Pokémon Red

by Lan Prower Kopaka

A fan-written novelization of the first Pokemon game, Pokémon Red! Red begins to take the brave steps into a journey to become a Pokémon Master! Enjoy the new take on an old and familiar world as Red grows beyond the role of simply silent protagonist and into the hero we know and love! If you want something true to the source material, with a couple twists and turns, check it out!

7. Chapter Seven: Celadon City

Chapter Seven: Celadon City

Celadon City was known far and wide as the shopping capital of Kanto, and it certainly shows. Building and homes populate the area more than most towns, but standing on the west edge of town is a monolith: the Celadon City Department Store. Just from my eyes, I could see it must have been at least five stories tall.

As tempting as it was to check out the massive construct, the sun setting behind the building told me that the day was beginning to fade. Therefore, I made my first mission to enter the Pokémon Center and heal up my team.

The healing was uneventful, but I got a big shock as I stepped outside. There, just a few meters away, was a Rocket Grunt. The timing was good since I healed, but to see a grunt in public was unbelievable! I walked up to challenge him, but he refused and said, "Keep out of Team Rocket's way!"

I was sure I didn't know him, and his attitude suggested the same, so I was unsure of how to take him on. All I knew was that I should look to see if the town had a police force or at least a place to stay. I didn't feel like sleeping outside tonight.

I did my best to avoid the store for now, and I also shied away from the Rocket Game Corner. Bad enough it shared the name with Team Rocket, and, as one lady put it, "is bad for our city's image!" but I needed sleep.

At last, I did find the inn, but the joy ended there. "Hello Miss, I'd like a room for me and my team."

"Pokémon?" she asked. "No, this is a hotel for people." Her eyes became cross and condescending, but I wouldn't give in easily.

"Please, I'll keep them inside their balls, just please let me stay."

"We're full up." My efforts were in vain, all because I was a trainer. As I stomped back down the street, I decided to hit up the restaurant I passed.

"Hi!" The chef was so happy, a bright smile on his face. "We're taking a break now." My face fault nearly cracked the tiles, I swear. I just left the place, pulling out a snack bar and trudged back to the Pokémon Center.

Despite the two Rockets in town, Celadon City was in relative peace. I couldn't understand why the impossible-to-find police force wouldn't take action, but I'm sure the city had one. I decided to call Mom and verify, and she did her best to interpret the situation. She believed that the town was being bought off by the gang, and that all the money would be coming from the Rocket Game Corner. As I hung up, I promised her I would leave Celadon soon before trouble started brewing, but I couldn't resist at least checking her theory for myself.

The next morning, after waking up and leaving the Pokémon Center, I traveled to the Rocket Game Corner, not only to do some snooping, but also with genuine interest in playing what Mom called "adult games." The people inside were all adults, but they had no problem with a kid playing alongside them, it seems. But before I could play, I needed coins. I went to the clerks in the back for some playing coins.

"Welcome to Rocket Game Corner!" said the man at the back counter. True, it was a suspicious name, but I'm sure I'm just being paranoid. "Do you need some game coins? It's $1,000 for 50 coins. Would you like some?"

"Yes please, sir." I hope they don't care that I'm a kid. And at first, I thought he was going to when he gave me an expectant look.

"Wait, let me guess," he said. "You don't have a Coin Case!" I questioned him about it, but he did not answer as fondly as I hoped. "A Coin Case is practically the license to gamble here! Kids may be allowed to play here on the upper level, but that's only if they're carrying a Coin Case. And since you're not, no coins for you!"

He was rude, but he was actually intimidating too, almost like a Rocket Grunt. But it didn't matter, I felt a bit of determination, like when I fight the Rockets, and decided to go hunt around town for one.

But I had an interruption to deal with. "Hey!" I looked around for the caller. "You have better things to do, champ in making!" There, at the slots, sat Jim Gai!

"What are you doing here, Jim?" I asked with shock.

"Uh, well, Celadon doesn't normally let guys in the gym unless they're Trainers, so uh…" I wasn't sure what to say; he was a Gym Caretaker, shouldn't he be allowed in too? "Anyway, listen up! Celadon Gym's leader is Erika! She uses Grass type Pokémon! She might appear docile, but don't be fooled!"

