AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 62 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their harrowing journey in Kanto. I hope you enjoy.

TEASER: Trouble is brewing, and so is a storm, but a timely arrival by the Legendary Pokémon gets her out of danger! Plus, she meets the strongest Trainers in Kanto: the Elite Four! Meanwhile, Tristan and Pikachu are about to face Giovanni and his Persian, but when lightning strikes the heart of Team Rocket Headquarters, there may be more to lose than the flame of Moltres!

Chapter 62: THE FINAL CONFLICT, PART 2

(Music Cue: A Fight! Real vs. Copy Pokémon (as heard in "Hello Pummelo"))

In our last episode, Tristan and Pikachu managed to make it inside Team Rocket Headquarters and confronted Giovanni face to face. They soon discovered that he was the one responsible for the attack on Pallet Town four years ago. And if that wasn't bad enough, they saw that he stole the flame from the central torch from the Pokémon League Competition. Without it, the competition would be unable to continue. And to make matters even worse, he had stolen all the Pokémon from the Elite Four, who were secretly members of the Pokémon League Inspection Agency. Giovanni attempted to make a shocking deal with Tristan: The terms were that he would let all of Tristan's friends, family, and their Pokémon go free if he handed his Pokémon to him. And if he didn't, the imprisoned Pokémon would receive a huge blast of electricity. Seeing no other option, Tristan, reluctantly surrendered, but thinking fast, he had Pikachu launch a Quick Attack directly on Giovanni, causing him to lose the remote control. Taking this chance, Pikachu destroyed it with a Thunderbolt.

Meanwhile, Hillary and Pidgeot were making headway toward Team Rocket Headquarters while befriending a shy Squirtle that Professor Oak had assigned to her as a test to see if they could work well together.

At the same time, the Legendary Pokémon in the Chamber of Legends noticed the trouble brewing at Team Rocket Headquarters, and decided to join forces with Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu.

Now, with the final confrontation against Giovanni set to begin, many questions remain unanswered. Will our heroes and the Legendary Pokémon emerge victorious against Giovanni? And will they be able to secure the flame so the Pokémon League Competition can continue? Or will the entire competition be for nothing?


"There it is!" bellowed Hillary as she continued to hang on tight to Pidgeot.

They were flying at Mach 2 speed thanks to its Agility, and had made it to Team Rocket Headquarters in no time at all.

"You can slow it down now, Pidgeot!" shouted Hillary over the onrushing gust of wind blowing in her face.

Pidgeot stopped its Agility attack, and soon they were flying just yards away from the building

"I hope I don't lose my lunch after that flight," moaned Hillary. However, she didn't moan for long after noticing the lightning bolts from the clouds along with the rumbles of thunder getting louder and louder. "Whoa! This doesn't look good! I think we'd better land before this storm gets any worse."

But the storm picked up in strength, and soon, lightning bolts were shooting out of the sky toward Hillary and Pidgeot.

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

"Dodge 'em, Pidgeot, now!" ordered Hillary.

With speed and precision, Pidgeot managed to avoid every one of the lightning strikes that came their way.

"I think we'd better land before the lightning causes us big trouble," advised Hillary.

Pidgeot was about to agree with her, but suddenly, and without warning, a huge lightning bolt quickly dropped out of the clouds straight at them!

"Look out!" cried Hillary as she and Pidgeot closed their eyes and braced themselves.

But just then, a huge figure flew over them and absorbed the lightning blast.

When Hillary and Pidgeot opened their eyes, they saw that not only did they survive the blast, but Zapdos came to their rescue just in time!

(Music Cue: Opening 1997-1998 (M01B))

"It's Zapdos!" cried Hillary excitedly.

Zapdos roared in confirmation. Soon, it was joined by Articuno, Moltres and Mewtwo.

"Whoa, no way!" exclaimed Hillary. "Articuno, Moltres, and Mewtwo as well! I can't believe my luck!"

Are you two all right? asked Mewtwo.

"We are now," answered Hillary. "That was a close one!"

We saw what's going on here, so we came as quickly as we could, explained Mewtwo.

"Wait, so you know about this?" asked Hillary.

Mewtwo nodded. That lightning blast has given Zapdos a power boost, so it might come in handy later. But there's no time to lose, so let's go.

And they flew off toward Team Rocket Headquarters.


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

Meanwhile, Tristan and Pikachu were about to face off against Giovanni for the freedom of his rival, Blue, and his parents, as well as all the Pokémon involved.

"It's a shame you couldn't join Team Rocket, Tristan," said Giovanni. "For now, we have to battle it out. And I was also hoping I could sell that flame without any interference. But sadly, you're not going to let me do that, either."

