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Unbeknown to Azure, an unknown man has taken Pichu! But his own Pokemon, Pichu's evolutionary form, Pikachu, decided to betray him, and help Azure and Cerise to save her. The two, thinking they are going down into the depths of Mt. Silver to save the Pikachu's Trainer, end up finding a hidden pit, created by the cave-ins, and inside of that pit, a hidden base. Azure and Cerise follow the Pikachu into the base, only to be attacked by a Fearow!
How will our heroes get out of this one?
… … …
Episode 6
The Pokemon Collector
CLUNK
Azure heard a strange sound, it sounded like something heavy hitting a wall. He slowly opened his eyes, gasping as he saw the Fearow on the ground. It got up quickly and flew towards them again, slamming into some sort of barrier and falling back again. It screamed in rage and began scratching at the barrier.
"Cerise," Azure replied, reaching behind him to grab her arm, never once taking his eyes off the giant bird, "Cerise I think it can't reach us?"
"What?" Cerise said softly. She uncurled herself and looked over his shoulder, "How?"
"Pikachu." Pikachu said sadly, exiting the stairs and entering the room past. He walked over to towards the Fearow, and tapped on what must be the barrier.
Azure pulled himself away from Cerise, and went through the door, entering what looked like a long hallway, easily three people wide. He cross the hall and stood next to Pikachu. He raised his hand and tapped the 'barrier' and jumped back, "I-Its glass!"
"O-only glass?" Cerise asked softly, walking up and hiding behind Azure, peaking over his shoulder at the 'glass' barrier,
"I dunno." Azure shrugged, "Doesn't look like Fearow can break it?"
Fearow clawed at the glass and cawed angrily, before turning around and circling back and flying a loop around its 'cell', before flying full speed at the glass again. It clanked loudly at the collision, but the 'glass' did not budge.
"It's a cage." Cerise stated, She stepped out beside Azure, and looked into the cell, "Its awfully small for such a large bird…"
"Balba! Bulbasaur!"
Azure turned around and looked at the cell next to the door they just walked in. A Bulbasaur sat on the inside with a peeved look. He was glaring at Pikachu. Pikachu's ears flattened and he looked away from the Bulbasaur sadly.
Azure looked from the Bulbasaur, to Pikachu, and back again, "Friend of yours?"
"Pika…" Pikachu mumbled.
Azure walked over to the glass and squatted down in front of the Bulbasaur, "Hey there. What are you doing locked up in there?" The Bulbasaur glared at Azure, then turned away in a huff, He turned around and waddled off towards a tree-like prop in the back of the cell and went inside. Azure watched him go, noting that the inside of the cell looked like a fake, Bulbasaur environment…
"Azure… look!" Cerise gasped, pointing down the hall. Azure straightened up and looked, his eyes widening in shock. The hallway snaked down for a long way, cells upon cells of Pokemon reached up to greet them, each looking like a miniature habitat for the Pokemon it contained.
"It's a…zoo?" Cerise said,
"It's sick." Azure snapped, "Who could keep all these Pokemon locked up like this?"
Pikachu lowered his head and looked at his feet. He sighed and looked back up at the Bulbasaur Habitat, Bulbasaur was glaring at him from the inside of the fake tree. He walked over to the cell and placed his paws on it, "PikakaPika"
Bulbasaur turned away, "Bulba."
"Pikachu!" Pikachu cried. He pointed at Azure and Cerise, "Pi-cha pi Cha-pi Pikachu!"
Bulbasaur growled, and without warning, he turned and charged at the glass, tackling the barrier with all his strength. Pikachu did not move, he just stood there with his ears flattened, and a crushed look across his face.
Azure walked back over to Pikachu and scooped him up, "Whoa…don't know what you said, but looks like you pissed him off there, pal."
"Pi-cha…" Pikachu whimpered, holding onto the front of Azure's shirt.
From here, in the artificial light, Azure could see that the Pikachu was not a young one. It was older, the Bulbasaur too… he wondered if they knew each other? Pikachu's wrinkled eyes watered up and he leapt from Azure's arms and ran down the hall.
