecko. Instead of trying to avoid it however, Treecko instead used its tail to fling Takashi's food high into the air. It then took the Thunderbolt attack head on, surprising everyone present. The Grass-Type then easily brushed off the attack before using its tail to catch Takashi's food before it hit the ground.
At first, Takashi was confused by what just took place and he initially wondered if Treecko was immune to Electric-Type attacks like Brock's Pokémon were. However, after giving it some thought, he soon remembered something that Rebecca educated him on while preparing for his rematch against the Pewter Gym Leader. This caused him to do a light face palm.
"That's right…" He mumbled to himself. "Rebecca told me that Grass-Type Pokémon are resistant to both Electric and Water-Type attacks. That's why both Pikachu and Froakie's attacks aren't having much of an effect."
As Takashi slightly berated himself for forgetting what he was taught, Treecko responded to Pikachu's assault by unleashing another wave of energy bullets. Like Froakie, Pikachu jumped down from the tree that he was on to avoid getting hit. However, Treecko immediately picked up on this and proceeded to dashed towards Pikachu. It then assaulted him with a powerful Quick Attack, the force of which caused Pikachu to crash into another tree.
When Froakie saw this, the Bubble Frog Pokémon had grown tired of this and immediately rushed over towards Treecko. Once she got close enough, Froakie attempted to attack with multiple Pound attacks. Unfortunately, despite the fact that she could keep up with Treecko's speed, Froakie simply didn't have enough reach and so her attacks could not connect. This not the case for Treecko however, as the Grass-Type was able to connect with its own Pound attack by using its long tail. The force of the blow was enough to slam Froakie onto the ground.
While looking on at this scene, Takashi gritted his teeth as Treecko was easily making a fool of him and his Pokémon. Not only was it strong and fast, but it also incredibly intelligent as well. If he wanted to win then he needed to think just as intelligently as well. To that end, the young man quickly calmed himself down and tried to come up with a plan. Once he had one, he looked over towards Pidgeotto, who had finally recovered from its previous assault. He nodded his head at him before turning to face Treecko.
"Pidgeotto, use Steel Wing!"
With a loud cry, Pidgeotto responded to his Trainer's command and proceeded to fly over towards Treecko. As he did so, the Bird Pokémon channeled his energy into his wings, causing them to glow brightly. Once he got close enough, Pidgeotto attempted to strike Treecko with his wings, but the Grass-Type was simply able to avoid the attack by jumping upward. However, this action was what Takashi was hoping for.
"Now use Gust!"
At the very instant, Treecko jumped out of the way to avoid Steel Wing, Pidgeotto stopped and soon began flapping his wings repeatedly. Like previously, this created a windstorm that caused Treecko to lose its balance while still in the air. With its agility now hampered, Takashi quickly made his next move before Treecko had the chance to recompose itself.
"Froakie, use Pound attack!" He shouted.
Nodding her head, Froakie immediately jumped towards Treecko and soon found herself face to face with it. Then, before it had any to react, Froakie slammed Treecko down to the ground with a powerful strike with her paw. It was at this moment that Pikachu began racing over towards the Wood Gecko Pokémon.
"Pikachu…Quick Attack!"
Moving like lightning, Pikachu dashed over towards Treecko at a blinding speed, ramming it with the full force of his body weight. The force of the impact was enough that it caused Treecko to fly over and crash into a nearby tree. When he saw that, Takashi saw that this was his opportunity and quickly pulled out an empty PokéBall that he had on him. Then, as Treecko was struggling to pick itself back up, the young man enlarged the ball and prepared to throw it.
"Let's do this!" He said with a smirk on his face. "Go Pokeb…."
Just before Takashi could throw the PokéBall, the young man stopped himself suddenly when he heard a loud noise coming from behind him, startling him. When the noise occurred for a second time, he found himself turning around, realizing that something was approaching. Following a third time, Pikachu and the others suddenly sensed that whatever was approaching was extremely powerful and soon stepped in front of their Trainer in order to protect him. After the noise sounded off for a fourth time, everyone looked on in awe as the thing that was approaching them had finally arrived.
