AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is Chapter 57 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through Kanto. Giovanni from the anime makes an appearance, as does Wendy from Team Rocket's human resources. You may remember her from the Pokémon episode "Dues and Don'ts." As always, please feel free to read and review. Provide any feedback if you so choose.

TEASER: Blue's secret of joining Team Rocket is revealed. But then, he turns on Giovanni! Now, Giovanni seeks revenge for being double-crossed! And it couldn't happen at a worse time than during the Pokémon League Competition!

Chapter 57: TRAITOR VS. BOSS, PART 1

(Music Cue: Route 11 (The Road to Lavender Town (as heard in "Get Along, Little Pokémon")))

In our last episode, Tristan battled on the ice field in the fourth round of the Pokémon League Competition against a trainer and a champion skier named Lancaster, who specialized in Ice-type Pokémon. Things started out icy when Pikachu battled against Dewgong. Realizing that Pikachu's Quick Attack would be useless on ice, Tristan altered his strategy and use the ice field to his advantage. One Thunderbolt later, Dewgong was taken out of the competition.

Next, Lancaster sent out Swinub, a Pokémon Tristan had never seen before. Pikachu's Thunderbolt was no match to Swinub's type characteristics, and Swinub quickly took down Pikachu.

However, the tables quickly turned when Tristan's Lapras absorbed Swinub's Tackle attack and Body-Slammed it.

But the battle took an even more disturbing turn when Lancaster sent out her Jynx to put Lapras to sleep with its Lovely Kiss attack.

Finally, Tristan sent out Snorlax and gave Jynx the Body Slam of its life after sliding on the field. That slide earned Tristan a place in the Victory Tournament as he heads into the fifth round.

(Music Cue: The Rockets Unveiled)

But late that night, trouble arose when Blue snuck into the Pokémon Center, stole the Pokéballs from the losing trainers, and tripped the security alarm, waking every resident at the Indigo Plateau. Nurse Joy gave chase at once. Will she catch up to Blue? And what will be the outcome of this turn of events?


Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu heard the security alarm ring and burst awake at once.

"What's going on?" asked Hillary frantically.

"I don't know, sis, but we'd better check it out," replied Tristan as he and Hillary got dressed and ran out of the bedroom with Pikachu close behind.

It was then that multiple Officer Jennys and police officers arrived on the scene. They immediately shone flashlights on Tristan and Hillary as soon as they arrived in the lobby.

"Hold it right there, you two!" demanded Officer Jenny. "Give back those Pokéballs!"

"What Pokéballs?" asked Hillary.

"Quit lying and drop 'em!" snapped Officer Jenny. "Or I'll place you under arrest for theft!"

"But we didn't take them, Officer Jenny! Honest!" insisted Tristan.

"Pika-pika!" added Pikachu.

"What's going on here?" asked a stern voice.

Everyone saw Nurse Joy arriving in the lobby.

"I was chasing after the thief who stole those Pokéballs and you accuse these two innocent children of stealing them instead?" she fumed. "The only thing you've done is let the real criminal get away! And you call yourselves police officers?! I'm very, very disappointed in every one of you. Jumping to conclusions without gathering up the facts! It's just disgraceful!"

All of the police officers shrugged their shoulders.

Tristan and Hillary were quietly amazed.

"Whoa," whispered Tristan. "I wouldn't want to get on Nurse Joy's bad side."

"I'll say," agreed Hillary quietly.

"Did you actually see these children in the storage room and take the Pokéballs?" asked Nurse Joy sternly. "Well, did you?"

All of the officers shook their heads.

"I didn't think so," said Nurse Joy. "These two children were fast asleep when the theft occurred, and they were nowhere near the storage room, let alone any of the Pokéballs. Take a look at the footage on this security camera, and I'll prove it." And she pointed to a computer screen showing video of what happened in the storage room a few minutes prior to the theft.

(Music Cue: Sneaking from the Shadows)

She stopped at the exact moment when a person in a black suit appeared and gathered up all the Pokéballs in a big sack.

"Something about that guy seems very familiar," said Hillary suspiciously. "But where did we see him?"

Nurse Joy fast-forwarded to the point when the thief tripped and hit the security alarm by accident. All of the lights had gone on, and the thief's face was revealed. He had a spiky head of hair.

Tristan and Hillary were shocked at who they saw.

"That's...that's Blue!" gasped Tristan.

"Our longtime rival?" asked Hillary. "But why would he take all the Pokéballs?"

