Chapter 14: The Big City

Roku's P.O.V.

Pokémon Day Care

We waited a couple of days at the Day Care to make sure that Espeon was going to be OK. I was pretty impressed with the Day Care man; he definitely should've been a doctor. Espeon was feeling better and battle-ready in just a couple of days.

"Thank you so much," Naoko said to the Day Care man. Then she turned to us and said, "And I must also extend my thanks to you. If you hadn't got there when you did, Espeon would've…"

I saw a tear roll down Naoko's face. Suddenly, she ran to me and hugged me.

"Thank you, Roku," she said.

"It's no problem, Naoko," I said, hugging her back. "Happy to help."

Naoko let me go, and she and the Day Care lady went off into the city to catch the next train to Ecruteak City. I decided to stay back and get some training in for the next Gym Battle. The Day Care man warned me of Whitney's deceptively cute act and her powerful Miltank, and he offered to help me train for that battle.

"Let's go out into the main yard," the Day Care man said, directing me into the pen. I followed him in, and he sent out his Miltank.

Now, personally, I already had a strategy. Miltank is a Normal-type Pokémon who is notorious for its Rollout attack, which'll pretty much decimate any Pokémon who isn't prepared for it. I decided to assign Riolu to the task of butchering the cow.

"Go, Riolu!" I shouted, releasing him from the Poke Ball.

"OK, Miltank!" the Day Care man shouted. "Use Rollout!"

Miltank took a few steps back before curling into a big rolling ball of beef and fat. I told Riolu to use Foresight, and once he dodged the Rollout, I ordered him to follow up with Force Palm. The Day Care man's Pokémon took serious damage, but since Miltank was pretty much a tank, she was still up and raring to go.

"Go again! Rollout!" the Day Care man ordered.

Right then, I decided to try something different.

"Riolu, use Counter!" I shouted.

Miltank almost made direct contact until Riolu bashed her with a powerful counter blow, sending her sprawling back to the other side of the field. However, she still got back up, though she was breathing heavily.

"Miltank, Milk Drink!" the Day Care man ordered.

Miltank's injuries instantly faded as it absorbed the nutrients of its own milk. I shook my head in disbelief and said, "This is gonna be a long day."


Latias' P.O.V.

Legend Keeper HQ

Latias retreated back a ways. The Pokémon she had angered was none other than the Lava Dome Pokémon, Heatran, and she was at a serious disadvantage.

"But I've got to win!" she said. She dashed at Heatran again, nailing him with a point-blank Dragon Breath that would send anyone staggering. Heatran stumbled back, giving Latias ample time to use Recover and heal her wounds.

"OK, Heatran! Use Gyro Ball!" his Trainer ordered.

Heatran spun rapidly and flew at Latias, who dodged nimbly and launched a Mist Ball at the spinning mass, completing the battle and sealing victory.

"Aw, man! I can't believe it!" the Legend Keeper complained, returning the fainted Legendary Pokémon to his virtual area. "You're one tough cookie, Latias. I'd be honored to have you as my partner."

"I'm grateful for the offer, but I've already chose my partner," Latias said. "Sorry."

"Damn," the Legend Keeper said sadly. "Well, whoever they are, they're pretty lucky."

"Heh, they should be," Latias said. She nodded and went back to her room.


Roku's P.O.V.

Pokémon Day Care

Luna was breathing heavily, about to collapse. However, she knew that she had to perfect this strategy in the case that Riolu got knocked out.

"Miltank, use Rollout!" the Day Care man shouted.

Miltank barreled forward, but Luna dodged flawlessly and launched a Swift attack, taking Miltank down for the count.

"Yes! We did it!" Luna shouted victoriously.

I, on the other hand, was puzzled. "Why didn't Miltank heal herself?" I asked.

"She knows that you are ready to fight Whitney," the Day Care man said. "Only then would she give up."

The Day Care man returned the fallen Miltank to her Poke Ball.

"You know, only a certain group would know how a Pokémon feels like you do," I said suspiciously. "You used to be a Legend Keeper, didn't you?"

The Day Care man laughed and said, "You assume too much, young Roku. Granted, I do know about the Legend Keepers, but I never was one. My granddaughter Krysta, however, is a Legend Keeper. She's currently on the trail of a Legendary Pokémon going by the name of Suicune. Does that ring a bell?"

"Yeah, he's one of the three Legendary Beast Pokémon," I said. "Suicune is the embodiment of the North Wind, and has the power to instantly purify water."

Thank Arceus for the invention of the Pokedex, I thought to myself.

"Well, now I have reason to believe that you yourself might be a Legend Keeper," the Day Care man said, cocking an eyebrow.

"Soon to be, if he can pass initiation," Zuki said, resting with her Umbreon.

"Really," the Day care man said. "So that's why you're traveling this far."

"Well, that's part of the reason," I said. "I'm going to meet a friend over there."

"I see. Well, I believe you'll make a fine Legend Keeper," the Day Care man said. "I wish you luck on your journey as well as your next Gym Battle."

"I guess that means we'll be taking our leave," I said, looking at Reia and Zuki. "Let's head out."

I gathered my things and said goodbye to the Day Care couple before walking off to the skyline of Goldenrod City.


Jay's P.O.V.

Team Prime Base

Jay woke up with a start, finding himself staring into the cold eyes of the boss himself.

"Well, now, Jay," Zareis said with a wicked smile. "What happened out there, hmm?"

"I-I'm sorry, boss," Jay said, knowing it was futile to think the boss would forgive him.

"No apologies! Tell me what happened!" Zareis said, his voice rising.