"Wait!" Azure called after it. He turned to Cerise, "Come on!"
"Right!" She nodded.
The two of them chased after the Pikachu, but it seemed to have disappeared. Azure gritted his teeth and pounded his tired legs harder, running past cell after cell of Pokemon.
"They're all labelled in the National Pokedex Order." Cerise stated from beside him. She looked at the cells as she ran,
Charmander
Charmellion
Charzard…
Caterpie…
Metapod…
Butterfree…
Ratatta
Ratticate…
The end of the hallway came up, and there was still no sign of Pikachu.
"Where did he go?" Cerise gasped,
"There!" Azure pointed. The tunnel turned to the right, snaking around to another hallway.
The two of them ran down it, following a similar hallway full of Pokemon labelled in the National Pokedex order. With his long legs, Azure easily out strode Cerise, and the gap between them started to widen. Cerise tried to keep up the best she could… until something caught her eye.
"Azure! Wait!" She called.
Azure stopped so fast, he nearly doubled over. He turned around, "What is it?"
"Look!" She said, pointing at Cell Number 25.
Azure back-tracked back to Cell 25 and looked up at the plague. "Dex. 025...Pikachu." He looked down at the glass and gasped, "I-Its open!" And it was, the glass 'wall' was raised up to about his hip-level. The inside of the cell was dusty and looked unused. The fact that the cell was empty was not surprising… the fact that it was open was.
"Pika."
Azure spun around and saw Pikachu standing there again, his ears flattened against the back of his head. Azure walked towards him and bent down in front of him, "That's your cell… isn't it."
"Pi…" Pikachu whispered,
"This isn't a rescue mission to save your Trainer is it?" Cerise whispered,
"Cha…." Pikachu whined.
"It doesn't matter. There is something here Pikachu is desperate to show us." Azure mumbled, reaching over and scooping up the Pikachu, "And, I believe your Trainer is in trouble. Am I right?"
Pikachu nodded.
"He's the one that did this to all these Pokemon… isn't he?" Azure asked,
Pikachu nodded slowly again.
"What a monster! Why would we save someone like that?" Cerise gasped.
Azure did not answer, he just straightened up and placed Pikachu on his shoulder, before continuing down the path.
"Azure!" Cerise called after him,
"We don't know the whole story." Azure replied, "I promised Pikachu I'd help save his Trainer, and I will!"
"Argh!" Cerise groaned, "Your so stubborn!"
"Go back if you want then." Azure stated,
"Maybe I will!" Cerise folded her arms,
"Have fun with that." Azure shrugged.
Cerise rubbed her arms and looked behind her. Pokemon were crying out behind her, sending a shiver down her spine. She took off running down the hall towards Azure, grabbing onto his arm nervously.
"Thought you were going back?" Azure smirked,
"As I said before…" Cerise said, looking around nervously, "My conscience won't let me leave you down here without a Pokemon…"
Azure laughed, "Sure, sure."
They reached the end of the hall, and a stairway greeted them. More Pokemon cries could be heard from down below. Without hesitating, Azure headed down the stairs, literally dragging Cerise after him.
The three reached the bottom of the stairs, and saw the exact same sight they saw above with only different Pokemon. Azure looked around as he saw unfamiliar Pokemon he had never seen before…
"H-how long do you think this goes?" Cerise asked, clinging onto the back of Azure's shirt.
Azure shrugged, "Beats me… how much further, Pikachu?" He looked around the ground around him, "Pikachu?"
But the old Electric Mouse was gone without a trace. He frowned and sighed, where did the little guy run off to this time?
"What's that?" Cerise asked, looking into one of the cells,
"I've seen a few of these on TV." Azure stated, looking down at a green dinosaur-like Pokemon with a giant leaf on its head, "These are Johto-Region Pokemon… I think."
"Johto Region?" Cerise muttered, "What are they doing here then?"
Azure shrugged, "Dunno."
