Just a little note: I might be posting the world map of this story at Photobucket; however, I'm encountering problems creating it… With all the fields, towns, mountains and other stuff…

CHAPTER 03: Pokemon Master..?

Act 01 – What Are These Animals?

Sonic's POV

An hour later, the cool and gentle breeze kept us fresh as we traversed towards the next town. The townsfolk told us that we were very far away from Emerald Town, which is where I live. Apparently, Emerald Town is on another continent. For now, I and Goku decided to head towards the only harbor of this continent, located at Stone Edge City. It was very far away. But whatever happens, we'll make the journey!

I was kinda getting bored. Being silent was not pretty much of my stuff. Perhaps I should interview Goku of about himself. Why did I think of that just now?

"Where do ya live?" I asked him.

Goku shook his head. Maybe he doesn't want to share his background story. But I didn't allow that to halt me.

"Come on, you can tell me…" I told him.

"I don't want to talk about it." he replied.

Stubborn is he? If I asked him again, he just might get angry at me. Regardless, I went on and told him.

"How am I supposed to trust you if I hardly know you? You might be a spy of Eggman or somethin'…"

Goku looked at me. He's not mad… yet?

"Does having a grudge towards Eggman qualify enough?" he demanded.

"Nope. And it's not like you can only hold one grudge…" I answered.

"So you think I have a grudge on you too?" he asked.

He seemed to be getting angry. It took me a while to reply.

"No…"

Goku turned around and ignored me for the rest of the walk. Way to go Sonic...

I kept on staring at him. Even though his face is turned away, I can see his face. It was serious and quite scary.

About an hour later, we arrived at the next town. The path towards the next one was through a mountain, a cave and a river. It appeared a little hard for me and Goku. But we'll try and give it our best.

"Maybe we should rest?" Goku asked me.

"I'm planning to rest in the next town, but if you insist. At least it will be safe." I replied.

We headed towards the inn, which was near the center of the town. We rented a room for 20 rings. I stood by the window watching over the town. Goku decided to take a short walk outside. I refused when he invited me. I think this people would be surprised to see a walking and talking blue hedgehog. That would be insulting and rude.

I turned towards the bed and sat on it as I scanned the whole room. It wasn't any different than the last inn. But this time, it had eight people. My roommates appeared to be travelers, all of them. They were all staring at me. Haven't they seen a hedgehog before! Not even on television? I raised an eyebrow. They continued staring at me until one of them took out a ball and tossed it at me. I was too confused to dodge the ball. It hit me on the head. Ow! The ball landed on the bed. What was that for? The travelers seemed even more confused. I blinked at them twice. My sight dropped down at the ball. It was red on top and white at the bottom. The two colors were divided at the middle by a black line with a round white button.

When I looked back at my roommates, they were now holding some kind of device. It was red. I thought it was book at first, but its shape was odd. I heard a sound from each device. They were the same, which doesn't surprise.

ERROR. CREATURE UNKNOWN.

I stared at them for a few moments. They glanced at each other and shrugged.

Just then, the door opened and Goku came in and headed towards me like a magnet.

"Done walking already?" I questioned.

He nodded and lied on his bed. He looked very comfortable. But I destroyed that by poking him.

"Hey, Goku. Our roommates are somewhat weirdoes. They even tossed a ball at me!" I whispered to him.

Goku thought of it for a second and asked me, "What did this ball look like?"

I pointed at the ball, which was still on my bed. Goku wasn't surprise.

"Oh, that's a Poke Ball." Goku replied.

"What the heck is a Poke Ball?" I inquired.

Goku sat up and looked at the ball. He took it and held it in front of his chin.

"This is tool for catching creatures called 'Pokemon'. I doubt that you'd seen one. But I think you've heard of it."

"Hmmm... True." I replied. "They look like mutated animals t' me."

"Well... they're not mutated animals. They're creatures with magnificent powers. I don't know how many kinds of Pokemon are there..." Goku lied on his bed and covered his face with a pillow. "They must've thought you're a Pokemon! Can you believe it? Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!"

"Are you really my friend or an enemy?" I demanded.

"More like an ally... or maybe a rival." Goku answered.

