Last time on Pokemon - Kanto Dreams:
After being knocked out by Ken and his gang, Azure was left unconscious on Route 1, where he ran into Cerise, a young girl also on her way to get her Starter Pokemon. With the help of a large Arcanine she borrowed from her Dad, Cerise tried to take Azure to help, but instead, the two of them ran into a strange Pikachu, who stole Azure's hat, and lead them towards Mt. Silver. The Pikachu lead them into a tunnel that stretched right underneath the Indigo League Reception Gate, and on towards Mt. Silver, where it returned Azure's hat after Azure promised he would still follow it, and joined them.
Did something terrible happen to Pikachu's trainer? What can Azure and Cerise do to help? Will Azure and Cerise make it back to Pallet Town in time to get one of the three Starter Pokemon? What will happen to Pichu?
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EPISODE 5
The Hidden Base
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A figure walked down Route 1, cloaked entirely within a dirty, brown cloak. The cloak was ragged at the bottom, its edges frayed from use. The person wearing the cloak had it pulled around him completely, even in the summer heat, so nothing but his shoes stuck out from it. A large hood was pulled so far over his head, only his chin was visible. A Pikachu was riding on his shoulder, under the cloak, his head peeking out the man's shoulder, and his tail sticking out across the other. The Pokemon looked sadly around, his brown eyes scanning the field.
The wind picked up, and a strange scent caught in the Pikachu's nose. He straightened up, fully poking his head out from under his protective cover.
"Pi?" He whispered. His ears straightened up, and he pounced down from his Master's shoulder and into the dirt of the path, "Pika-Pi!"
The cloaked man looked down at the Pikachu, but did not say anything. The Pikachu pointed off down the path, "Pikachu!"
He turned and started running down the path, and then veered off to the right, right into the tall grass. His Master slowly followed after it, clearly not in any hurry.
The Pikachu bolted through the grass, and then came to a sudden halt. In front of him was a small clearing, and a group of figures stood there laughing at something. Pikachu's ears twitched… he could smell blood. He looked past the laughing kids, and his eyes widened at what he saw.
A few Spearow, and a Rattata were charging towards a kid, but the kid did not even seem to pay any attention to them. Instead of running away from them, he was running towards them! In front of him, a little Pichu was running towards him, her fur singed and dirty. She looked weak…
The kid jumped towards her, scooping her up, and crouching over her, protecting her completely from the attacking Pokemon. Pikachu gasped as he saw the Spearow fly down and tackle the kid, followed by the Rattata. The kid screamed as their sharp beaks cut his skin, but he did not move, he stayed where he was, crouching protectively over the Pichu…
Pikachu frowned as memories coursed through him… Route 1 was no stranger to him. He had been here before… memories of being carried down this path, nestled in his best-friend's arms as he tried to save him from the attacking Pokemon…
Pikachu's ears flattened back against the back of its head as it watched the Spearow and the Rattata attack the kid. One of the Spearow flew up, and cried, before charging back down and slamming into the kid. The boy screamed as the attack flung him back. He skidded through the tall grass before coming to a halt, the Pichu still safe in his arms.
Pikachu could feel his body shake. His best friend had done something like that for him several times before - sacrifice himself to save him… The memories were so clear, he could almost see his friend standing protectively in front of him as the enemy attacked…
"Pichu!"
The small voice of the Pichu snapped Pikachu out of his thoughts. He looked over and saw the little baby Pokemon squirm out of its Trainer's arms, she shook her master's shoulder, tears forming in her large, blue eyes.
"Pi-cha!" She cried, moving up and shaking his head weakly. When he did not move, Pikachu could see the panic form in her eyes. She shook him as hard as she could, but he still did not move.
"Pi-cha!" She repeated, tears spilling from her eyes and down her cheeks, "Pichu!"
Pikachu took a step into the clearing. He could not bare to watch this anymore! He was about to run out, when the Pichu suddenly turned around and ran towards the Spearow angrily.
"Pichu!" She screamed, her cheeks sparking.
"Awe!" One of the Trainers who owned one of the attacking Spearow laughed, "Does the lil' baby still have some fight left?" He pointed at the Pichu, "Finish it!"
The Spearow and Rattata turned away from the boy, and headed straight for the Pichu. Pichu straightened back onto her hind legs and clenched her tiny fists, squeezing her eyes shut as she focused her energy on an attack. Her entire body lit up with electricity, as she used Thundershock. The electric attack coursed through the air and engulfed the attacking Pokemon, but it did not seem powerful enough to stop them. One of the Spearow easily cut through the attack and swooped down, tackling the Pichu.