He stepped forward into the hall and looked down it. It was the most disturbing thing he had ever seen… all these poor Pokemon…there HAD to be a way to get them out… but if a Fearow flying at the wall at full speed wasn't enough to break it…
He cupped his hands to his mouth and called as loud as he could down the hall, "HEY! Is somebody out there?"
He could hear his voice echo off the walls, reverberating back to him in a mix of Pokemon cries.
"Az…" Cerise whispered.
"HEY!" Azure called out again, "If there is a Trainer down here, say something already! We're here to help you!"
"Piiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii-chhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!" A familiar cry rang back at them…
… … …
"Boss, there seems to be two strange kids in our facility." A woman said, wearing a strange blue and brown uniform. She typed away on a keyboard as she looked up at nearly hundreds of monitors stacked across the wall, all recording the Pokemon in their cells, the halls, and the area around the pit outside. The monitors circled the large, circular room, only breaking for a small door leading out of the room.
The man in the clock that had picked up Pichu was sitting in a large, high-backed chair behind her. He was leaning back, and hidden in the shadows. He did not reply to the woman, but hovered an arm slightly over his lap, just before a large, old Pikachu - the same one that led Azure and Cerise into the building - jumped up onto his lap. He lowered his arm, placing it on the Pikachu's back.
"Would you like us to take care of them for you?" She asked, turning around to face him.
Instead of replying, the man stood up, picking the Pikachu up as he did so, and turning away. He silently walked towards the door.
The woman nodded, "As you wish, sir."
… … …
"Pi-cha! Piiiiiiii-ccchhhaaaaaa!"
Mixed in with the cries of strange Pokemon, Azure heard a familiar cry. His eyes widened and he stepped forward with a gasp, he yelled down the hall again, "PICHU?"
"PI-CHA!" The call came back.
"Pichu's down here!" Azure gasped. Without hesitating, he broke into a run.
"Azure! Wait!" Cerise called, chasing after him down the hall.
"Pichu!" Azure called, not slowing down a fraction as he ran down the hall, "Pichu where are you?"
"Pi-cha! Pichu pi!" She called back.
Azure felt something grab his hand, and pull him to a stop. He gasped and turned around, seeing Cerise stare at him with a worried look.
"Let me go!" Azure snapped,
"Az." She stated, "If your Pichu is really down here, and was just up on Route 1 with you just forty-five minutes ago…that means someone just brought it down here."
Azure thought her words through, "That means…"
"Whoever brought Pichu down here, could still be here." She said worriedly.
Azure and Cerise looked around cautiously, glancing up and down the halls. The only noise seemed to be coming from the Pokemon.
Azure said through clenched teeth, "I don't care who brought Pichu down here - I am going to get her back."
Cerise nodded, "I know…" She released his arm, "What number is Pichu in the National Dex?"
Azure looked thoughtful for a second, "172."
Cerise looked to the left of them, seeing a Sentrat looking back at her, "We're at 161 right now…"
"So she's just down the hall." Azure nodded, he turned away from Cerise and started running again, keeping his eyes glued to the numbers at the top of the cells…
164
165
166...
"PICHU!" He yelled, pushing himself to keep running… he felt exhausted.
"Pi-cha!" She replied.
167
168
169...
He passed a cell full of water, containing a Lanturn, and finally reached cell number 171.
Pichu was inside, her little paws pressed up against the glass, "Pi-cha!"
"Pichu!" Azure gasped, squatting down to get a better look at her. She looked like she was in better condition then he was…
He leaned back, looking up and down the hall as Cerise caught up to him. He frowned and jumped to his feet, taking a few steps back, "I'm going to get you out of there."
"Pichu?" She asked, tilting her head.
"Stand back Pichu!" Azure ordered, backing up until his back pressed up against the glass on the other side of the hall, before running and shoulder-checking the wall trapping Pichu in her cell.
The glass did not even bend, sending Azure flying back, he stumbled and fell, landing hard on his tailbone.
"Ow…" he muttered.
"Azure!" Cerise gasped, running over to him and placing her hand on his shoulder, "Are you ok?"