"When will you learn, Giovanni?" replied Tristan. "Every time you battle me, you end up losing!"

"Not this time," said Giovanni. "Let's go, Persian!" He threw his Pokéball.

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

"Let's go, Pikachu," said Tristan.

Pikachu jumped in front of Tristan, ready to defend him against Giovanni's Persian.

"So, we have a cat facing off against a mouse," smiled Giovanni. "I think we all know who's going to win here."


Meanwhile, as the storm got worse, a helicopter was seen moving toward Team Rocket Headquarters. It contained four people.

A tall thin man with bright scarlet red-spiked hair spoke first. "That's Team Rocket Headquarters," he said. "Something's definitely going on in there."

A woman with hair in two pigtails and ponytail agreed. She also had glasses. "It doesn't look good from the looks of this storm," she said calmly.

Another woman, who had short yellow hair was cross. "If I had my Pokémon, I'd take care of whoever did this in a heartbeat, then give them a spanking with my cane," she said.

"That's why we're going to fight to get our Pokémon back!" said a tall muscular man.

The old lady's frown disappeared, and she was now chuckling. "Oh, Bruno, you and your fighting jokes."

"Well, it's time for us to hustle, guys," advised the man with red hair. "There's no telling who may be in danger."

(Music Cue: The Squirtle Squad Appears!)

Then he looked ahead using his binoculars to see a Pidgeot with four other figures flying along with it. "Whoa, no way!" he gasped.

"Is something the matter, Lance?" asked the woman with glasses.

"You're not going to believe this," replied Lance, "but I see five Pokémon heading in the same direction we are!"

"Did you say 'five' Pokémon?" asked Bruno.

"That's what he said, Bruno," answered the woman with glasses.

"There's more!" said Lance. "I think I see a girl riding on the Pidgeot, and not only that, I think that those four other Pokémon are Legendary Pokémon flying along with them!"

The other three people were shocked at that revelation.

"Legendary Pokémon?" gasped the old woman. "I've never heard of that before, did you, Prima?"

"I certainly didn't, Agatha," answered Prima. "A child flying on a big Pokémon with four Legendary Pokémon as their escorts is nothing to sneeze at."

At that moment, Hillary, who was still flying on Pidgeot, glanced over her shoulder and saw a helicopter flying in her direction.

"Oh, great, what now?" groaned Hillary. "Probably another one of Team Rocket's helicopters. Let's take care of this."

Hold on, advised Mewtwo as it flew alongside. I don't think that helicopter wants to cause any trouble to us. And I'm certain that the people inside aren't our enemies, either.

"Then why are they following us?" asked Hillary.

I believe that the people inside will be able to help us in this mission of ours, Mewtwo answered.

Hillary wasn't sure what to believe. She thought about what Mewtwo had just said, but she went along with it. "All right then," she said at last. "Let's help them." And they continued on their journey until everyone landed at the entrance to Team Rocket Headquarters.


A short time later, just as Hillary got off of Pidgeot's back and Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, and Mewtwo landed next to them, the helicopter landed, and out stepped Lance. He saw Hillary as he exited the helicopter.

"So, you're the one we saw flying on that Pidgeot," said Lance. "You must be a very good trainer."

"Thanks, I think," replied Hillary nervously. "Unfortunately, I'm not a trainer yet. This is actually Tristan's Pidgeot. And I've been given a Pokémon to help with my rescue mission from Professor Oak."

"Well, I'd say that makes you a good trainer already," chuckled Lance. "Your brother must be a really good trainer if he has a Pidgeot like this one. My name's Lance. I'm a member of what is known as the Elite Four. Of course, I'm well-known for being the champion."

"The Elite Four?" gasped Hillary. "For real?"

Lance nodded. "I also investigate crimes and arrest people for improperly using any Pokémon as a Pokémon G-Man.

"Well, then, what does that make us, chopped liver?" fumed Agatha, who felt somewhat offended.

Lance chuckled. "I wouldn't say that." He introduced the other members of the Elite Four to Hillary. "That's Agatha. She specializes in Ghost and Poison Pokémon. This is Prima. She specializes in Ice Pokémon. And last but not least is Bruno. He specializes in Fighting Pokémon."

"It's certainly nice to meet you all," replied Hillary. "My name's Hillary. These are my Legendary Pokémon friends, Articuno, Zapdos, Moltres, and Mewtwo. And you've already met Pidgeot."

"So where is your brother now?" asked Lance.

"He's inside Team Rocket Headquarters trying to rescue Blue as well as our mom and dad," answered Hillary.

"Why would he do that?" asked Lance. "He didn't need to go there."