It was a giant, turtle-like Pokémon with small red eyes, a jagged jaw, and four thick legs with toes that almost resembled stones. The Pokémon also had two large spikes protruding from its cheeks. However, what was most noticeable about it was what was on its shell. The top of it had three more spikes with a grassy patch, soil, and tree that had some leaves on it. When he saw it, Takashi was so stunned that he couldn't even speak. All he could do was subconsciously pull out his PokéDex, where he barely listened to Dexter as it explained to him what this Pokémon was.
"Torterra, the Continent Pokémon and the final evolved form of Turtwig." It started off. "There's enough room on Torterra's enormous back for several small Pokémon to make their nests. According to ancient folklore, a particularly large Torterra lived under the ground. Torterra is a Grass/Ground-Type Pokémon."
Following Dexter's explanation, Takashi and his Pokémon all looked on as Torterra was slowly making its way towards them. As it did so, Takashi couldn't bring himself to do anything but quickly make his way towards his Pokémon. Due to its menacing appearance, Takashi was very intimidated by Torterra and could right away that it was incredibly powerful, so much so that he knew that his Pokémon was no match for it. All he could do was to try and shield his Pokémon, so that no harm would come to them.
However, to his surprise, Takashi watched as Torterra simply walked right past him and began making its way over towards Treecko. Once it got close enough, Torterra waited for Treecko to finally get back to its feet before talking to it in their own Pokémon language. From how the talks were proceeding, Takashi could tell that Torterra was either angry or disappointed in Treecko, given how sad the latter seemed to be. He was about to walk over and see what was up, but stopped when someone else suddenly appeared from behind him.
"Who are you?!"
Turning around again, Takashi watched as a young man was approaching him. He had short brown hair, with teal colored eyes. He was also wearing a brown and green uniform, causing him to resemble a park ranger. Once he finally reached him, the young man once again questioned Takashi.
"I asked who you are!" He repeated. "This is an official Pokémon Preserve. You can't be here without permission!"
"Pokémon Preserve…?" Takashi questioned. "What's that?"
The Pokémon World is a vast and wondrous place and the majority of Pokémon living within it are as common as the trees one may see while walking around the forest. However, there are certain Pokémon that are considered especially rare, so much so in fact that some of them are rarely ever seen in the wild and are usually seen under the ownership of Trainers. Because of how scarce they are, official nature preserves have been established all over the world in order to protect those Pokémon until the time came for them to leave. To that end, it's considered illegal to enter a preserve without official permission and those who do so can get into serious trouble.
This was the case for Takashi, who had unintentionally entered into a Pokémon Preserve while he was chasing after Treecko. Because he was in a forbidden area, the Ranger that he encountered was forced to bring him to his cabin so that he could be questioned. Although the young man tried to explain that it wasn't his intention to enter into the preserve, the Ranger simply told him that he would hear him out once they arrived at the cabin.
After about a few minutes of walking, Takashi arrived at the Ranger's cabin and promptly went inside and sat by a desk. Both he and his Pokémon then waited as the Ranger grabbed a pen and notepad before walking over and sitting on the other side of the desk. Once everything was set, the Ranger started questioning Takashi and the young man did his best to explain to him everything that happened before and after he entered the forest. This would continue for the next 10 minutes.
"So let me see if I understand this correctly." The Ranger said as he reviewed his notes. "You're name is Takashi Nakamura and you're a Pokémon Trainer going on a journey."
"That's right." Takashi confirmed.
"And while you making your way to Cerulean City, a Treecko appeared and stole some of your food. Thinking it was a wild Pokémon, you gave chase after it and attempted to catch it…and that's how you entered into this preserve. Is that correct?"
"Yes sir…"
"Okay…Then I think I finally understand the situation."
As the Ranger let out a small sigh, all Takashi could do was wonder what was going to happen to him. This was the first time something like this has happened before and so he had no idea what to expect. As he began to sweat a little bit, he watched as the Ranger began to approach him. Once he got close enough, the young man watched as the Ranger bowed towards him slightly, surprising him somewhat.
"I'm sorry…" The Ranger said as he kept his head down. "I happen to know that Treecko and it has a habit of leaving the preserve and stealing food from travelers. You wouldn't be here if I simply kept a better eye on it. Please forgive me."
"…Um…It's fine." Takashi slowly replied. "There's no need to apologize, sir. After all…The fact remained that I did enter into the preserve without permission."
