AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! I know it's been awhile, but here's Chapter 59 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through Kanto. As always please feel free to read and review.

TEASER: The Pokémon League Competition is now in jeopardy, and Tristan and Hillary's parents find themselves face to face with the mastermind behind the attempted kidnapping of Tristan!

Chapter 59: PARENTS TRAPPED!

(Music Cue: Ash's Decision to Fight (first part)

Last time, Blue continued his battle against Team Rocket's leader Giovanni. The reason was that Blue had tricked him by abruptly abandoning his duties as a member of Team Rocket. Unfortunately, Giovanni's Rhydon proved to be too much for Blue's Alakazam and Ninetales. And then, without missing a beat, Giovanni used his Rhydon to battle against Blue's Jolteon, his very first Pokémon as an Eevee. After an explosive ending, Blue and his Pokémon were taken captive along with the bag of Pokéballs while Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu lay unconscious. Why is Giovanni interested in Tristan? And who will be his next victim?


"What?!" exclaimed Veronica. "What did you say?!"

"Tristan and Hillary went after Blue because he had stolen the Pokéballs from the losing trainers," explained Nurse Joy. "He'd been working for Team Rocket. Then we saw a gigantic explosion about half an hour later. It occurred just minutes ago! They might have gotten caught in the explosion!"

"You mean they could be hurt?!" exclaimed Veronica. She was outraged, and that wasn't normal for her. She clenched her fist and said, "If I were younger, I'd pulverize whoever tried to hurt my grandchildren! And that's a promise!"

Eric woke up from a sound sleep to hear his wife's ranting. "What's going on, dear?"

"Hurry and get dressed," Veronica said frantically. "We have to find our grandchildren. They might have gotten hurt in the explosion. It just happened minutes ago!"

"Oh, no!" gasped Eric. "Not Tristan and Hillary!"


A few moments later, Veronica, Eric, and Nurse Joy all ran out of the Pokémon Center. Sure enough they were shocked to see Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu lying on the street and quickly rushed over to them.

Pikachu picked up on Nurse Joy, Veronica, and Eric's footsteps and opened its eyes. It quickly rushed to Tristan and urged him to wake up as Veronica gently held him close in her arms.

"Tristan, please wake up!" implored Veronica. "You've got to be in there!"

"Hillary, open your eyes!" added Eric.

Hillary slowly opened her eyes first. "What happened?" Then she saw her grandfather. "Grandpa!"

"It's certainly good to see you," replied Eric as he hugged Hillary in his arms. To his relief, she was mostly unhurt.

Then, Tristan slowly opened his eyes. "Where am I?" Then he saw his grandparents. "Grandma? Grandpa? Is it really you guys?"

Veronica, Eric, and Nurse Joy all breathed sighs of relief.

Eric came close to Veronica and hugged Tristan tightly as well.

"We're so glad you're okay," said Eric.

"Thank goodness," added Veronica as a tear fell down from her right eye.

Pikachu quickly saw Tristan and was relieved to see him, too.

To Tristan's relief, Pikachu was okay as well. "Pikachu," he said as he hugged it in his arms. Then, he suddenly remembered something and started to get up quickly to everyone's shock. "Blue! His Pokémon! The Pokéballs! Where's Hillary? I've gotta..." But then, he collapsed back on the ground from the intense pain that he felt from getting tossed around by the explosion.

(Music Cue: Messenger)

"Take it easy, dear," said Veronica. "You might be hurt."

"Don't worry," added Eric. "They're safe and sound now."

"But what about Blue?" asked Tristan frantically. He then saw that Blue and Team Rocket were gone. "I think he might have been captured!"

Everyone gasped in shock, for it was the last possibility that any one of them could have thought of.

"I have to go look for him," said Tristan as he struggled to get up again.

"Tristan, please, stay down!" implored Veronica. "I don't want you getting hurt any worse than you are now."

"Grandma's right," added Hillary. "You're not at full strength. We just experienced a massive explosion, and you may be hurting more than you know. So just sit down and take it easy for a while."

Tristan reluctantly sat back down on the ground.

"We'll need to take him and the others back to the Pokémon Center to get treated," advised Nurse Joy to Veronica and Eric.

Tristan reluctantly agreed to go.


Back at the Pokémon Center, the sun was just beginning to rise. Inside, Tristan's left arm was getting bandaged up.