It was then that Tristan saw Blue's clothes more closely. "Hillary, look at this!"

Sure enough, he was seen in a black uniform with a red letter R on it.

"It can't be!" exclaimed Hillary. "Blue is a member of Team Rocket?!"

"You don't mean Blue Oak, one of Professor Oak's grandsons, do you?" asked Officer Jenny, who was just as shocked as Tristan and Hillary were.

Tristan and Hillary nodded their heads.

"I think Professor Oak needs to hear about this," said Officer Jenny. Then she and the other police officers lowered their heads in shame. "We're sorry we accused you of theft. Please forgive us all."

"We're just glad that things worked out," replied Hillary.

"Okay, we need to pay a visit to Professor Oak, so let's move, men!" ordered Officer Jenny as she and the other police officers ran out of the Pokémon Center.

Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu all breathed sighs of relief.

"Thanks for your help, Nurse Joy," said Tristan.

"Oh, you're welcome," she chuckled. "Seeing you two get arrested for a crime you didn't commit is the last thing I need."

"But now, we need to figure out why Blue joined Team Rocket in the first place," said Tristan.


Meanwhile, Officer Jenny and her team of police officers arrived at the place Professor Oak was staying and told him of the situation. His reaction was immediate.

"Blue? BLUE OAK?!"

"I'm afraid so, Professor," replied Officer Jenny. "Has Blue ever told you about this?"

"No, he hasn't," answered Professor Oak. "In fact, he never called me at all ever since he first left on his journey all these months ago! Sure, I get calls from Tristan and Hillary every so often, but that's to be expected. Did I ever get a phone call from Blue? Not that I know of!" He was starting to lose patience.

"Calm down, Professor," said Officer Jenny. "We'll track him down. He couldn't have gone far. We have police officers looking for him as we speak."


(Music Cue: The Mighty Mewtwo)

Meanwhile, Blue was still on the run from the Pokémon Center with the sack of Pokéballs in hand. At that moment, a voice on the radio said...

"Calling Blue Oak. This is Giovanni. Are you reading me?"

Blue grumbled and put the bag of Pokéballs on the ground. "Sometimes, Giovanni has the worst timing," he said to himself. "I'm quitting this lame team and dealing with Tristan myself. He'll never survive my onslaught of Pokémon I've managed to collect." He spoke into the radio. "Yes, I'm here, Giovanni."

"Did you get that bag of Pokéballs like you were supposed to?" asked Giovanni.

"Yes, I did," answered Blue.

"Excellent," said Giovanni. "Bring them to me immediately, so that I may rule the world."

It was then that a sickening turn of events took place.

"Did you hear me, Blue?" said Giovanni in a louder and more frustrated tone. "Bring them to me now!"

Blue just stood there. Then he finally said, "No."

Giovanni was shocked. "What do you mean, "no?" I gave you an order! DO IT!"

"I've had it with this lame evil team," said Blue defiantly. "From now on, just call me a free agent."

Then he dropped his radio and crushed it under his feet.


Back at Team Rocket Headquarters, Giovanni was still trying to reach Blue. "Blue, come in! BLUE!"

But there was no response. Giovanni's radio emitted nothing but static.

Giovanni seethed in anger. "Apparently, I've been double-crossed. Well, that does it. No more Mr. Nice Guy." He immediately telephoned the human resources division of Team Rocket.

A woman with green hair answered her video phone in her office. "Yes, this is Wendy."

"Wendy, this is Giovanni. Take Blue off of our list of employees," said Giovanni on the video phone.

"Yes, master Giovanni," replied Wendy. "I thought you had news on that Jessie and that fruit smoothie."

"Never mind her!" fumed Giovanni. "I want you to take Blue off our list. He's double-crossed me for the last time."

"He's double-crossed you the only time," retorted Wendy.

"Just take him off that list," said Giovanni. "I'm going to the Indigo Plateau, and I'll deal with him myself."

"Understood, sir," replied Wendy.

The video transmission ended.

A few moments later, Giovanni got into his helicopter, took off into the sky, and headed directly toward the Indigo Plateau as fast as he could.


Meanwhile, back at the Pokémon Center, Nurse Joy was doing some investigating of her own. "Apparently, there have been a number of thefts from the storage room for the past four nights," she said to Tristan and Hillary.

(Music Cue: A Creeping Threat)

"Four nights?" asked Hillary.

"Have the other trainers reported this to you?" asked Tristan.