Pichu screamed as the attack sent her flying back. She landed face-first into the dirt with a cry.
"Pi..chu." She cried, trying to force herself back up onto her feet. Those other kids just laughed at her efforts…
"Again! Attack!" One of them said.
Pikachu growled and charged out into the meadow, bolting past the Trainers and their Pokemon, and stopping between them, and the injured Pichu.
"What?" The 'Leader' gasped, "What the heck is this? Get out of here you stupid Pikachu!"
"Pi! Pikachu!" He hissed. He looked back at the Pichu to see if she was ok.
Pichu was still trying to get up on all fours, her arms shook violently with the effort, and she was looking at Pikachu, her eyes filled with fear. Pikachu nodded at her, and turned back around at the 'enemy'.
His cheeks sparked and he stood protectively in front of her, his arms stretched out.
"Pika…" He said, charging up his attack. He let loose a powerful Thunder attack, launching his electricity souring through the air, easily engulfing all the Spearow, the Rattata, and the Trainers. Everyone engulfed in the attack screamed as the electricity coursed through them. "CHUUUUUUUUU!"
Pichu climbed to her feet, looking at him with wonder. Pikachu finished his attack, and the Pokemon all fell down in a charcoaled heap, followed by their Trainers.
"Run!" One of them shouted, jumping back to his feet and recalling his Pokemon. The rest of them followed suit, before taking off running as fast as they could towards Pallet Town.
"Pika!" Pikachu warned.
"Pichu…" Pichu said weakly, falling back to the ground.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu gasped, turning around and pulling the little Pokemon into his arms.
"Pichu pi…" She thanked weakly.
Pikachu nodded and looked up as he saw his Master slowly walk into the clearing. He waved at his Master, though as expected, his Master made no response. Pikachu frowned and looked away from his Master.
Pichu pulled herself out of Pikachu's arms and started to crawl towards her Trainer. She stopped at the edge of the clearing, and picked something up, before heading into the grass after her Trainer. Pikachu followed her over. The little electric mouse stopped next to her Trainer's face and went back to trying to wake him up. She shook his head with her little paws, before collapsing next to him.
"Pi…" She cried.
"Pika…" Pikachu said sadly. He walked over to her and patted her on the shoulder, trying to tell her its alright, and that he will be ok.
Pikachu felt his Master's presence behind him, and turned around as his Master bent down, and scooped up Pichu, before wordlessly turning, and starting through the grass and back to the path. She tried to fight back, but could not muster the energy. She cried softly, before fainting in his arms. Pikachu turned away from his Master, and looked at the kid laying in the grass sadly. He was about to turn back and follow his Master, when he stopped to look at whatever Pichu had dragged back to her Trainer…
His eyes widened, "Pi!" He gasped. He reached down and picked up an old hat from the dirt. Tears formed in his eyes as he looked at the hat, and he had to take his eyes away from it. He looked back at the kid, and then back to the hat… how did?
"Come on! We don't want to be late!"
Pikachu heard a stranger's voice coming closer towards him. He quickly stuck the hat in his mouth, and jumped into the tall grass, he watched quietly, as he saw a girl appear and trip over the boy, and then watched as she scooped the boy up, and placed him on the back of an Arcanine, before taking off back the way they had come.
Pikachu watched them until they disappeared down the path, before looking back at the hat. All he could see was how much the two of them loved each other, and how the kid had sacrificed himself to protect his Pichu, and how Pichu was trying so desperately to wake him up…
He could remember a time when his had a relationship like that with someone he loved too… a relationship he thought that would never change…
He looked over at the spot where the kid had been laying, and pictured his old Best Friend laying there instead… he could almost see a younger version of himself trying to wake him up, the same way Pichu had been trying to wake up the kid… No, there was no way he was going to let this happen… knowing his Master, his Master just took that Pichu, and if things went like they usually did, that meant that kid would never see his Pichu again… remembering how much he used to love his Best Friend… there was no way he was going to let Pichu or the kid face the same pain he felt.
He felt like a traitor, but his mind was made up. Maybe the kid could help him? He quickly took off running after them.