Angrily, I slammed my own pillow at him.

"Ow!"

Act 02 – PKMN Trainer Sonic

Goku's POV

The next morning, I and Sonic checked out the inn and left the town. We arrived at the base of the mountain. This mountain was once famous for its gold. But now, it's abandoned. The gold mine provides a shortcut to the river at the base of the other side of the mountain. I saw Sonic carrying the Poke Ball. Maybe we'll find it somehow useful.

"Alright, let's hike." Sonic ordered like he was the leader. Who made him that?

Fortunately, there were some little flags that serve as marks of where we should climb. If we follow those, we'll make it to the top without any problem. Sonic went first. The path was somehow smooth. It wasn't that steep. Sonic ran up and left me behind. If I could only fly... Wait! I can, but it was stolen by the Strength Thief. The name sounds awful to me too. So as a result, I walked my way up the mountain.

When I reached Sonic, he was looking at a creature that was blocking the entrance to the gold mine. The creature seemed easy to beat. Wonder what's preventing him from doing so?

"Can't fight it on your own?" I asked him.

Ignoring the question, Sonic asked me, "Is... this what you call a... Pokemon?"

I looked at the creature. It sure seemed so.

"Yeah. But it's only one of them." I replied. I turned towards Sonic. "You're... planning to catch it, are you?"

Sonic nodded. "I wonder what the big deal with them is. So I'll try to catch one and see."

I looked at the Pokemon. It was yellow and it looked like a mouse. It had long ears and a zigzag tail. It had brown stripes at its back. It had small hands and small feet. It had a one red circle each on its cheeks. Can you guess what it is? It's very obvious. And it's one of the most famous Pokemon.

Pika?

"It's a Pikachu." I told him.

"A Pi-What?" Sonic questioned me.

I sighed. "A PI…KA…CHU. That's its name. An electric mouse."

Sonic rolled his eyes and threw the Poke Ball. I gave him a mean look. "No—you don't throw a Poke Ball immediately!"

The ball struck Pikachu. Pikachu went inside the Poke Ball. We stared at the ball. It was glowing red. It was shaking. Pikachu will probably escape.

But my prediction was wrong. The ball stopped shaking and stopped glowing red. Sonic poked the ball twice and snatched it.

Sonic raised an eyebrow. "That's it? I captured a Pikachu? THAT'S the big deal! Laaame!"

He threw the Poke Ball at the gold mine's entrance. The ball opened and Pikachu came out. The Poke Ball went flying and hit Sonic at the head for not catching the ball. The ball fell to his hand. Pikachu looked at Sonic.

Pi?

"You don't like Pokemon? Then can I have your Pikachu?" I asked him.

Sonic looked at me. "Why does it matter to you anyway?"

"Ummm... one who owns a Pokemon is called a Pokemon Trainer… They're the masters of their Pokemon…" I explained.

Sonic glanced at Pikachu and then looked back at me. "So you mean… I have control over Pikachu?"

"Uh, ya." I replied infirmly. I'm not sure where this is going.

We stared at each other for a few moments. When the wind blew, a smile broke out of Sonic's face.

"Sweet! So Pikachu's my slave!" he started to shout. "Okay, Pikachu, time for you to—"

Before he could proceed, I boxed him in the ear. Pokemon are not slaves. Some treat them that way, but I'm not going to allow Sonic to abuse them.

"Stop that! You're scaring Pikachu! They're more like pets, but NEVER slaves!" I shot at him.

Sonic rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

"Anyway, we should continue onwards into the gold mine." I told him. I went in first.

Pikachu glanced at me then at Sonic. Sonic sighed.

"What are you looking at?" Sonic demanded.

Pikachu only smiled. It seemed to like Sonic. Pika!

It took as about seven minutes to walk every 150 meters. I kept on looking at Sonic in a frowning face. He's been ordering Pikachu to stop touching him. Sonic might sound mean, but he's really not… or maybe he is? I don't know due to the fact that I hardly know anything about him.

Suddenly, something bumped into my face. I waved my hands in front of my face to scare it away. But it flew a meter away in front of us. It had wings and… and was kind of blue…

"Ah! It's another Pokemon! It's a Zubat!" I cried out.