Having been taught by his parents to never hold a grudge, Takashi easily forgave the Ranger for the misunderstanding. He was simply glad that this situation was cleared up and that he wasn't going to get into any trouble. Thankful for the young man's kindness, the Ranger lifted his head and let out a small smile. He then extended his hand out to him and soon shook hands with Takashi.
"My name is Christopher and this Pokémon Preserve has been under my family's protection for generations." He explained. "To make things up to you, I would be happy to show you around before you head back on your way."
"Really…?" Takashi replied, a bit surprised by what he just heard. "That would be great."
With a slight nod, Christopher happily made his way outside of his cabin with Takashi and his Pokémon following closely behind. As they did so, the Ranger immediately showed them all the wild Pokémon that happened to be living here. They were many of varying types, but the most common of them were Bug, Grass, Water, and Flying-Types. That made sense to Takashi has those types could be typically found in a forest like this one. As he continued to look around, there was one group of Pokémon that immediately caught his eye.
The Pokémon that Takashi was looking at had a green dinosaur-like appearance with big red eyes and dark green spots covering all over its body. However, the most notable thing about them was the plant bulb that nearly covered all of their backs. When he saw them, Takashi soon recognized who they were.
"Hey…Those are Bulbasaur…"
Being one of the 3 Pokémon that Trainers from the Kanto Region generally start their career with, Takashi was fairly familiar with Bulbasaur and how they were a Grass/Poison-Type Pokémon. Not only that, but he also remembered that one of his best friends, Minako, actually started her own Pokémon Journey with a Bulbasaur. This prompted him to pull out his PokéDex and use it to learn more about it.
"Bulbasaur, the Seed Pokémon." Dexter stated. "Bulbasaur likes to take a nap in the sunshine. While it sleeps, the seed on its back catches the rays of the sun and uses the energy to grow. Bulbasaur is a Grass/Poison-Type Pokémon."
Following Dexter's explanation, Takashi took the opportunity to examine the group of Bulbasaur more closely. They all looked extremely peaceful, which reminded of something that Professor Oak once told him and his friends. He explained that out of the 3 Kanto Starter Pokémon, Bulbasaur was the easiest to handle and raise. Because of that, it was recommended for Trainers who want to start off easy when they begin their Journeys.
While the thought of encountering a sizeable number of them was extremely cool, Takashi also remembered something else that the Professor once told him. He explained that in any region, Starter Pokémon are extremely rare and their current habitat is pretty much unknown to the general public. Because of that, Takashi wondered how could such a large number of Bulbasaur be located here in this place.
"I always thought Bulbasaur were rare." He said as he faced Christopher. "So how come there's so many here?"
"Well…there's actually a good reason for that." Christopher told him. "Keep this between us, but one the reasons why this is a Pokémon Preserve is because it's also a Bulbasaur breeding ground. A large number of Bulbasaur and their evolved forms like to make this place their home and so the Pokémon League officially declared this place a preserve and my job as a Pokémon Ranger is to protect and raise the Bulbasaur until they're old enough to be given to new Trainers."
"I see…"
As he listened to Christopher's explanation, Takashi continued examining all the Bulbasaur that were in the area. Just looking at all of them excited the young man, nearly causing him to pull out an empty PokéBall and attempting to capture one. Thankfully, he forced himself to resist that urged as he knew that these Bulbasaur were meant for others. Takashi believed that the day would eventually come that he would have a Bulbasaur of his very own, but he knew that today simply wasn't that day.
Soon, as he continued to survey the area, Takashi noticed something in the distance and decided to investigate. Upon a closer inspection, he saw that it was both Treecko and Torterra. The two of them seemed to be talking to one another and from the look of things, the latter seemed to be really upset with the former. Takashi also noticed that Treecko was still holding on to the food that it stolen from him, but when it tried to present it to Torterra, the Continent Pokémon simply reject the offering.
Soon, as Torterra slowly began to take its leave, Takashi noticed the sad look that was on Treecko's face and decided to go up and comfort it. Even it was responsible for almost getting him into trouble with Christopher, Takashi couldn't bring himself to hate it. Once he eventually arrived, the young Pokémon Trainer presented some of his food to Treecko.
"Here you go…" He said in a warm and compassionate tone of voice. "It's not much, but it's really good."
For a moment, Treecko was stunned by Takashi's display of kindness, but soon rejected it by knocking the food that he was carrying out of his hand with its tail. When they saw this, all of Takashi's Pokémon were pretty upset with the Wood Gecko Pokémon, particularly Froakie, and called it out on its actions. However, Treecko simply ignored all of them and proceeded to climb up a large tree. It then leaned against it and pretended to take a nap.