… … …
Pichu opened her eyes. She was laying on a hard surface… where was she? She sat up and looked around. She was definitely not outside anymore…
She was sitting on a hard bed, covered only by a thin blanket, and was in what looked like a small cell. It was bit enough for her to walk around in, and had an exercise wheel, an automatic feeder, and a water dispenser. The back wall of the cell were made of stone, crudely chopped out of the stone, and the other three walls were made of a thick transparent material. She walked up and tapped it. There was a cell right across from her, and she could see her reflection in it. There was a plaque secured to the top of the transparent wall holding her in. Her ears flattened back when she read it:
PICHU
DEX NO: 172
"PICHU!" She shouted, shocking the wall. She felt the electricity course through her as well, and she gasped as it sent her falling back. She was still feeling weak from the fight before…
"Cleffa…"
"Pi?" Pichu asked, turning her head and looking to the left of her. A baby Cleffa sat in the cell next to her. The Cleffa pressed its hands against the glass with a sad, defeated expression. She started towards it, the realization of where she was settling in…
Next to her was Cleffa, National Pokedex Entry 173... On the other side was Lantern… entry 171...
She was in what looked like a Pokemon Zoo… each cell customized for the Pokemon inside…
… … …
Azure ran down the tunnel, clenching his teeth as he went, Pikachu clinging to his head, and Cerise following close behind. The tunnel seemed to snake on and on with no end in sight… Azure could feel his legs burning as he ran, but knew he could not stop - some trainer could be in trouble down here!
The path in front of them split into two ways, one tunnelling up, and the other heading down.
"Pi!" Pikachu pointed at the one going down. Azure nodded and followed Pikachu's gesture.
"Azure! Look out!"
Azure stopped as fast as he could, nearly throwing Pikachu off his shoulder. Panting heavily, he turned around, Cerise was nearly doubled over, supporting herself up with her hands on her knees, and panting just as hard.
"What's up?" He asked,
"Look! Over there!" Cerise panted.
Azure looked over in front of him. The tunnel had changed without him noticing. One wall of the tunnel steeped sharply to the right, widening at the top, and cutting them down to just a small trail at the bottom…
"This isn't a tunnel…" Azure whispered, looking up at the rubble,
"If the stories Dad told me are true," Cerise whispered, "Mt. Silver used to be a popular training ground for Pokemon Masters… you had to have at least 16 badges from both the Kanto and Johto Regions in order to enter… but ten years ago, there was a terrible cave in, that collapsed many of the tunnels and caverns inside the mountain, and made it impossible to travel in… less then a week later, another huge cave in took the lives of a few trainers, and the Elite Four declared it was too dangerous to enter, and the Mountain was closed off."
"You think we're inside Mt. Silver?" Azure asked,
"Look at the angle of that wall…" Cerise replied.
Azure looked around the tunnel, "I think… this used to be a cavern, but it caved in."
"You think so?" Cerise asked,
Azure turned to look at Pikachu, "What do you think?"
"Pika…" Pikachu nodded sadly.
Azure turned away from the rubble and continued down the tunnel.
"Chu!" Pikachu ordered, jumping down from Azure's shoulder, and running off towards the wall.
"Pikachu?" Azure asked, turning to follow it.
Pikachu lead them to the rubble, and started to dig.
"Do you think its Trainer was caught in a cave in?" Cerise asked.
Azure ran forward and started helping the Pikachu dig. Cerise sighed and walked over to help. With the three of them, they managed to clean the dirt away quickly, and within a few minutes, they found a large stone.
"Pi-Pika!" It said, pointing at the rock… it looked like it could be moved…
"Does anyone have a Pokemon that knows Strength?" Azure asked,
"Strength?" Cerise asked,
"It's a fighting type move that allows a Pokemon to move large boulders." Azure stated,
Cerise blinked, "Wow! How do you know that?"
Azure grinned, "I've been studying Pokemon since I was a young age!"
"That's so cool!" Cerise gasped, "But… no, I only have my Dad's Arcanine…"
Pikachu grabbed the edge of the boulder and started to pull at it.
"Hey!" Azure said, "Don't hurt yourself Pikachu!"
"Let's help it!" Cerise smiled, grabbing onto the edge of the boulder.
Azure nodded and joined in.
The heavy boulder groaned, and then started to slide.
"Its moving!" Cerise gasped.
"Just keep pulling!" Azure said through clenched teeth,
"Piiiiikkaaaaa!" Pikachu agreed.