I thanked him for the advice, but I still gave him a curious why he was here. I began searching town for a Coin Case, which apparently no one had to sell. It took awhile, but by chance, my solution was hiding in the restaurant.

As I walked over to get some food, a large man next to me began making conversation. "Munch…" …Your name is Munch? "The man at that table lost it all at the slots." The man behind me is named Munch?!

But the man sitting back in the farthest corner overheard us. "Go ahead! Laugh! I'm flat out busted!"

I looked sympathetically at the man and walked over. "I'm not going to laugh, sir. I'm sorry to hear what happened.

"Yeah, well," he said, "No more slots for me! I'm going straight!" I nodded with understanding, but he reached into his pocket and pulled out some metal box. "Here! I won't be needing this anymore!" And thus, I finally received a Coin Case!

"Thank sir! I'll put it to good use!"

He nodded and finished with, "I always thought I was going win it back…" I think I was bumming him out, so I turned and left as quickly as I could.

And thus, my gambling career began. I bought some coins, but it seems like I didn't need to, as people were happy to share theirs, and there were lots of coins on the floor. After getting 325 coins, I went to the back counter to see what I could do with them.

"Welcome!" said the lady at the back counter. "You can exchange your coins for fabulous prizes next door."

"Um…then what's your job?"

She gave me the sharpest look in town, and this is a town full of Rocket Grunts. I decided to stop waiting for an answer and headed next door. But then I saw something I never expected: a Rocket Grunt, staring at a wall. It was time to investigate.

I tapped him on the shoulder and he turned around. "I'm guarding this poster!" You're what? Is this what they do with the crummier grunts? "Go away, or else!"

He certainly had the same anger as any other grunt though, and a Raticate to boot. But I wasn't going to have a problem. "Go! Calcite!"

The grunt managed to throw several Hyper Fangs at my Geodude, but Rock Throw and Tackle took out his Raticate and Zubat with ease. "Dang! Our hideout might be discovered!" he shouted after returning his fainted Pokémon. "I better tell Boss!"

He pressed his hand against the poster, triggering a strange noise. Before I knew it, he walked behind a wall into a shadowy hall. He seemed to shrink away as he left, and the noise repeated.

Oh well, I wanted to investigate that poster, not follow the Rocket. It looked like a simple picture with an R logo, but under it, there was something special. "Hey! A switch behind the poster?! Let's push it!" As soon as I did, the familiar noise occurred, and looking down the hallway, I saw a smidge of light. It didn't take long to figure out the mystery: a staircase into the basement of the Rocket Game Corner!

I had heard rumors of a basement, but I never expected this. Although the compact hallways didn't have a lot to show off, it left plenty of mystery and speculation to how big this underground stronghold really was. And also lots of plants strangely.

It didn't take long to find the people living inside, either. And of course, they weren't gamblers either. "You broke into our operation?"

"Yup," I answered. "Are we going to have to fight?" As soon as he nodded, I reached for my Poké Ball. "Go! Calcite!" The grunt used two Raticates on me, but Calcite took them both down, even if it meant using Self Destruct.

"Burnt!" he yelled…for some reason. "You're not going to get away with this, brat!" Watch me.

From that point, I explored the basement's first floor, taking down every Rocket I could find. They were hardly a threat with my fierce team, but it looked like the only path open was farther down. Normally calling the cops would be the right choice, but Celadon was Rocket territory. Therefore, I was on my own.

The second level was very similar to the first, filled with plants and checkerboard floors and hallways. But meeting the Rocket on this level proved to answer the question that had been haunting me for an answer.

"Boss said you can see ghosts with the Silph Scope!" Bingo. The Rocket was well equipped for a Rocket. His Zubat took advantage of my sleeping Kara-Tee, but Kara stood out until she woke up, and that's when Charmeleon took charge. Zubat went down quick, but his defeat only led to a Koffing attack!

"Whatsamatter kid, too nervous to talk?!" Despite his bravado, I could tell he was worried. Even without Charmeleon's intimidating stature, a kid managing to command his Pokémon with just his hands mystified him. "Fine, don't talk! I'll beat you with my stellar team! I'll use…Grimer!"