"Well, I went and captured one of the Pokémon of the Core, like you asked me to," Jay explained shakily. "But then this kid challenged me to a battle. I sent his ass packing, and was about to finish them off, until this other Trainer flew out of the treetops and…" He gulped at this moment.

"Go on," Zareis said.

"Well, he stole Giratina, as well as Celebi," Jay continued. "He used some strange device to break the bond between Giratina and I, and he caught it. Then he just jacked the Poke Ball that had Celebi in it. The only thing I remember after that is Darkrai putting me to sleep."

"I see," Zareis said, standing up straight. "Well, it seems that the Legend Keepers have somehow gotten hold of a Snag Machine. Very peculiar indeed."

Jay gulped again and said, "What're you gonna do with me?"

Zareis turned to Jay and said, "Well, I'm going to send you and the rest of the team on a rescue mission. You're going to get your Pokémon back, and you're going to swear not to come back without it. Understood?"

Jay nodded and said, "Yes, boss! I swear that I won't come back empty-handed!"

"Good," Zareis said in approval. "Darkrai, cut him loose."

Jay then noticed that he was bound to the very seat he was sitting in. Darkrai reluctantly cut the ropes that bound him, and Jay sprang up and ran out of the room before Zareis had a chance to change his mind.


Roku's P.O.V.

Goldenrod City

We had finally arrived at Goldenrod City after a few hours' walk. Night had fallen during this time, and we were thankful that the city was bright enough to find our way to the Pokémon Center. We stepped in, let Nurse Joy take care of our Pokémon, and Zuki hit the sack while Reia and I talked over some battle strategies. Reia was smart enough to pay attention to my day-long training session, so she knew what to do.

"Our only problem is experience," I said. "Whitney's Miltank could very well be stronger than the Day Care man's. Every possibility counts."

"You really want to win this Badge, don't you?" Reia said, smiling.

"What kind of stupid question is that?" I laughed. "Of course I want to win this Badge. Don't you?"

"Yeah, guess you're right," Reia said, correcting herself. "We also need to worry about secondary typings, 'cause I received some intel that Whitney also uses Fairy-type Pokémon."

I cocked my eyebrow. Fairy-type Pokémon were nasty pieces of work. I had read about the newly discovered type over the internet. This totally retyped a lot of previously discovered Pokémon, such as Clefairy, Jigglypuff, and Snubbull, as well as their evolutionary counterparts. Fairy-type moves are strong against Fighting-, Ghost-, and Dragon-type Pokémon, and are weak to Fire-, Poison-, and Steel-type Pokémon. Incidentally, Fairy-type Pokémon are weak against Poison- and Steel-type moves, strong against Fighting-, Bug-, and Dark-type moves, and are completely unaffected by Dragon-type moves.

Thankfully, we didn't have any Dragons on our team. But we did have Riolu to worry about. If there was a Fairy-type Pokémon on the field at the same time as Riolu, we'd be in serious trouble.

"Same goes with Luna," Reia said as I explained this to her. "She'd be weak to Fairy-type moves. I wouldn't doubt that, because of the change in Pokémon distribution, they'd own a few Pokémon from other regions, maybe even Kalos."

I shuddered at the thought. I had no idea about how to handle Pokémon who weren't originally from Johto, except maybe Riolu and Braixen.

Then I got an idea.

"That's it!" I said, having a total "eureka" moment. "Fairy-types can't do much against Fire-types, right?"

"Yeah, but we still have to worry about Miltank's Rollout," Reia said. "Last I knew, Fire was weak to Rock."

"That's why we only have one Fire-type on the field when Whitney brings out her Miltank," I explained. "Riolu and I will worry about that when the time comes. Until then, we should have Braixen and Lyra on the same field. Those fairies won't be able to take the heat!"

"I hope you're right about that, Roku," Reia said. "We have to win this battle."

I put a hand on Reia's shoulder and said, "We will win. All you gotta do is trust me."

Reia put her hand on mine and said, "I already trust you." Then her eyes flared up with determination. "We're gonna mop the stadium floor with her tomorrow!"

"That's the spirit!" I said. "Now, let's get some sleep. We'll need our energy for tomorrow."

Just then, we heard a commotion coming from outside the Pokémon Center.

"Looks like sleep will have to wait," Reia said. "C'mon, let's see what's going on out there."

I nodded and followed Reia out of the Pokémon Center.


Darius' P.O.V.

Goldenrod City

Darius took shelter in an alley near the Pokémon Center. As he was entering the city, he nearly got caught by a mall cop who was patrolling the area. He barely managed to escape him and his Growlithe.

"Man…I hate the fuzz, just about as much as I hate that goody two-shoes Roku," he said to himself.

Darius was still steaming. He'd defeated every Trainer he'd encountered, as well as any who were stupid enough to challenge him. Everyone except Roku. How can someone be the world's strongest Trainer if he can't even defeat one stupid weakling? What did Roku have that he didn't?

"Doesn't matter," he said to himself. "I'll get my revenge. One of these days, I'm gonna pulverize that bastard, as well as that little bitch he rolls with. They're gonna feel my wrath."


Author's Note: I'm gonna pull out here. I'm kinda running out of inspiration, but I'll probably be fired up again once I get Roku's initiation over. That's when this story's gonna hit the nitrous.

I was listening to "Rockstar" by Nickelback while writing this, and all I could think about was Roku walking out of the Pokémon League with a Championship title and a bunch of hoes surrounding him. Vision from the future? Maybe. You'll have to read on to find out.

And with that, another chapter reaches its end. Strato Abyss signing out.