"There you go, Tristan," said Nurse Joy. "You should feel like your old self in no time."

"Thanks, Nurse Joy," replied Tristan. "But what's going to happen with the Pokémon League Competition?"

"It's hard to say for sure," answered Nurse Joy. "Since we've never seen a huge attack carried out here by Team Rocket before, we don't know what's going to happen at this point. I'll turn on the news." She pressed a button on her remote control, and a nearby TV set turned on.

A female news anchor was seen talking about a developing story that had broken out overnight. "This is a Pokémon News Special Report," she said. "Officials are still trying to figure out the details on last night's robbery at the Indigo Plateau Pokémon Center and the attack Team Rocket carried out near that same location."

Tristan and the others continued watching the story unfold.

"Sources also say that a trainer by the name of Blue Oak, who had previously worked for an organization called Team Rocket was the one who had stolen the Pokéballs from the Pokémon Center," she continued. "It was then that Team Rocket's leader, Giovanni, had challenged him to a battle, with a heavy bag of Pokéballs at stake. Two other witnesses and a Pikachu watched the battle unfold, and were caught in the ensuing explosion at the end. Though they suffered a few scrapes, none of them were seriously injured by the explosion."

"Those TV cameras must have come to watch Blue's battle, just like we did," remarked Tristan.

"After the battle, Team Rocket took the trainer and the Pokéballs captive," continued the reporter. "Officials say that because of the attack at the Indigo Plateau, the future of the Pokémon League Competition is still unclear."

"Oh, no," said Tristan. "If the competition doesn't continue, what will the other trainers do?"

"I don't know, Tristan," replied Hillary. "But we'll think of something."


Meanwhile, in a remote area of Kanto, two people were seen on their own journey. They were Sarah and Bill, Tristan's parents. They had heard that Tristan was in the Pokémon League competition, and they had wanted to see his battles, but thanks to Team Rocket and the attack they had carried out at the Indigo Plateau, they couldn't watch it anymore."

"It never ceases to amaze me that Team Rocket never quits," remarked Bill.

"But as long as our Tristan is battling and getting into Pokémon, it really doesn't matter," replied Sarah. "Of course, I want to see our Tristan battle as much as you do. Let's just hope he wasn't in danger from the attack."

"I wouldn't worry about it too much," replied Bill. "Even if Hillary isn't a trainer yet, she always finds ways to help him out of it."

Presently, a man in a gray suit approached Sarah and Bill. Little did they know that it was really Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket, in disguise..

"Ah, the two parents of the young Tristan," smiled the disguised Giovanni. "It's nice to see the two of you again. By the way, I never did introduce myself. My name is Grover."

Sarah was amazed. "I remember you," she said. "You're the one who cleared our little Tristan's memory of that awful Team Rocket a few years back."

"We appreciate it very much," added Bill.

"Yes, but I'm afraid I have bad news," replied the disguised Giovanni sadly. "Apparently, Tristan has encountered Team Rocket on his travels as a trainer. So I'm afraid he will never forget the name ever again."

"But what about that horrible experience?" asked Sarah nervously.

"Not to worry," replied the disguised Giovanni. "He still doesn't know about it. At least that's what I know so far."

They came to a dilapidated building just as Giovanni's radio rang.

"Please excuse me for just a moment, won't you?" said the disguised Giovanni politely. "I'm afraid that certain friends of mine just can't seem to spend one moment without me."

"Sure," replied Sarah and Bill together. They were a bit surprised to see a helicopter flying above them, but didn't take much notice after that.

Giovanni quickly slipped into the dilapidated building and answered his radio. "What is it?" he asked impatiently.

"Two people have been spotted down below us," replied a Rocket Grunt on the radio. "Should we get them?"

Giovanni smiled and said, "Do it." The he emerged from the building in his Grover persona and returned to Sarah and Bill. "Sorry about that. That was one of my siblings. He always wants to know how I've been doing."

"What have you been doing all this time?" asked Bill curiously.

"Just a couple of months ago, I battled your son, Tristan, in the Viridian Gym. I almost had him beaten, but his Ivysaur had evolved into Venusaur. It had learned SolarBeam in the process, and it took out my last Pokémon. He earned his eighth and final badge as a result."

"That's really great news," smiled Sarah. "That must have made him happy."

"I know it did," replied the disguised Giovanni. "His Pokémon have really gotten stronger. And he will continue to grow strong with his Pokémon."