With Charmeleon's new move, Rage, I figured victory was confirmed, but this Rocket was smarter than he sounded. "Disable!" With Rage out, Charmeleon was taken aback and the Rocket took advantage of the situation to weaken my fiery friend. But I still had Scratch, and that was enough to keep back Grimer; at least, until…

"Charmeleon's disabled no more! And you know that means?" The Rocket had fear in his eyes as Charmeleon's tail exploded into an impressive flame!

After that, nothing mattered; his Grimer, Zubat, and Raticate were beaten with amazing ease, whereas my buddy was barely in the yellow zone. "I surrender!"

My fear was gone, and within a few seconds, Charmeleon's Rage subsided. "You better tell us whatever you know about this base. And the Silph Scope."

"Okay, okay, just put him away!" I chuckled as Charmeleon returned. He breathed a sigh of relief and talked. "The Team Rocket HQ has 4 basement floors." What?! Four floors of Rocket Grunts? This was going to be a long day. He smirked at my expression. "But if you want to know all about that Silph Scope, you'll have to speak with my supervisor. Can you reach the Boss?" he said with an oily attitude.

I wasn't going to let him off easy, though. "You're done; I suggest you send yourself to jail, lest we meet again." That was enough to keep him quiet at least, and so headed forward. Well, sort of.

I stepped on a strange tile on the floor, it had arrow symbols on it, but that wasn't what made it strange. No, the strange part was, as I stepped on the tile, I spun around in circles! I was being propelled forward by a force I couldn't understand across the floor at a high speed. Needless to say, when I stopped, I was dizzier than I had ever been in my life.

As soon as my head settled, I looked around and noticed I moved pretty far from where I started. At this moment, I decided two things. I never wanted to touch these tiles again, and I definitely had to plan my path around the base now if I never wanted to touch these tiles again.

But as it turned out, the tiles were everywhere, and I was going to have to keep touching them to progress. "Fine!" I shouted. So after about a half-hour of spinning and a half-hour of trying to rest my broken brain, I arrived far, far away from the spinning titles. "It's about time," I said with frustration, praying there were no more tiles like those back there.

I found this next room gave me two paths to follow, going upstairs or into a new room. I decided to try out the room, as I was tired, but it actually was an elevator. "It appears to need a key." Well, at least stairs are healthier…

Unfortunately, the two grunts occupying the room are not healthy. They both carried more Pokémon than usual, which I know must mean something, but I can't imagine what.

I let Kara-Tee take on the grunts, and she did well, but was beaten down by the second grunt. "Fine, then I'll use Daydreamer!" Sure enough, my Psychic type just barely pulled off the finishing blow with Confusion!

"This won't do!" I returned my Drowzee and planned to walk away, but for some reason the grunt was terrified. "Okay, I'll talk! Take the elevator to see my Boss!"

Now I knew what I had to do: find the key, and I may just stop Team Rocket once and for all. But first…I had to cross more arrow tiles…

Descending deeper into the Rocket Hideout brought me more challenges, and apparently I was getting popular in here. "We got word from upstairs that you were coming!" said one grunt.

He and his twin Machops didn't last long. "What? I lost? No!" The Rockets were getting anxious and giving up more information than they should, too. "Go ahead and go! But, you need the Lift Key to run the elevator!" I already knew I needed a key, but this confirmed the elevator was something I'd want to use.

But what I didn't want to use were more arrow tiles. I had no choice sadly, and began another dizzy journey across the room. The puzzle didn't give as much reward as the former tile issue, but it lead me to not only another Rocket, but a staircase leading further down.

On level 3, I equipped Charmeleon to lead, as my team was getting weak. I had a feeling I'd need him for the next Rocket Grunt. "Hey, you, the elevator doesn't work. Who has the Lift Key?"

"The elevator doesn't work? Who has the Lift Key?" he repeated. He was like any other Rocket before, but the density of this one astounded me.

"Um, yes, that's what I just asked." Instead of answering, however, he threw out a Pokémon. I could understand that at least. And with Charmeleon on the scene, a fight could finally ensue! I commanded an Ember to get an idea of what kind of trainer he was, and his Koffing could hardly handle it! Even his Tackle barely hurt my buddy! And with one more Scratch, the Koffing was down! "You do plan to fight harder, right?"