The rock shook and came loose. Azure, Cerise, and Pikachu jumped out of the way as it fell over in a cloud of dust and rubble. Coughing, Azure tried to peer through the dust. Loose rocks tumbled against his shoes, but he ignored them as light poured out from behind the boulder…
"That's not a boulder…" Cerise whispered,
"It's a door." Azure finished, "Come on!"
Cerise nodded, "Right!"
After a few seconds, Azure's eyes adjusted to the light enough to see a tunnel hidden behind the boulder…
"A hidden passage." Cerise stated.
"You want us to go down there, right Pikachu?" Azure asked,
"Pi!" He nodded.
Azure looked back at Cerise, and she stepped forward and stood next to him, "Lets go."
"I'm right behind you!" She nodded.
Azure smiled and turned back to the tunnel and started through it. He could feel wind on his face, and could smell fresh air. The tunnel started to steep down, and then Azure saw it - sunlight. With a smile of relief, he broke into a run. He felt the warmth of the sun engulf his body as he broke out the other side.
It took a few seconds for his eyes to readjust to the brighter light, but once they did, he was amazed at what he saw. Where he was looked like it had been a cavern at one point, but the roof of the cavern had collapsed in. The walls of the cavern reached up into the air, ending with jagged peak. Azure watched a cloud or two float through the sky above, before looking back down into the makeshift 'valley'. tall grass grew everywhere, leaving only a small, seldom-used path. Wildflowers grew in groves within the grass, their tall stems reaching above the grass, and their multicoloured petals blowing gently in the wind. A few shrubs grew here and there, growing in the light of the sun that could now beam down.
"This must have been the sight of the major cave-in." Cerise whispered, holding onto Azure's arm, "Az… its beautiful!"
"Look!" Azure said, pointing with his free arm out into the pit. Cerise followed his gesture.
There, in the center was a large building. Its tall walls gleamed in the sunlight. There was no windows, only concrete walls. Azure looked at the door, it stood slightly ajar, but it did not look like anyone was home.
Pikachu jumped down from his shoulder and started running towards the building.
"Is this where you were trying to take us?" Azure asked, following after the Pikachu.
"Az!" Cerise gasped, standing stationary, with a worried expression, "We just can't walk into somebody's house… and besides, no one is allowed here… entry to Mt. Silver was banned…"
"If Pikachu's Trainer is in there, and needs help, we have to go help him." Azure stated, "I promised Pikachu I'd follow it, and I never break a promise!"
"Ok… but lets hurry up… its already after 7:30, and if we're much later, not even if Arcanine ran full speed, could we make it to Pallet on time…"
"Don't worry." Azure said, turning away from her and following the Pikachu towards the door, "We'll make it on time!"
The Pikachu did not even hesitate at the door, it just ran right in. Azure stopped and knocked on the door, it swayed under each knock with a loud creaking noise, "Hello? Is anyone home?"
He pushed the door open and walked inside. What he saw, he was completely not expecting. There was a room beyond the door, that looked sort of like an office. The office looked long abandoned, though there was still electricity running to it, because an old computer flicked dully in the background.
Azure stepped through the heavy dust on the ground, there were a few trails of footprints going from the door, to another door straight across from him at the other end of the room, leaving the everything else in the room untouched. A dust covered desk sitting under the computer was littered with papers, the chair behind it had been overturned. A small cot was set up behind the desk, and pressed against the wall, the sheets dirty and unused.
Azure stepped forward and crossed the dirty floor, picking up the chair and standing it up, before reaching down to wipe the grime and dust off the monitor. Pikachu jumped up onto the desk next to him.
"Azure!" Cerise gasped, "You shouldn't touch that…"
"Its an old news article." Azure said, clearly ignoring her, he grabbed the mouse and scrolled up.
Cerise walked behind him, "Your right… its dated ten years ago…"
Azure squinted in the dull light to read the words of the article.
Pokemon League News
Pokemon fans or not, there is not a single person who has not heard something about notorious earthquakes centering around the Mt. Silver vicinity. Routes 28, 22, 23, Victory Road, and the Pokemon League Reception Desk have been completely closed due to the cave ins and rockslides. Thousands of Trainers and Pokefans alike have been evacuated from the area, due to the threat of more landslides. Geographers currently cannot tell what is causing the massive cave ins, though they believe it is caused by something large moving underneath the mountain, possible a giant Pokemon. While several Pokemon Trainers have attempted to make the journey through the dangerous landscape to find this believed 'Giant Pokemon', the routes still remains blocked by giant boulders and debris. Officer Jenny of Viridian City has this to say:
'No matter if there is a giant Pokemon there or not, the fact of the matter is that right now, the Mt. Silver region is too dangerous to travel. We are banning anyone - Pokemon Trainer, or otherwise - from entering the area, and we have Police Officers stationed at every entrance. Please, for your own safety, stay away from that mountain!'