Hillary told them the story of what happened. "After Blue stole the Pokémon during the Pokémon League competition, Giovanni battled him and took him and his Pokémon for their betrayal. Some time later, he took the flame from the Indigo Stadium. And just recently, we found out that our mom and dad were captured by Giovanni, too. Tristan didn't want me going after him, but for some reason, he was worried about me, so he lent me his Pidgeot so I could help him."

Prima, Bruno, Agatha, and Lance all understood why Hillary went after Tristan.

"It turns out that we were victims in a Team Rocket heist ourselves," said Prima grimly.

"We knew that Giovanni, the former Viridian Gym Leader would be forced to resign since word got out that more and more Trainers were left unconscious by this mysterious Pokémon," added Bruno.

Mewtwo suddenly felt guilty. I'm afraid this was my fault, it said sadly.

"What do you mean, Mewtwo?" asked Hillary.

You and Tristan may remember this story, but before I worked at the Viridian Gym, I never knew that Giovanni would treat me the way he did, it explained as everyone listened to its story.


(Music Cue: Mewtwo's Awakening)

When I was created and cloned from Mew by the Team Rocket scientists, they treated me solely as an experiment. So I used my Psychic powers to destroy the laboratory. A little later, Giovanni found me and wanted me to work with him, capturing Pokémon and battling Trainers in his Gym, including one named Gary Oak. I defeated his Pokémon with ease and knocked him out cold.

When I found out that Giovanni made me his personal property, that was when I destroyed his headquarters. However, he somehow rebuilt this building you see standing before you.


"So that's how it happened," said Lance. He was now feeling sorry for Mewtwo.

"But it's not all bad," assured Hillary. "Because Tristan and I made friends with Mewtwo and the other Legendary Pokémon, and also, Professor Oak gave me a Pokémon to work with as a test." She took out Squirtle's Pokéball. "Squirtle, go!"

Squirtle emerged from the white light that shot out of the ball, but after seeing Prima, Bruno, Agatha, and Lance, it quickly shrunk back into its shell.

"Looks like that Squirtle is pretty shy," remarked Agatha.

Hillary bent closer to Squirtle. "It's okay, Squirtle," she said. "These people are our friends, like Pidgeot and me."

Squirtle slowly got its head, tail, and limbs out of its shell.

"That's a very cute Squirtle you've got there," said Prima. "And you two seem to get along really well.

"True," agreed Bruno. "Even though you two have known each other for a short time, it seems like a long time ago that you met."

"But that doesn't explain the four Legendary Pokémon helping here," said Lance.

"Oh, my brother and I met them while we were on our journey through Kanto," explained Hillary. "To show their gratitude, they agreed to help out whenever we needed it."

"Now that's what I like to hear," said Lance excitedly. "Now, let's go rescue your friends."

But when they got to the entrance, they saw that boulders were blocking the door shut.

"Now how do we get inside?" moaned Hillary.

"We'll think of something," replied Prima.

At that moment, rain started to fall hard as the lightning grew closer.

"Oh, great," groaned Hillary. "We're all soaking wet."

"Unfortunately, that's the least of our problems," replied Lance.

(Music Cue: Title Screen 1997-1998 (M01C))

Just then, Moltres was bathed in bright orange flames. It roared and flew straight at the door.

Everyone gasped in shock.

"What's that Moltres doing?" asked Hillary.

"That's a Sky Attack!" exclaimed Lance.

Sure enough, Moltres' Sky Attack collided with the door and the rubble blocking it.

Everyone shielded their eyes from the dust that followed.

When the dust cleared, everyone saw that the doorway was clear, too.

"Look! Now we can go in!" said Agatha.

"Then let's go in and help Tristan and the others!" added Hillary.

Everyone started going inside, but Agatha was a little slow. She suddenly tripped and fell, but Hillary managed to catch her just in time.

"Are you okay, Agatha?" asked Hillary.

"I am now, young lady, thanks to you," answered Agatha.

Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres were just about to follow when Mewtwo stopped them.

I'm afraid you three are going to have to wait out here, it said.

The three Legendary birds groaned sadly.

You three will come in handy a little later, explained Mewtwo as it followed Hillary and the Elite Four inside the building.


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

Back inside Team Rocket Headquarters, Pikachu and Persian were just getting ready to face off.

"Prepare to lose, boy," said Giovanni.

"Pikachu and I won't be beaten by the likes of you, Giovanni," replied Tristan.

However, before the battle could begin, the entire building shook with a loud boom. Lightning had apparently struck the top of the building.

"What was that?" gasped Blue.

Before anyone could figure out the answer to that question, a huge lightning bolt came up out of the ceiling, knocking everyone inside off their feet as well, including Tristan, Pikachu, and Giovanni.