While Takashi looked on at Treecko as it did this, Christopher made his way over to him. He then looked over at Treecko and simply let out a small sigh before rubbing the back of his head in frustration.
"Please forgive him…" He said in an apologetic tone. "Treecko has a bit of a…attitude problem."
"I can see that." Takashi replied, his eyes still focused on Treecko. "But why is that? Did something happen to Treecko that made him that way?"
Initially, Christopher didn't answer Takashi's question right away as he was trying to come up with a way to explain it. In truth, the Ranger only knew as much from his observations of the feisty Grass-Type, which wasn't much as Treecko was pretty much a loner and would only open up to Torterra. However, it was because of Treecko and Torterra's relationship that gave Christopher a way to explain the situation to Takashi.
"Well…As I just explained, this place is a breeding ground for Bulbasaur." He started off. "However, while receiving a new shipment of Bulbasaur eggs a few years ago, I noticed that one of them was different. When the eggs finally hatched, that one particular egg hatched into a Treecko, which is actually the Grass-Type Starter Pokémon in the southern Hoenn Region. Because it was the only one of its kind here, Treecko had a hard time bonding with everyone and felt along and isolated as a result. However…I think that began to change somewhat after Treecko met up with Torterra."
Pausing for a moment, Christopher turned his head and looked towards Torterra, who was busy sleeping by a small stream. Takashi did the same and noticed that the giant Grass-Type seemed pretty old. He was about to say something about that, but stopped himself when Christopher continued talking.
"Torterra used be my grandfather's Pokémon and it helped him maintain this preserve back when he was running it. Like Treecko, Torterra is generally found in another region as it's the fully evolved form of the northern Sinnoh Region Starter, Turtwig. Because it knows what it's like to feel isolated, Torterra felt sympathy for Treecko and soon took him under its wing, acting somewhat like a surrogate father. Because of that, while still a dismissive towards others, Torterra is the only one Treecko opened up too and thus the only one who can reel it in when it causes trouble."
"I see…" Takashi said, getting a grasp on Treecko's personality. "But if that's the case…why did he steal my food to give to Torterra? It should've known that it wouldn't accept it if it was stolen."
"Well you see…That's because…"
Just as Christopher was about to answer Takashi's question, a loud sound could be heard coming from the distance. As everyone wondered what could have caused it, Torterra woke up from its slumber and slowly began making its way towards the source of the disturbance. When Treecko noticed this, the Wood Gecko Pokémon promptly did the same and thanks to its greater mobility, it was able to do so at a much faster pace. As for Takashi, the young man had no idea what was going on, but he had the feeling that it wasn't good. Deciding to act on his instincts, he promptly followed after Treecko and Torterra, with his 3 Pokémon following close behind.
After a few minutes of jumping from tree to tree, Treecko the first one to arrive at the source of the disturbance and saw that it was being caused by two Trainers. From the look of things, it looked like the two of them were looking for something and they were tearing things up in order to look for it. Although a little bit intrigued, Treecko quickly put those thoughts aside and immediately grabbed the Trainers attention by striking them in the back of their heads with its large tail.
Upon being struck by the tiny Grass-Type, the two Trainers turned around and looked down at Treecko. When they saw it, both of their eyes widen slightly as just looking at the rare Grass Pokémon was the proof they needed that they were indeed near the place that they were looking for.
"We're here, Ryo." One of the individuals said. "This is the place where all those rare Grass-Type Pokémon are supposedly located. This Treecko confirms it."
"…Yeah." Ryo confirmed with a confident smile. "Just think about it, Gin. If we manage to capture all the Grass-Type that live here then we're bound to be let into the organization."
"Agreed…So let's start with this Treecko!"
With that said, both Ryo and Gin pulled out a PokéBall that they had on them and threw into the air. When the balls open, a blast of blue and white light energy shot out from them and hit the ground. While one of them transformed into a male Nidoran, the other light transformed into a bipedal Pokémon with a red body and a yellow, flame shape pattern on its stomach. The two Pokémon then stared down at Treecko, but the Wood Gecko Pokémon remained unfazed.
"Nidoran, use Poison Sting!" Gin declared.