"They have," answered Nurse Joy. "Unfortunately, we hadn't been able to track down who stole them until now. The darkness of the past four nights concealed the thief's identity. But now that we know who stole the Pokéballs, we have to find out where Blue is hiding so we can get them back from him before he takes them to Team Rocket Headquarters."

"But how are we supposed to find him, let alone all the Pokéballs he stole?" asked Hillary.

Just then, several trainers, including Lancaster, showed up.

"Those must be all the losing trainers from yesterday!" said Hillary to Tristan.

"Nurse Joy!" said Lancaster frantically. "My Pokéballs are gone! Have you seen them?"

"I'm afraid I don't have them," answered Nurse Joy sadly. "And unfortunately, the person who took them is now on the run."

"This is an outrage!" shouted Lancaster. "I came to check on the Pokémon and someone has the nerve to steal them all?!"

Tristan and Hillary turned to each other.

"This is bad," whispered Hillary. "We need to find Blue before more trainers find out about this theft."

"You're right, sis, let's go find Blue," replied Tristan as he, Hillary, and Pikachu quickly disappeared into the crowd and out of the Pokémon Center. They knew that time wasn't on their side, so they ran off to find Blue as fast as they could.


Meanwhile, in another part of the Pokémon League Village, Blue was having the time of his life. He had ripped off his Team Rocket uniform.

"Ha ha ha!" laughed Blue. "Now it doesn't matter how many Pokémon I have. I can beat Tristan's six Pokémon with ease now."

"Stop right there, Blue!" ordered a voice. The voice belonged to Tristan.

Blue was surprised to see Tristan and Hillary standing in his way. But then his expression of surprise turned into joy. "Hey!" he said. "I was looking forward to seeing you, guys. My rival, Tristan, should definitely be strong to keep me sharp."

"And why is that, Blue?" asked Hillary.

"While working on my Pokédex these past few weeks, I looked all over for powerful Pokémon, including those that were newly discovered!" explained Blue. "Not only that, I managed to collect a massive number of Pokémon and assembled many teams that would beat any Pokémon type. And now, I have what it takes to beat you and become the next champion!"

"Stop making up stories, Blue!" demanded Tristan. "We know you stole those Pokéballs, and we know you're working for Team Rocket!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," said Blue as he waved his pointer finger. "You don't get it, do you? I was working for Team Rocket."

"What do you mean 'was?'" asked Hillary suspiciously.

"I used that excuse as a ploy for them to lower their guard," explained Blue. "Get it? I stole these Pokéballs because they thought I wanted to work for them. But little did they know that I was just stealing these Pokémon so I could beat Tristan."

"You know you can't win with Pokémon that don't rightfully belong to you," said Tristan.

"But now that I have this many Pokémon, I can!" replied Blue. "Now, I'm the most powerful trainer in the world!"

Presently, everyone heard the whirring of helicopter blades close by. The wind from those blades was very strong.

"What's going on here?" bellowed Hillary.

Then everyone saw the red letter R on the helicopter.

"It's Team Rocket!" shouted Tristan.

"I have a bad feeling it isn't just Team Rocket we have to worry about!" replied Hillary.

The helicopter landed on the ground and the door opened. Who should step out but Giovanni himself. He didn't look very happy, yet he had a wicked smile on his face.

(Music Cue: A Formidable Opponent Appears)

"It's Giovanni," whispered Tristan.

"What's he doing here?" asked Hillary.

"Well, Blue," smiled Giovanni. "It seems that you have mastered the art of the double-cross. It's too bad you had to use it on me. You had so much potential. So I'm afraid I'll have to step in now and battle you for double-crossing me."

"Is this what Blue meant when he said he 'was' working for Team Rocket?" asked Hillary.

"This bag of Pokéballs does not belong to you!" said Blue. "It belongs to me! And I'm going to use them to defeat you!"

"Ah ah ah!" said Giovanni. "That bag of Pokéballs is off limits. You may not use them." He turned to Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu, who were trying to sneak away with the bag of Pokéballs. "And don't think I've left you out of the equation, little kiddies."

Giovanni snapped his fingers. At that instant, an army of Team Rocket Grunts surrounded them.

"Don't even think about running away with that heavy bag," advised Giovanni. "Because there's no way to escape. I won't let you interfere with my plan. So put the bag of Pokéballs down like good little children."

"Great," said Tristan. "Now what do we do?"