Then I came up with a good idea. I turned towards Sonic and told him, "This is the perfect time for you to test out your Pikachu. Make it fight this Zubat!"

Sonic scratched his head. "Are you sure? Pikachu doesn't seem up for the job… And what if he loses?"

I sighed. "Ugh, then we'll back him up, of course! You'd better work on your common sense."

Sonic shook his head and threw his arms into the air. "Okay, then… Go, Pikachu!"

Pikachu ran into position. I wonder if Sonic can handle this. This'll be his first Pokemon Battle.

"Go punch him!" he ordered Pikachu.

Pikachu looked at him with a bamboozled face. Pika?

"What are you doin'? Do as I say!" Sonic shouted.

I tapped Sonic on his shoulder. "Sonic… Pokemon don't fight exactly the way we do. They don't fight with simple moves like punching and kicking… Do you know any Pokemon moves?"

"Pokemon moves? Never heard of it." Sonic replied.

Before the conversation could go on, Zubat bit Pikachu at the arm! Pikachu shook Zubat off and jumped back.

"Would you look at that? Zubat just used Bite! Pikachu will probably faint at this rate!" I told Sonic.

Sonic's mind hatched an idea. I could tell from his face. He rotated towards Pikachu.

"Pikachu..." he said. "Bite!"

Pikachu dashed forward and bit Zubat! Zubat fell to the ground, but it got itself back into the air after a moment. Zubat used Wing Attack! Zubat's attack missed!

"Now what?" Sonic looked at me for some assistance. But I got nothing in my brain.

I shrugged. Pikachu turned towards Sonic.

Pika, Pikachu!

Sonic didn't move. I realized that he was stunned. He blinked twice and his mouth opened, but not a single syllable came out.

"What's wrong?" I inquired.

Sonic shook his head. His sight remained on Pikachu.

"I don't know... But I think I understood what it just said..."

I almost laughed, but I replaced it with a chuckle and a smile. "You sure? Seems stupid to me."

Pika, Pikachu!

That was the same thing Pikachu said a while ago.

Sonic was confused. "What d'ya mean by Thunderbolt?"

I stared at him wide-eyed. He really did understood what Pikachu said! Unbelievable!

"Hold on, I think it's trying to tell me to order it to use... Thunderbolt?" Sonic said.

BzzZZzzZZzzt! BOOM!

Wild Zubat fainted!

"You did it!" I exclaimed. "Impressive."

Happily, Pikachu ran and leaped unto Sonic and licked him. Surprisingly enough, Sonic didn't mind. In fact, he actually liked it. Now that's a good thing to see.

"Well, wha' did ya' know? Pokemon aren't so boring after all!" he said as he laughed.

I raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?" But despite the question, I ended up laughing as well.

A minute later, we were following some markers on the ground. They were probably putted there so that nobody would get lost. It'd be scary if we were lost here...

"Sonic, you're an animal and I'm not. So are the other trainers. Maybe that's why you can understand the Pokemon Language." I concluded.

"Yeah... you're probably right." Sonic replied. "We'll probably find it useful."

I nodded. To think that Sonic can translate Pokemon Language to English... That's amazing. I became a little jealous of him. But being human was better than being a rodent, of course!

Soon daylight shone on us. We were outside. Now all that's left was the river. We hiked down and approached the river. The river was very calm. You could fish here, or even take a bath. The water was very clean. It was even safe to drink. But we had no time to do any of that.

Act 03 – Itsa me, Mario!

Sonic's POV

I might show Tails and the others my very first Pokemon. They'll like it. But I'm not going to show off. They might understand the Pokemon Language too.

"If we follow this river, we'll find the next town." I told Goku.

We started to walk. I noticed something flowing in the river. It was a ball. Probably not a Poke Ball. It was orange this time. And it has... a small star in it.

"Hey Goku," I poked him at the arm. "What's that?"

I pointed at the ball. Immediately, Goku ran and snatched it.

"Whoa, what's the big rush?" I asked.

"This... this is a Dragonball." he explained.

He handed it over to me so I could examine it.