"Magby, use Ember!" Ryo followed.
Right away, both Pokémon complied with their respective Trainers orders and proceeded to fire off their attacks. While Nidoran launched several tiny needles from the horn on its head, Magby spit out several fireballs from its mouth and directed them at Treecko. Thanks to its incredible speed and reflexes however, Treecko managed to avoid both attacks with little effort. It then went on to fire several energy bullets from its own mouth.
"Don't let that stop you, Magby!" Ryo shouted as he looked on at this scene. "Block them all with your Fire Punch!"
With a quick nod, Magby got in front of Nidoran before going on to wrap its right fist in scorching hot flames. It then went on to block each and every one of Treecko's bullets with nothing more than its flaming fist. Once the barrage was over, Magby confidently stared at Treecko with a smug expression on its face.
"Now use Flamethrower!"
Following Ryo's second command, Magby took a deep breath before firing a stream of red hot flames from its mouth. Thanks to its natural agility, Treecko managed to avoid the attack, but the sheer heat coming from the flames did bother it a little. Because of that, Treecko lost its focus for a few moments, giving Nidoran the opportunity to charge towards the Wood Gecko Pokémon.
"Nidoran, use Horn Attack!" Gin ordered.
By the time Treecko finally shook off the pain that it was feeling, it noticed that Nidoran was an inch away from striking it with its powerful horn. At the last moment, Treecko managed to jump out of the way, but doing so was exactly what Ryo was hoping for.
"Magby…Ember!"
Almost immediately after Treecko jumped into the air, Magby fired off another barrage of fireballs at it. Although it tried its best to deflect them with its energy bullets, Treecko's attack was overpowered by Magby's and the Grass-Type ended taking the full brunt of the latter's attack. Due to being a Grass-Type, Treecko was extremely vulnerable to Fire-Type attacks and so Magby's Ember did a considerable amount of damage. This put a smile on Ryo's, Gin's, and their Pokémon's faces as they all knew that they had Treecko on the ropes.
Soon, as they watched Treecko struggle to pick itself back up, Ryo suddenly got an idea and proceeded to pull out a PokéBall that he had on him. He then smirked at the Grass-Type as he pressed the button in the middle of the ball in order to make it bigger.
"You're not the Grass-Type that we're after," He said as he prepared to throw the PokéBall. "But I'm sure you'll make us a pretty penny."
With that said, Ryo threw the PokéBall and although it tried its best to find the strength to avoid it, Treecko was simply too injured to do so. Thankfully, just as the ball was about to connect with its target, a small gust of wind suddenly appeared and blew the PokéBall away. When that happened, everyone turned their heads and saw that the wind came from Takashi's Pidgeotto, who had just arrived with him and the rest of his Pokémon.
"Hey…Who's the kid?" Gin questioned.
"No idea…" Ryo answered. "But whoever he is, he's going to regret interfering with our work."
As the two villains prepared to confront Takashi, the young man was more concerned about Treecko and how it was doing. It was clear from the painful expression that was on its face that it took quite a bit of damage. Because of that, he knew that his first priority was to make sure that it was secure before doing anything else.
"Pikachu…" He said as looked across his shoulder at his electric partner. "I need you to go help Treecko. Pidgeotto and Froakie can deal with the other two."
With a quick nod, Pikachu immediately complied with his Trainer's wishes and proceeded to jump of Takashi's shoulder and make his way towards Treecko. Almost immediately, the Grass-Type rejected Pikachu's help and insisted on staying. However, after seeing it stumble, Pikachu knew that Treecko was in no condition to fight and so he forceful pulled it a safe distance away by grabbing onto its tail. Once Takashi saw that, he turned his attention towards Ryo and Gin, taking a particular interest in the former's Magby.
Having never seen a Pokémon like it before, Takashi wasn't entirely sure what to make of it at first. However, in his short time being a Pokémon Trainer, he learned quickly that looks can be deceiving. To that end, he quickly pulled out his PokéDex and used it in order to learn about this particular Pokémon.
"Magby, the Live Coal Pokémon." Dexter stated. "Magby thrive in volcanic areas, where they freely spout flames. They can learn to control their flames and use them productively – for instance, one Magby serves as a gentle kiln for its Trainer, an artist famous for pottery. Magby is a Fire-Type Pokémon."