"We'll figure something out," replied Hillary. "But for now, we'll have to do what he says."

Reluctantly, they put the bag of Pokéballs down on the ground.

"As I was saying," continued Giovanni. "That bag is off limits. So, Blue, if you want that bag of Pokéballs back in your possession, you'll have to battle me with your own Pokémon."

"You're insane!" shouted Blue.

"Beat me in a battle, little boy, and I'll release you and the Pokéballs as promised," said Giovanni. "But fail, and not only will this bag of Pokéballs be mine, but all of your Pokémon will be, too."

"This is crazy!" exclaimed Tristan. "If Blue loses, then he loses his Pokémon!"

"And there's nothing we'll be able to do to stop him!" added Hillary.

Blue growled in frustration. At last, he said, "All right, I accept your challenge."

"Excellent, little boy," said Giovanni. "Let's make this a full battle, just to make this more interesting." Then, he turned to Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu. "You three may leave...without the bag of Pokéballs. This circle of friends is getting a little too crowded. I'll need a lot of space to deal this other friend a crushing defeat."

Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu saw the Rocket Grunts make a path for them, and they despondently left the circle.

Then, the Rocket Grunts closed it again.

The children had no choice but to watch the battle from outside the circle.

"Now let's get down to business, little boy," said Giovanni as he took out his first Pokéball. "I choose Kingler."

(Music Cue: Radi!)

The Pokéball opened, and Kingler emerged from the white light that shot out of it.

"I won't need the bag of Pokéballs to defeat that thing!" said Blue as he threw his first Pokéball. "I choose Exeggutor!"

Exeggutor emerged from the white light that shot out of the ball.

"So Blue'e Exeggcute evolved," remarked Hillary. "And not only that, Exeggutor should have the advantage against a Water-type like Kingler."

"Yes, but you can't win against a Pokémon by type alone," reminded Tristan. "Blaine from the Cinnabar Island Gym told us that."

"Exeggutor, start out with Stomp!" ordered Blue.

Exeggutor jumped and used its big feet to try and stomp on Kingler.

However, Giovanni was quite unconcerned. "Kingler, Harden now."

Kingler's body glowed in a light blue color. Its entire body became rock-solid, causing Exeggutor's Stomp to bounce off.

"Exeggutor, try a Leech Seed!" commanded Blue.

Exeggutor fired a flurry of brown seeds from the top of its leaves.

"Kingler, use your pincers to knock those seeds away," instructed Giovanni.

Kingler furiously waved its hard pincers around. Sure enough, those seeds were no match against them.

Blue gasped in shock.

"Now finish it up with Crabhammer," instructed Giovanni.

Kingler slammed its claw into the ground, and a powerful white orb was launched at Exeggutor.

"Exeggutor, get away, quick!" shouted Blue.

But it was too late, for Kingler's Crabhammer was too fast for Exeggutor to dodge in time; Crabhammer had scored a direct hit.

"No! Kingler!" cried Blue.

Exeggutor collapsed on the ground, knocked out.

"Poor Exeggutor," said Hillary. She was very disappointed as she turned to Tristan. "I see what you mean when you said that you can't win by type alone."

I hate to admit it, but Giovanni seems like a person who doesn't mess around, thought Tristan.

"Well, that's the end of the first round," snickered Giovanni. "Care to try again?"

"I'm just getting warmed up!" answered Blue as he returned Exeggutor to its Pokéball. He immediately took out his second one. "Go, Cloyster!"

(Music Cue: Kanto Trainer Battle (Version 2 (as heard in "The Battle of the Badge")))

Cloyster emerged from the white light that shot out of the ball.

"So, you've chosen a Cloyster," said Giovanni. "You're hoping that Cloyster's rock-hard shell will prove to be enough to stop my Kingler from attacking you. Well, I'm afraid your calculations this time are way off. Kingler, prove him wrong for me, won't you?"

Kingler charged at Cloyster with its hard claws as the driving force.

"Cloyster, stop it with Spike Cannon!" yelled Blue.

Cloyster glowed white as its spikes aimed for the approaching Kingler. Then it fired multiple spikes at it.

Kingler was bombarded by Cloyster's attack, stopping it in its tracks.

"Hm. Not bad," smiled Giovanni.

"It looks like Cloyster might win this one," said Hillary excitedly.

"I think you're right, sis," replied Tristan.

Cloyster's Spike Cannon continued to score hit after hit on Kingler.