"It's like a Chaos Emerald. Seven Dragonballs. Limitless power when gathered. Really similar." he explained.

I gave it back. Goku eyes settled on another thing in the river. "Hey, look."

I checked the river and discovered a red mushroom. It had white spots. And for some reason, it had eyes. It was very shiny. It could cause blindness if it were shinier.

"Maybe we could sell that, don't you think?" Goku suggested.

"Oh, shut up Goku." I snapped. "It looks and feels something special. We should grab it."

I approached the river and grabbed the mushroom. The eyes didn't seem to move. Is this a doll?

"You know, I'm hungry. Can I eat it?" Goku requested.

I shook my head. "No way, pig. This thing could be poisonous."

"Pig? Hmph!" Goku replied. "If it's poisonous and you don't want to sell it, then why don't you just throw it away?"

I was about to toss it away into the mountain. But a voice stopped me.

"No, don't!"

I looked at Goku, who shrugged. We looked around. There was no one. However, Goku saw someone further down the river. It was a man. He was wearing red clothes and he a red hat on. He had a big nose, which went well with his big mustache.

He drew towards us and snatched the mushroom.

"This mushroom is very important! It's a one of a kind!" the man told us.

"Why is it important? Looks poisonous to me." I asked.

"It's not poisonous. You can't even eat it! Tis' mushroom grew from the heavens. It fell down to earth. There are seven of them. Different colors. And they're scattered across the world." the man explained. "This is called a Super Mushroom."

I and Goku looked at each other. Super Mushroom? Sounds like Chaos Emeralds and Dragonballs all over again. And obviously, YES.

"Who are you anyway?" Goku asked. "You kinda look familiar to me..."

The man jumped. It was very high. About two meters, I think.

"Ah!" Goku shouted.

He looked at me. Unfortunately for him, we weren't thinking of the same thing. I shot him a questioning look.

"You don't know?" Goku asked.

"Hey, I'm the one who's asking questions here." I shot.

Goku cleared his throat. "This man's a celebrity."

I glanced at the man. "You sure? I dunno this man."

Goku sighed. "Ever heard of the Super Mario Bros? This is Mario. His brother's Luigi. But he doesn't seem to be here."

"Hold on, I think I've heard of them before..." I began. "Ah, you mean Mario and Luigi, the Jump and Hammer Kings..? And their enemy Browser?"

Mario nodded and shook his head. "It's Bowser... He's a fire-breathing tortoise.

Goku shook his head and threw his hands into the air. "Isn't this world of ours interesting? Blue human-sized rodents, jumping middle-age men with humungous noses and mustaches who always haves mushroom for snacks, weird blue solitude robos, magma turtles and human-sized bowling balls."

"Boastful muscular men seem to be missing for sure." I snapped. "If I have to work on my common sense, then you'd better work on nonsense."

"Oh yeah! How about what makes sense for you!" Goku yelled at me.

"Guys, guys! Knock it off! Nothing good comes from fighting." Mario interfered.

My temper decreased and so did Goku's.

"Anyway, Mario I heard you're strong. Are you weak now?" Goku asked.

"Yeah. Are the two of you the same?"

And after some heated discussion...

"Come with us. We're after Eggman. If we work with each other, we'll be able to bring him down." I invited Mario.

Mario nodded. "I can't navigate around the world alone."

"So if you may, can you please lead us to the town somewhere around here..?" Goku asked.

"Oh it's not far from here. Are you guys looking for a blue robot?" Mario asked.

"Blue robot? Are you referring to X?" I asked back.

Mario was silent for a while. "Yes... I think that's what he calls himself. He was in that town yesterday. But now, he's gone."

X left already? That's sad to hear.

"Well, our roads will cross each other one day. So we might as well wait." I said.

We nodded and advanced on to the next town. Stone Edge Town was four towns away. Then the trip from the harbor of Stone Edge Town to the harbor Seaside Town... It'll be a long way. But I guess we can wait. Time will come when we'll finally reach Emerald Town. And soon, we'll beat the crap out of Eggman.

End of Chapter 3: Pokemon Master..?

Next Chapter: Raft Ride