"Fight harder?" Um…okay, I'm getting weirded out now. But considering how unimpressive his second, Zubat looked, I figured he'd be done. But he took was I said to heart, apparently, as even though I got Zubat burned with Ember, he used Supersonic to confuse Charmeleon! And with that confusion, my buddy couldn't think straight!

The grunt smirked in glory, but it only took another Metal Claw to finish it off almost immediately. "No!" he screamed as he Zubat flew back and crashed into him. Charmeleon hit harder than he should of, until I saw a tiny glint of light, and the grunt couldn't help but speak up.

"Oh no! I dropped the Lift Key!" Realizing the way down was right in front of me, I charged for the key, but the man grabbed me and pushed me back. This did not make Charmeleon happy. I barely reacted in time to call back Charmeleon as his tail flared with Rage.

The guard fainted right beside Zubat, scared of what my Pokémon was capable of. I actually felt guilty leaving him there, but I needed the key if I was to stop Team Rocket here and now. As soon as I found the key, I made my way back. As soon as I heal, I'd finish the Rocket Hideout once and for all.

I got out pretty easy, and thought about staying out. I am a kid, after all, this isn't my business. On the other hand, if I do become Champion, it will be my business. The Champion will have the strongest Pokémon in the land, so if someone this dangerous spouts up, I should be there to stop them. And after all, it was just the right thing to do.

Once back inside, I quickly found the elevator (after more spinning), and I got in and used the key. The panel indicating which levels were available lit up instantly, and I had three floors to choose from: the first, second, and fourth basement floors.

Truthfully, I could have just charged for the boss, but that still made me nervous, and it would be dangerous if any grunts came at me while fighting the boss, so I decided to clear them out first and gain experience.

The first floor only had one Rocket left, and he wasn't happy to see me. "Are you lost, you little rat?" I'm not a rat! But since he wanted to see one so bad, I made sure to give Raticate a shot after Charmeleon used his Metal Claws on Grimer.

Grimer didn't stand much of a chance even with a critical hit, and Koffing went down to one critical Quick Attack, pounding Koffing into the door in front of the elevator. The Rocket, dumbfounded, fell to his knees. "Why…?" I wasn't sure what he meant, but then the door whirred open, as if the physical shock activated the interior gears!

"Uh-oh, that fight opened the door!" Considering it didn't take much to tear through the door, I was worried at how structurally sound this basement really was. Not wanting to waste anymore time, I hurried to the fourth floor.

Two Rocket Grunts were guarding the door, and they looked tougher than the average grunt, but with my team, I knew I could take them on. I talked to the first grunt, and he had something unexpected to say.

"I know you! You ruined our plans at Mt. Moon!" I certainly didn't recognize him, but it didn't matter, as I would take him down just like all the others! Calcite the Geodude went up against his Sandshrew, but his Sand Attack made me worry at how well the fight would go. Still, he could barely hurt me, while my Tackle and Rock Throw took him down slowly but surely!

He was certainly different than other grunts, and not just because he knew who I was. Not many used Ground types, especially something like a Sandslash. He had an Ekans too, but I'm led to believe this may be a sign of things to come. "Burned again! Do you have something against Team Rocket?"

The other grunt who watched concurred with his associate. "How can you not see the beauty of our evil?" His Ekans, Sandshrew, and Arbok gave us trouble, but Calcite, Gloom, and Kara-Tee were enough to finish them off, if just barely. It really looked like things would go our way as the grunt shouted, "Ayaya!"

The door opened, and I knew, just down that hallway, the boss would be before me. "Boss! I'm sorry I failed you!" the grunt fearfully cried. The three of us looked through the doorway, expecting the mysterious master of them all.

I walked down the hallway, but before I could reach the end, I heard "Not another step, brat!" It was them.

"How dare you humiliate us at Mt. Moon." The painfully strange members of Team Rocket.

"It's payback time, you brat!" And, again, the Meowth…talked.