"No. Not until Pichu is out of there." He snapped, jumping to his feet again, and ramming the wall, once again being bounced back.
"Pi-cha!" Pichu gasped.
"Don't worry Pichu!" Azure said as he rubbed his sore shoulder, "We'll get you out."
"Azure, let's try this." Cerise stated, pulling a Pokeball from her belt. Azure saw it, and stepped back, holding his shoulder as he did so.
Cerise stepped up in front of the wall and threw her Father's Pokeball into the air, calling forth Arcanine. The large dog appeared on the ground in front of them with a howl.
"Arcanine! Try Extreme-Speed!" Cerise ordered.
"Aroo!" He nodded, lowering his head, before dashing at the wall so fast, neither of the kids even saw him move, by the time any of them saw anything, Arcanine was laying on the ground, having bounced back from the wall the same way Azure had.
"Acranine!" Cerise gasped, running over to him, "Are you ok?"
Arcanine nodded, climbing to its feet.
"Pichu!" Azure stated, walking up to stand next to Cerise, "Try a tackle attack from that side!"
"Pichu!" She nodded.
Pichu dropped down on all fours and charged at the wall, slamming into it with all her strength, only to bounce back like Arcanine and Azure did, falling face-first into the ground.
"Flamethrower attack, Arcanine!" Cerise ordered.
"Arc!" He nodded, stepping forward and launching a powerful flame at the wall.
The flame lit up the hall, and the Pokemon around started screaming, crying out in wonder.
"C-Cleffa!" A small voice said from beside Pichu's cell.
Pichu groaned, climbing back to all fours. She looked over at Cleffa's cell. The little baby Pokemon was looking at Pichu with fear. She looked from Pichu to the Arcanine… those humans were trying so hard to get her out!
"Cleffa!" She cheered, clapping her little hands together, "Cleffa fa-fa!"
The Pokemon around them seemed to suddenly settle down, they all fell silent and watched.
Pichu, knowing fully well that Pichu can't use electric attacks without shocking themselves, stood up anyway, her cheeks glowing, before launching a Thundershock attack at the wall, aiming for right where Acranine's flame was hitting. She cried out as he attack shocked her as well, and the glow around her staggered.
"Cleffa! Cleffa! Cleffa!" Cleffa chanted, clapping her hands together in rhythm, "Cleffa clef!"
The other Pokemon in their cells started chanting as well, pounding their various limbs either together or on whatever surface was nearby, all in sync, in a chanting rhythm.
Pichu gasped and looked over at Cleffa, "Pi?"
"Cleffa!" She nodded.
"Pichu!" Pichu smiled.
The glow around Pichu seemed to glow brighter, and she focused all her energy on the wall, ignoring the pain of the electric shock that coursed through her, singing her fur.
"Pichu!" Azure called, "Hang in there! We'll get you out!"
Seemingly out of nowhere, a shock of electricity shot down the hall, colliding viciously with Arcanine. The large dog screamed out in a mix of pain and surprise as it was thrown back. Azure reached over and grabbed Cerise's arm, pulling her from harm just as Arcanine was sent flying backwards by the shock.
"Arcanine!" Cerise gasped as Arcanine skidded to a stop. The large dog had its eyes squeezed shut, but shook his head vigorously, and climbed back to his feet, quickly running over to stand in front the two kids.
"Pi?" Pichu gasped, walking up to the glass and looking through. Azure crouched down beside her, looking down the hall, where the electric attack had come from.
The lights above them flickered and dimmed, and Arcanine let out a low Growl, bracing himself to attack…
A figure appeared in the dimmed light, first completely hidden by shadows. He wore a strange brown travelling cloak, completely covering his body. The old Pikachu that had led them down there was riding on his shoulder with an apologetic look.
Azure gritted his teeth, glaring at the Stranger. Who was this guy? Was he Pikachu's Trainer? Was he the one who locked all these Pokemon down here? Was he the one who locked Pichu up?
While he did not know, he knew one thing. Whether this Stranger tried to stop him or not, he was getting Pichu out! No matter what!