Following Dexter's explanation, Takashi quickly put his PokéDex back into his pocket before turning his attention back towards both Magby and Nidoran. Since the former is a Fire-Type, a Water-Type Pokémon like his Froakie would be a good match-up against it. To that end, Takashi to let Froakie deal with Magby while Pidgeotto faces off against Nidoran.
"Froakie, attack Magby with Bubble!" He declared. "Pidgeotto, use Steel Wing on Nidoran!"
Almost immediately, both of Takashi's Pokémon responded to his commands and unleashed their respective moves. While Pidgeotto began gathering energy into his wings, which caused them to glow brightly, Froakie proceeded to take a deep breath before unleashing a large barrage of bubbles at her target. As she did that, Pidgeotto finally finished gathering up enough power and went on to fly towards Nidoran at an impressive speed.
Due to the incredible speed in which both attacks were launched, both Ryo and Gin were caught off guard and watched as both of their Pokémon were struck down by Takashi's. Between the both of them, Magby the most damage due to its weakness to Water-Type moves. When Takashi saw that, he wasted no time in launching a follow up attack on the Live Coal Pokémon.
"Go Froakie!" He said. "Now use Pound!"
Nodding her head in compliance, Froakie jumped high into the air until she was just above Magby. She then dove down and prepared to strike it with her tiny hand. With Magby still reeling from that earlier Bubble attack, Ryo saw that his Pokémon was in no condition to dodge Froakie's attack. However, based on what he was seeing, Froakie wasn't in a position to dodge any attacks either, which Ryo decided to exploit.
"Quick Magby, use Flamethrower!"
As Froakie was making her way towards her opponent, Magby responded by firing off a powerful stream of fire from its mouth. Although Froakie resistant to Fire-Type as she was a Water-Type, Takashi knew that if she took an attack from that close a range, there was no way she would come out of it unscathed. Because of that, the young Pokémon Trainer immediately responded to this development.
"Froakie, block it with Water Pulse!" He yelled.
After hearing Takashi call out to her, Froakie quickly placed her hands together and began gathering up all the moisture in the air that she could. As she did so, a large sphere of water began to form in the space in between her hands. Once the orb was large enough, Froakie immediately threw at Magby's flames, causing a large steam cloud to appear as the two attacks connected.
As the steam began to envelop the area, Ryo tried to keep his eyes on both his Magby and Takashi's Froakie. However, as the steam grew thicker, it became increasingly more difficult to keep an eye on both Pokémon. Realizing that he couldn't afford to lose sight of Magby, Ryo did the only thing he could do in this situation.
"Magby…pull back now!" He ordered.
Right away, Magby complied with its Trainer's command and immediately jumped out of the steam cloud. The Live Coal Pokémon then kept its eyes focused entirely on the cloud, preparing itself to attack the moment it caught sight of Froakie. Before that could happen though, Takashi was already making his move.
"Froakie, use Bubble!"
From out of the steam cloud, several water bubbles suddenly came flying from inside of it and began making their way towards Magby. Before Ryo even had the chance to order his Pokémon to avoid them, Magby was already bombarded by the bubbles, dealing it a significant amount of damage as a result. Then, as Magby fell back first onto the ground, Froakie suddenly jumped from the steam cloud and began standing right above of her fallen opponent.
"Great job, Froakie!" Takashi said with a smile on his face. "Now let's finish it off before it can recover!"
Nodding her head in approval, Froakie raised her hand in the air and prepared herself to deal the final blow against Magby. Just before she could do so however, Froakie noticed something heading towards her from the corner of her eye. This prompted the Water-Type to jump back, causing her to see that it was a barrage of poison needles. Upon seeing that, both Froakie and Takashi turned their heads and saw that the attack was coming from Gin's Nidoran.
"Ryo!" Gin called out to. "Hurry up and get out of there!"
"Right!" Ryo complied. "Magby, use Smokescreen!"
Just as Froakie was about to launch a counterattack against Nidoran, Magby used what little strength that it had left and unleashed a thick smoke cloud from its mouth. The toxic fumes coming from the cloud caused Froakie to lose her concentration and was left unable to form her attack. This gave both Ryo and Gin the opportunity to recall their Pokémon and flee the area before the smoke had time to clear. When it eventually did, Takashi saw that the two of them were gone.
"Damn it…" Takashi cursed. "They got away."