"Um, look, you guys, I'm impressed that you did the impossible and got a Pokémon to talk, but I'm really not interested in another battle." The three were however, and they surrounded me to prevent any escape.

"You kidding? Jessie and James, teach me? Ha! I taught myself!" the Meowth said aloud. I really don't think I can handle more of this mind-blowing activity.

"Fine, fine, let's just fight and be over with it all." I said, and immediately reached for a weak but still able Calcite.

"Ladies first!" Jessie demanded, tossing out her Ekans. "Glare at his rock!" She managed to paralyze Calcite, but it didn't matter; Rock Throw started to tear Ekans apart early on, and try as she might, Leer meant nothing to Calcite's high defense. "This isn't fair! He's not even saying his stupid commands!"

Ekans fell, and James stepped up. "Don't worry, Koffing and I will teach this 'chatterbox' what's what!" And he did send out a Koffing, but I had already withdrawn Calcite for Gloom, making all of Jessie's efforts pointless. She was not happy about that.

James led off with a cloud of Smog. I managed to cover my mouth, as the Smog cloud was enveloping me too! But Gloom was hardly hurt by Smog, and couldn't be poisoned either. The coverage of gases did make the fight tougher, and meant I had to call my attacks out to Gloom. "Gloom, Absorb!" Gloom easily found Koffing and gained back her health, and thensome!

James didn't last much longer, as he frequently called Tackle, and even missed due to his Smog! With one last Cut, Koffing bounced on the floor in defeat, just in time for the Smog to clear.

"That's it! You're dead!" Meowth jumped forward, ready to finish me off, but I let Kara-Tee, with just enough health to keep standing, do a Low Kick and defeat him before he could finish using Growl!

"Such a dreadful twerp!" Jessie cried in anger. James picked Meowth up by his tail and Jessie chastised him for losing so promptly.

"This isn't over, twerpy one, we'll be back! Team Rocket still has impressive plans!" James pulled out a Smoke Ball and sent it crashing into the ground. As smoke filled the room and blinded me, I heard the trio shout, "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" Good riddance.

After all I had gone through, after every fight, I finally came face to face with the true leader of Team Rocket. His menacing figure held strong even as he lounged on a couch. He looked to me, not with a mean look, but intrigue. "So! I must say, I am impressed you got here."

"Of course! You and your gang have taken enough Pokémon from everyone here in Kanto! You're gonna pay!"

He laughed, and gave me a smile, like a parent would to correct a simple mistake. "Team Rocket captures Pokémon from around the world. They're important tools for keeping our criminal enterprise going. I am the leader, Giovanni! For your insolence, you will feel a world of pain!"

And with that, he stood, a looming form I would never forget. "Go, Onix." An incredibly large Onix burst out, his height too grand for the room itself to handle. "Hurry up, boy."

I shook my head to get back to action, and threw out Calcite. Onix immediately threw rocks, and even though they missed, I was nearly hit in the process! "Watch it!" He just laughed and watched as my Geodude threw his own rocks.

However, Calcite's Rock Throw was hardly hurting Onix, and it only got worse as Onix did Bind on my Pokémon! Calcite could hardly hurt Onix, and yet Onix could tear Calcite apart! I decided that, with so little damage being dealt, I needed to be smarter.

As soon as Calcite got free, I shouted, "Calcite come back! Go, Gloom!" It was a lucky move, as my Pokémon dodged a flurry of boulders! I commanded Absorb, but Onix flared red and began to slam itself into Gloom. Not only was it using Rage, but Giovanni never told him too! "You can command without words?!" I said with alarm.

"Of course," he responded. "That is an easy task for someone like me." Even with Rage harming Gloom, Onix fell very quickly to Absorb. It fell across the room, crushing plants and machines around us, but fortunately avoiding me and Gloom!

"One down, and one to go!" I said with pride. Giovanni didn't seem to care as he called upon a Rhyhorn. I switched out Gloom for Kara-Tee, knowing she'd need the experience and that Gloom was far too injured to fight. I motioned for a Low Kick, and for once my Machop put aside her careless attitude to pay attention; even she knew this was an important fight! She even got it to flinch!