(Music Cue: A Fight! Real vs. Copy Pokémon (as heard in "The Ancient Puzzle of Pokémopolis'))

Presently, the sound of the helicopter that Sarah and Bill saw a few minutes prior got louder and louder as it landed on the ground next to them.

Giovanni pretended to warn Sarah and Bill. "Guys, look behind you!"

Sarah and Bill turned around and saw an army of ten Team Rocket Grunts emerge from the helicopter and quickly surround them.

"You two are coming with us!" declared one of the Grunts.

"That's never going to happen!" shouted Bill as he threw his Pokéball. "Go, Charlie!"

"Victoria, I need you!" added Sarah as she threw her Pokéball.

The Pokéballs opened, and Charlie, Bill's Charizard, and Victoria, Sarah's Venusaur, emerged from the white lights that shot out.

"Charlie, use Flamethrower!" commanded Bill.

Charlie shot a powerful stream of fire from its mouth at the Team Rocket Grunts.

But the Rocket Grunts retaliated by sending out an army of Gyarados. "Use Hydro Pump!" they all yelled.

All ten Gyarados shot powerful blasts of water at Charlie's Flamethrower.

Poor Charlie was no match for the blasts and got hit with such velocity that it fell onto Bill.

"Bill! Charlie!" cried Sarah. ""Hurry, Victoria, get rid of those thugs with SolarBeam!"

Victoria's flower began to glow as it began to collect sunlight.

"Hyper Beam now!" commanded the Rocket Grunts.

All ten Gyarados fired powerful yellow-orange beams at Victoria, who was still charging up for a SolarBeam attack.

Of course, all ten Hyper Beam attacks scored direct hits on Victoria, causing it to faint instantly.

"Victoria!" cried Sarah. She quickly turned to the disguised Giovanni. "Grover, we have to go. Those guys have us outnumbered."

But Giovanni just stood there.

"Grover, let's go!" said Sarah, her voice sounding more and more impatient. "We have an injured Charizard on a possibly injured Bill here. Now let's get out of here!"

Giovanni still stood there, doing nothing. Finally, he said, "I don't think Grover can hear you. Because he's really..." He took off his disguise and revealed his true identity, much to Sarah's shock.

"You're...not Grover!" she gasped.

Bill was able to muster up enough strength to get out from under his Charizard, Charlie just in time to see what's happening.

"Pardon me for not telling you the whole truth, but please allow me to introduce myself," said Giovanni as he stood proudly before Sarah and Bill. "My name is Giovanni. I'm the leader of Team Rocket."

Sarah and Bill were outraged. They had no idea that Giovanni would deceive them in such a way.

"So you were the one who initiated the attack in Pallet Town a few years ago," fumed Bill. "Your men attacked and kidnapped Tristan just for the fun of it!"

"Does this mean that you lied to all of us all along?" asked Sarah suspiciously.

Giovanni snickered. "Guilty as charged."

Bill was very angry. "You will pay for what you did. Come on, Charlie, stop him with Flamethrower!"

(Music Cue: Danger! Pikachu! (as heard in "Mild 'n Woolly))

Charlie managed to get up and shoot a powerful stream of fire at Giovanni, but one of the Gyarados took the hit instead. Sure enough, Gyarados didn't take much damage from Charlie's Flamethrower.

One of the Rocket Grunts ran next to his Gyarados and commanded, "Hyper Beam."

Gyarados fired up another yellow-orange beam at Charlie and scored a direct hit.

The attack was too much for Charlie to take, and it fainted.

"Charlie get up! Get up now!" yelled Bill. "We can't lose to a criminal like him!"

"It's over," smiled Giovanni. "Both your Venusaur and Charizard have been defeated, and it seems to me that they were far too weak to defeat all of us. So now, these two belong to me."

(Music Cue: Desperate Situation 1997-1998 (as heard in "Volcanic Panic"))

Sarah and Bill were in shock.

"Explain why they belong to you!" demanded Sarah.

"Team Rocket's mission is to collect rare and powerful Pokémon, and use their power to take over the world," explained Giovanni. "I know you didn't have any powerful Pokémon with you when my men attacked you and your family. I ordered these Grunts to kidnap Tristan. I stayed out of sight during the attack so that I could gain your trust. And sure enough, you swallowed it all: hook, line, and sinker."

Sarah and Bill gasped in shock.