The lantern that contained the flame of Moltres inside Giovanni's pocket flew into the air.

"Oh, no! The Moltres flame!" cried Tristan.

"Quick, somebody catch it!" shouted Bill.

Everyone not behind bars did their best to catch it, but unfortunately, there were too many walls in the dungeon to figure out where the lantern was going to land. And so to everyone's horror, the lantern landed on the ground with a crash, breaking the glass and causing the flame to spread all over the dungeon.

(Music Cue: Real and Copy! Which are the Strongest? (as heard in "Pikachu Re-Volts"))

Everyone gasped in horror at the conflagration the Moltres flame was causing. Soon, it had gone completely out of control.

"My headquarters!" cried Giovanni. Then he growled at Tristan. "This is all your fault, little boy! If you hadn't tried to get the flame back from me, we wouldn't be in this mess!"

"YOU'RE THE ONE WHO STOLE THE FLAME IN THE FIRST PLACE!" screamed Tristan.

"Someone let us out before we're all caught in the flames!" shouted Blue.

"Oh, right," said Tristan. He had forgotten that for a minute, but he took out two Pokéballs and threw them. "Charizard, Blastoise, I choose you!"

Charizard and Blastoise emerged from the white lights that shot out of them and awaited Tristan's directions.

"Okay. Blue, Mom, and Dad, I need you three to move back," advised Tristan.

Blue, Sarah, and Bill did as told.

"Charizard, use your Flamethrower on the cage!" instructed Tristan.

"Oh, great, so now you're going to make things even hotter?!" exclaimed Blue.

"Trust me, I know what I'm doing," replied Tristan. "Go on, Charizard!"

Charizard shot a Flamethrower attack on the corner of the cage, making it extremely hot.

"Great, Charizard! Your turn, Blastoise, use your Hydro Pump attack on that spot," commanded Tristan.

Blastoise shot two blasts of water from its cannons and made the hot part of the cage rusty.

"Now, I just need a Pokémon to use Tackle attack," said Tristan. He tried to look for Pidgeot's Pokéball, but suddenly remembered. "Uh-oh. I forgot that Pidgeot is with Hillary."

"You mean we're stuck here with no way out?" cried Sarah nervously.

"Don't worry, Mom, I'll think of something!" Tristan assured her. Then he thought of Pikachu's Quick Attack. "That's it!"

"What's it?" asked Blue.

"This just might work," said Tristan. "Pikachu, use your Quick Attack on the cage's weak spots!"

Pikachu sped toward the cage with a white line trailing behind it, and sure enough, the Quick Attack broke the cage. Blue, Sarah, and Bill were finally free.

"Thanks a lot, Tristan," said Blue. "We owe you one."

"There's no time for that now, guys," said Tristan. "We have to save the other Pokémon, and we don't have much time."

Giovanni was seething in anger, even after his latest plot failed. "It looks like you and I will have to finish this another time, little boy," he said as he returned Persian to its Pokéball. "But mark my words. You haven't seen the last of me or Team Rocket!" And he cackled as he disappeared into the raging flames.

"Giovanni, come back!" shouted Tristan. "It's much too dangerous!"

Suddenly, a piece of burning debris started falling, and it was headed directly for Tristan and Pikachu.

"Tristan, look out!" cried Sarah and Bill together.

Wasting no time Pikachu jumped in front of Tristan and let loose a Thunderbolt attack at the burning debris, shattering it into dust.

"Thanks, Pikachu," said Tristan. "That was a close one."

Pikachu agreed.

"We have to save the other Pokémon!" cried Sarah.

"Right!" agreed Tristan.

But before they could do that, another giant piece of burning debris started falling; this time, it aimed for the defenseless Pokémon in the cages.

"It's too late!" shouted Blue.

Just then, a little blue silhouette appeared and shot a powerful blast of water from its mouth at the piece of burning debris, knocking it away and the caged Pokémon out of danger.

"That was a powerful Water Gun!" remarked Bill.

"But where did it come from?" wondered Tristan.

(Music Cue: Movie Title 1998 (The Start of the Counterattack))

The silhouette came out of the shadows, and sure enough, it turned out to be Squirtle, with Hillary and Pidgeot standing proudly behind it. Mewtwo was with them.

"Whoa, no way!" gasped Blue.

"It's Hillary!" added Tristan.

"Are we too late for the party?" asked Hillary.

"You're just in time," replied Tristan. "Now, let's save those Pokémon and get outta here!"


And so, Hillary and Squirtle have come to the rescue, and now everyone has been reunited. However, the situation is far from over, as Team Rocket Headquarters is now in flames. Will they be able to escape and save all the Pokémon? Stay tuned to find out!

TO BE CONTINUED...