The Indigo Plateau keeps a record of whoever enters either Mt. Silver, or Victory Road, and keeps track of when they enter or exit, encase a Trainer needs help. So far, four Trainers are missing along the Victory Road path, and one Trainer and his two companions are missing within Mt. Silver. The Indigo League is withholding names until more information is gathered, or next-of-kin is informed.
"That's an old article." Cerise whispered, holding onto the back of the chair Azure was sitting on,
"Yeah." Azure frowned, pushing himself away from the desk.
"Az…" Cerise whispered, looking at the article, "Don't you think its strange that… this computer was open to this article when we just happened to walk in? I mean, its about missing trainers who are believed to have lost their lives in Mt. Silver…"
"Trainers that went missing… ten years ago…" Azure whispered, he turned away from the monitor, "Come on, we don't have time to waste, if we want to get back to Pallet in time…"
"Pikachu." Pikachu said sadly, looking up at Azure.
Azure smiled down at it, and ruffled the fur on the top of its head, "We'll find your Trainer, and if he needs help, we'll save him."
"Pika!" Pikachu smiled.
He walked over to the door and placed his hand on the doorknob. Cerise walked up behind him nervously, wrapping her arms around herself. Azure took a deep breath, and pushed the door open. A bright light momentarily blinded them, a roof light behind the door burst light into the darkened office. Azure and Cerise blinked momentarily in the bright light.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu called, jumping down off the desk and through the door. Azure watched him run through the door, and right down a steep set of stairs just past it. The steps were brightly lit by a few roof-lamps, and there was a second door at the very bottom. Without a second thought, he headed down the stairs after Pikachu.
"Azure!" Cerise called after him silently, "We shouldn't go down there… we could be budging into someone's house!"
"You said so yourself," Azure replied, "Entry to this place is banned. If it really is banned, then whoever is here shouldn't be here too!"
"But still…" Cerise whined,
"Wait up there if your so worried." Azure called back to her, reaching the bottom of the stairs,
"But what if whoever lives here returns?" Cerise said, taking a step down onto the first step,
"Then be sure to greet them for us!" Azure stated, grabbing the doorknob.
Cerise paled and looked behind her. They had left the front door open, and there was nothing but the sun-lit pit outside. She gulped and turned around, running down the stairs to join Azure and Pikachu, "Wait for me!" She clung onto Azure's arm,
"Changed your mind?" Azure asked,
"I'm not waiting up there by myself for some freak to come get me!" She shivered.
Azure laughed and pushed the door open.
"FEAROW!"
Two sets of screams echoed back up the stairs as Azure and Cerise fell backwards screaming, startled by the unexpected noise.
"Sandslash, sand."
"NEEEAAAAH!"
"Wooodeeee!"
"Nido nido!"
The sound of Pokemon cries filled the air, reverberating off the metal stairs, and back up at them. Azure groaned as he felt the stairs against his back, Cerise curled up and clinging to him in surprise. Her face was buried into his side and she was shaking. Azure raised his head and looked forward.
Across from the door was a small Fearow! The Fearow was glaring at the kids, its wings flapping angrily. Azure leaned up, and Cerise scuffled behind him. The Fearow was sitting on a wooden perch, the type you may see in a birdcage. The perch was old and was full of claw marks, bones littered the bottom of the cage beneath it. It called out and flapped its wings up into the air, before soaring towards them.
Azure gasped and flinched back, squeezing his eyes shut, and shielding his face with his arms, and Cerise screamed again, cowering behind him, as if he was a shield.
"FEAROW!" It screamed as it raced towards them…
A.N's:
Manganimefandom: Phew! This chapter was really fun to RP :) Took a little editing, and lots of communication between RPers to pull off, but it was really fun.
Rygel-N: I have decided there will be a new 'Title Page' every 5 chapters, so lets say every five chapters there will be a new 'Volume' lol, each volume will feature a different character. First was Azure, next will be a different character.
Air-Head: That's it for uploads tonight. I have to get to work, and we're all still working on chapter 6! Please tell me what you think :)