As he berated himself from allowing those creeps to get away, Takashi took a moment to check up on Froakie and saw that although she was a bit frustrated, she was otherwise alright. He then turned attention towards Pikachu, who was busy watching over the weaken Treecko. Upon making his way over to them, the young Trainer gently petted Pikachu's head before proceeding to check up on Treecko's condition.
Because it got hit by a Fire-Type move, the injuries that Treecko sustained were more serious than it would usually be. Because of that, Takashi acted quickly and went to grab a Potion from his backpack. He then prepared to spray the medicine onto Treecko, but the Wood Gecko Pokémon promptly knocked the bottle out of his hand with its tail. It then attempted to walk away under its own power.
"Wait up Treecko…" Takashi said as he reached out towards it. "Stop! You're in no condition to be moving."
Despite knowing that he was right and feeling its entire body aching all over, Treecko's pride refused to allow it to show any weakness and so it kept pressing forward. When he saw this, Takashi understood what Treecko was feeling, but couldn't bring himself to allow this to continue and thus he began making his way towards the Grass-Type again. Just before he could get close though, the young man suddenly stopped when he heard a loud noise coming towards him.
The noise was coming from Torterra, who had finally arrived from the nature preserve. The Continent Pokémon then took a moment to examine the area before slowly making its way towards Treecko. The two Grass-Types then stared at one another for moment as Takashi and his Pokémon simply looked on. They then watched as Treecko sadly placed its head down before Torterra gently placed its head against the smaller Pokémon. This caused the tree that was on Torterra's back to start glowing just as Treecko's body was glowing at the same time.
As they continued to look on at this scene, Takashi looked on it astonishment as Treecko's injuries were quickly beginning to heal. From what he could tell, it seemed like Torterra was transferring its own energy to Treecko in order to heal the latter. Soon enough, Torterra's tree soon stopped glowing just as the last of Treecko's injuries were healed.
"Whoa…" Takashi said in amazement. "What was that?"
"Synthesis…" A voice said from behind. "It's one of Torterra's moves."
Turning his head, Takashi saw that the voice just now came from Christopher, who had just arrived. The park ranger then made his way towards both Torterra and Treecko before gently placing his hand on top of the former's head.
"It's a special Grass-Type move that allows a Pokémon to heal their wounds by using the energy they receive from the sun." He continued. "Normally it can only be used to heal themselves, but Torterra learned to transfer the energy onto other Pokémon."
"Wow…That's incredible." Takashi said as he walked over and placed his head onto Torterra's. "You're awesome, Torterra."
Just as Takashi was praising Torterra for his abilities though, something rather unexpected took place. Suddenly, the Continent Pokémon started coughing rather violently and was having a hard time trying to catch its breath. Everyone was very shocked by this scene, especially Treecko who immediately sat up and began checking up on Torterra. After about a minute, Torterra was slowly beginning to feel better, but everyone was still worried by what just happened.
"…What just happened…?" Takashi questioned. "Is Torterra alright? Is it sick?"
"…You could say that." Christopher answered. "But that's what happens when you grow old, right?"
For a moment, Takashi was left silent by Christopher's words, but upon comprehending the full weight of them, his eyes began to widen greatly. He then turned his attention towards Torterra who, upon closer inspection, looked extremely fatigued. By just looking at it, Takashi could truly see just how old this Pokémon was and its age was catching up to it.
As for Christopher, the young man went on to pet Torterra's head one more time, silently acknowledging what happening and what the end result will be. He then looked on as Torterra slowly made its way back to the preserve, with Treecko following close behind.
"I told you already that Torterra been helping out at this preserve back when my grandfather was running it." He said as Takashi listened closely. "…And that means it's been at this for close to 100 years. I wish it wasn't so…but everyday it's becoming clear that Torterra won't be able to keep this up for much longer."
"…I see." Takashi said as he let out a small sigh. "Torterra is dying of old age."
Chapter Preview
As he continues his stay at the Grass Pokémon Preserve, Takashi finds himself helping Christopher with his daily duties there. During this time, he learns more about Torterra and the relationship it heads with the feisty Treecko. This leads him to want to do something for the both of them, especially as Torterra condition begins to worsen. What can Takashi do and what will happen when Gin and Ryo suddenly come back and attack the preserve?
Next Time, Chapter 18: The Defender of the Forest – Part 2