"Next, I had you start your journey so that your kids could be well cared for by their grandparents," continued Giovanni. "And during your journeys, you've managed to raise two powerhouses. But even they weren't strong enough to defeat Gyarados. Ten on two may seem unfair, but when it comes down to it, we all have different definitions of fair. So now, it's time to take you and your Pokémon to Team Rocket Headquarters."

"You're insane!" gasped Sarah.

"We won't go!" yelled Bill.

"Then I guess that means you don't care what happens to your Pokémon, do you?" replied Giovanni.

With a snap of his fingers, two Rocket Grunts each sent out an Electrode.

"Thunder!" the Grunts ordered.

Both Electrode shot pulverizing blasts of electricity at the defenseless Pokémon.

"Victoria!" cried Sarah.

"Charlie!" cried Bill.

"If you want your Pokémon to be safe, then surrender and come with us," said Giovanni. "Because if you don't, your Pokémon will pay the ultimate price."

Sarah and Bill watched helplessly as Victoria and Charlie kept getting zapped by the double Thunder attacks the Electrode dished out.

At last, Sarah couldn't take seeing her Pokémon get hurt anymore, and she spoke. "All right, we'll go with you, Giovanni."

Reluctantly, Bill agreed with her.

"A wise choice," smiled Giovanni.

At that instant, both Electrode stopped their attacks.

Sarah and Bill recalled their Pokémon and were forced into Giovanni's helicopter.

"All right, let's go," ordered Giovanni.

He and all the Rocket Grunts got into the helicopter, and then it took off into the sky directly toward Team Rocket Headquarters.


Meanwhile back at the Indigo Plateau Pokémon Center, everyone was continuing to watch the story unfold on television when suddenly, a female reporter appeared.

"We're coming to you live from a remote area of the Kanto region where just moments ago, a big operation had taken place," said the reporter. "It was there that two people battled valiantly against an army of ten Gyarados, but lost the battle and their freedom. Here is a look at those two people who were just taken captive."

The screen changed to images of Sarah and Bill being forced into a Team Rocket helicopter, much to Tristan and Hillary's horror.

"That's Mom and Dad!" they cried.

Everyone was shocked at the revelation, including Veronica and Eric.

Oh, no. Not Sarah, thought Veronica.

"I have to do something!" said Tristan.

"But what can you do about it, Tristan?" asked Hillary. "You can't defeat an army of ten Gyarados, let alone rescue our parents all by yourself!"

"No, but I have my Pokémon," replied Tristan. He turned to Veronica, Eric, and Nurse Joy. "All right, guys. I'm going to need all of you to stay here while I go rescue Mom and Dad."

"But I want to go, too!" protested Hillary.

"No, it's too dangerous," insisted Tristan. "You don't have any Pokémon to help out with this rescue mission. I must insist that you stay here this time."

"Hmph!" grumbled Hillary. She didn't like to be reminded of that fact. "It's not fair! I want to be a Trainer, too!"

Veronica knelt down and put her hands on Hillary's shoulders. "Don't worry about it, dear," she said. "Tristan will come through one way or another. And I'm confident that your day will come sooner than you think." She then turned to Tristan. "Tristan, please promise that you'll be careful."

Tristan promised.


(Music Cue: Ash's Decision to Fight (second part)

In a little while, he and Pikachu were sitting on his Charizard, waiting to take off with everyone else waving goodbye.

"Are you sure you're up to this, Tristan?" asked Hillary nervously.

"I must go," replied Tristan. "For all I know, Mom and Dad may be in great danger. I'll go to Team Rocket Headquarters and rescue them and Blue, too."

"Remember that we're all rooting for you," said Eric. "You can do it."

"Your mom and dad are counting on you," added Veronica. "You have the courage to pull through. We love you no matter what happens. Now go get 'em."

Tristan nodded.

Seconds later, Charizard flapped its wings as it, Tristan, and Pikachu took off into the sky directly toward Team Rocket Headquarters.

When they disappeared into the distance, Veronica whispered, "Good luck, Tristan."

Hillary, on the other hand, had her doubts, and knew she had to help Tristan somehow, but couldn't figure out what to do.


With the future of the Pokémon League Competition unclear, Tristan and Pikachu have begun their rescue mission to save his parents and Blue from Team Rocket's evil grip. Will they succeed in their quest? This battle is only just getting started, so stay tuned!

TO BE CONTINUED...