Kara-Tee did another Low Kick, and Rhyhorn flinched again! This fight was mine and now Giovanni began to show signs of anger; he knew it too. He attempted to use Guard Spec. on Rhyhorn, but all it did was give a swift dodge for Rhyhorn as I sent my Pokémon to Karate Chop it. A follow up Karate Chop did the trick though, leaving only one Pokémon left for the mob boss!

My arrogance began to show. "Daydreamer! Let's finish him off!" As Drowzee came on to the scene, I wasn't sure what I expected the boss of Team Rocket to say or do.

Giovanni just laughed. "Go. Kangaskhan." The large bodied parent Pokémon came before my eyes. It was a bit daunting, admittedly.

"First, a bit of Guard Spec. should do you well." He wasn't taking any chances this time. But how could I lose now? I commanded a Confusion, hoping to confuse both villain and Pokémon, but he seemed to be fast enough that it didn't matter. Kangaskhan used Bite!

Bite is a Dark-Type move, which means that if a Psychic-Type is bit, it's super effective. And worse, it can make a Pokémon flinch. Daydreamer was having very bad luck all of a sudden. The Bites weren't too tough, but with no escape from flinching, Daydreamer fell immediately.

Aggravated by the painful defeat, I brought Kara-Tee back out. With a Fighting-Type, I had an edge! Kara ran in with a Low Kick, but as she charged in, Kangaskhan used Rage!

Kara-Tee was flung far back as Kangaskhan punched her across the room! Kara crashed and left an imprint in the wall. The hit was critical, but it wasn't the end. Kangaskhan's biggest strength was its weight, but also its weakness, at least with Low Kick. If Kara-Tee could land a Low Kick, it would hurt for sure!

But the match wouldn't go my way at all. And the more Kara-Tee fought, the angrier Kangaskhan became. The match became far too brutal for description, and if Kara-Tee didn't have as much defense as it did, I'm not sure how well it would fair after this fight.

Kara fainted, and the match came to Kangaskhan. But I was prepared for that. "You want Rage? I'll show you what real rage is! Go! Charmeleon!"

I immediately used Rage, but Kangaskhan was a lot faster than I expected, outrunning my smaller and more agile lizard to smack it first. But Charmeleon paid back harder with a critical hit! "You're in the yellow, Giovanni!"

"And your point is?" Still not worried? But why? I soon saw, as Kangaskhan out-powered my already injured Charmeleon, throwing it against the wall in an unbearable rage! "Do you see? I have no reason to worry, or fear, anything you can do. I have already won."

Charmeleon was trying to build up rage to power the attack, but Kangaskhan had much more already. Pounding Charmeleon senseless was now like instinct for Kangaskhan. It disturbed more to see a Pokémon become so vicious. Not even Charmeleon had been this bad while enraged. Charmeleon fainted, but even as it fell to its knees, it looked up at Kangaskhan, angry at the loss. Giovanni just smiled and watched.

His confident smirk angered me, more anger than Charmeleon had. "You're going to pay for your crimes! Today!" Raticate came on the scene next; no matter how good she is, my hopes dwindled, knowing how strong that irate kangaroo must be.

I sent Raticate in with a Hyper Fang, and she was fast enough to hit first! But not strong enough to finish the job. The enraged Pokémon grabbed Raticate and smashed her into a wall, cracking it into shards of dry wall!

All it would take is one more Hyper Fang, but if Giovanni had any tricks left, I'd be doomed. "Finish it, Raticate!" She knew what I wanted, and dashed in for a Hyper Fang. Within feet, the rat bared her fangs, and…missed! Kangaskhan jumped higher than I thought was possible and crashed on top of Raticate! "She…she fainted…"

"You have two Pokémon left. Please make them count; I'm bored of you now." I couldn't believe it. I mean, yeah, it's a kangaroo, but still. Nevertheless, I reached for my teammate, Gloom. Unlike Blue, Giovanni wasn't the kind of person to mock me for such a huge turnaround, or for a Pokémon like Gloom who wasn't the definition of cool.

He knew better than to lose his cool against an opponent in battle. I took a deep breath, regained my composure, and ordered an Absorb. "Please, do it, Gloom." She looked at me with sympathetic eyes, but as she turned around, Kangaskhan only looked at her with livid eyes.