"Now stop it with Ice Beam!" commanded Blue.

Cloyster fired a beam of ice-cold energy at Kingler. Sure enough, Ice Beam scored a direct hit on it, freezing it solid.

"Take that!" said Blue.

But Kingler broke free of the ice a few seconds after that, much to Blue's shock.

"Come on, now," smiled Giovanni. "You didn't really think that I would allow an Ice Beam attack to freeze my Kingler that easily, did you?"

Blue grunted. Ice Beam was his chance to stall Kingler for as long as possible, and it didn't work in his favor.

"I grow bored of this battle," said Giovanni. "Kingler, use Crabhammer and finish it off."

Kingler slammed its claw into the ground once again, and another powerful orb of energy was released.

"Cloyster, withdraw into your shell, quick!" shouted Blue.

Cloyster immediately closed its shell just as Crabhammer was about to hit. And when it did, the shell remained fully intact.

"You just don't seem to learn your lesson, do you?" said Giovanni. "All right, Kingler, it's time to smash that shell wide open."

Kingler used its hard claws and began repeatedly hitting Cloyster's hard shell.

"Why is Kingler hitting its shell?" asked Hillary.

"Obviously, he wants to crack it so that it won't be able to defend itself from any attack Giovanni throws its way," said Tristan. "And when he does, Cloyster will be in real trouble."

Kingler kept pounding Cloyster's hard shell over and over. All the while, Cloyster was getting weaker and weaker.

Cloyster can't last much longer at this rate, thought Blue.

Then, Cloyster's shell began to crack.

"Now, Kingler, finish it off!" commanded Giovanni.

Kingler let out a devastating Crabhammer blast on Cloyster, scoring a direct hit and smashing its shell in a tremendous explosion in the process.

"Cloyster!" cried Blue.

When the smoke cleared, Cloyster had been knocked out. It was mostly intact, but a few fragments of its shell lay next to it.

"Well, I'd say Cloyster was shell-shocked," snickered Giovanni.

"That's the second knockout in a row for Giovanni!" said Hillary.

"I know," replied Tristan. "Blue has to think of something to get back in the game."

Blue returned Cloyster to its Pokéball, shell fragments and all.

But then, Giovanni also returned Kingler to its Pokéball.

"Why is Giovanni switching Pokémon now?" asked Tristan.

"He's gotta be up to something," replied Hillary.

"All right, dear Persian, it's time for you to play," said Giovanni as he took out his second Pokéball.

(Music Cue: Kanto Champion Battle (as heard in the beginning of "Volcanic Panic")

The Pokéball opened and Persian emerged from the white light that shot out of it. It looked very strong, indeed. It growled as it prepared to battle Blue's third Pokémon.

"So, a Persian," said Blue. "Sandslash, let's go!" He threw his third Pokéball.

Sandslash emerged from the white light that shot out of it.

"So, a Sandslash is up next," said Giovanni. "Let's see if it has what it takes to defeat my Persian. Though I highly doubt it."

"Sandslash, use Fury Swipes!" shouted Blue.

"Persian, counter with your Fury Swipes," instructed Giovanni.

Sandslash and Persian both used their sharp claws to swipe at each other, but to no avail.

"Looks like a standoff," said Tristan.

"You're right," replied Hillary.

"So, little boy, why don't you use something other than Fury Swipes?" suggested Giovanni. "Then maybe you might be able to beat my Persian."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you," advised Blue. "Go, Sandslash, Earthquake now!"

"No, Blue! Call off your attack!" warned Tristan. "It's a trap!"

"Pika pika!" added Pikachu.

Unfortunately, Tristan's warning was just a little too late, for Sandslash backed away from Persian, then it jumped high into the air as high as it could. From that height, it landed on the ground, and as it did, powerful shock waves rattled the ground straight toward Persian.

However, that was the opening Giovanni was waiting for. "Gotcha," he said. "All right, Persian, jump now."

Persian jumped high over the shock waves, rendering Sandslash's Earthquake attack useless.

"Uh-oh!" gasped Blue.

"Now, pounce on Sandslash with Slash attack!" commanded Giovanni.

Persian descended rapidly on Sandslash with its sharp claws. Sandslash was wide open for Persian's attack.


And so, with the fate of the bag of Pokéballs and Blue's Pokémon at stake, Blue finds himself in a precarious situation! Will he be able to turn this match around and defeat Giovanni? Find out in our next heart-stopping episode!

TO BE CONTINUED...