Aside from being scarier than Scary Face, it gave Kangaskhan the opening she needed to slam my girl right into a wall! I wasn't sure what it all meant, if Gloom could do anything now. But then I heard the familiar noise as Gloom began to absorb the remaining life from Kangaskhan!

Kangaskhan immediately realized its flawed attack and tried to throw Gloom away, but Gloom hung on for dear life! As Gloom sucked up life force, Kangaskhan desperately tried slamming her against the wall to break free, but it meant nothing to Gloom, who was healing at a faster rate than hurting!

There was no escape, no chance to stop her or even retreat to Giovanni for help! Just the last few bits of life, taken by my Gloom.

I had taken my eyes off Giovanni to watch Gloom finish off Kangaskhan, not seeing how Giovanni reacted. I was absorbed (sorry…) by the action, I was slowly but surely winning, and there was no stopping Gloom! Yet again Gloom was the one to save me from absolute defeat. I had a great team, and I was glad she was a part of it.

But as Gloom finished, I looked at Giovanni, and it was then I noticed something changed. Gone was his calm, commanding demeanor; he was incensed, bewildered, despite still looking calm. "WHAT! This can't be!" Kangaskhan fell to the floor, defeated.

That was it. I beat the infamous gang leader Giovanni! As he returned his Pokémon, he gazed across the shattered room, most of the damage done by his own Pokémon, and then finally to me. "I see that you raise Pokémon with utmost care."

"Of course. They're my friends, and we all want to become the best there is!" I was still afraid, but determined to show bravery. He may have been the grand villain of this tale, but I was the hero who finished him off.

He chuckled and shook his head. "A child like you would never understand what I hope to achieve." What does he mean? We just won! "I shall step aside this time! I hope we meet again…"

"No…I beat you! You lost! You can't just walk away!" I only had a weak Gloom and an even weaker Calcite, but I couldn't let him leave!

"You think that just because you beat a few of my weaker Pokémon that you stand a chance? Child, that's only one of many I possess. Back off."

Was he bluffing? Was he serious? Should I risk it? The questions raced through my mind, but not fast enough to make a decision in time. He and his two grunt guards stepped into the elevator. Even if I ran, it would be too late. He escaped.

I was crushed. If I hadn't been so afraid, if I had acted quicker…would it have even mattered? I sat on the couch, amazingly intact, and let out my two tired Pokémon. Maybe they could answer my questions.

But suddenly a miracle happened; my Calcite finally had evolved! My Geodude had become a Graveler! Evolution always came when a Pokémon reached a certain level, and it almost seemed fitting Calcite reached it just now. Part of me thought it was a sign, that I should have chased Giovanni. If he had more Pokémon, maybe a newly evolved one would be strong enough to fight back.

But I paid closer attention, as a good Trainer should. Truly, the four-armed rock-warrior was impressive, but his pain was still present, as was Gloom's. Even with them at full health, two Pokémon could easily fall to Giovanni's might. And if he wasn't bluffing, and he stole my team away…it would have been far worse. I think I made the right choice to stay back. I hope.

I returned my teammates and took one last breather. As I got up, I noticed something shiny lying by the table. I reached over to pick it up; it was the Silph Scope! Giovanni must have had it and dropped it!

With the device in hand, I could finally do as that mystery ghost wanted and save Pokémon Tower. Granted, I wasn't looking forward to it, but somebody had to stop those spirits!

As I left the building, it was eerily quiet. Well, it always was, but now without any Rockets in site, it was even creepier. As I reached the top floor with the elevator, I passed by some tables, and for the first time I noticed they weren't just blank; there was something on them!

I inspected it and realized it's a blueprint of some sort. It was filled with diagrams and text. Could this be what Giovanni was talking about earlier? He had said he hoped to achieve something but I couldn't imagine what, and it made me shutter to think about. I figured I should be safe and take a picture of the blueprint, just in case I found someone who could read it. But for now, I just wanted out of the sinister stronghold.

As soon as I got back to Celadon City's Poké Center and healed my team, I found a nice spot to lie down and slept. It was already quite dark, and I was tired from all the spinning, battling, and just general fatigue. I did make sure to send mom a call so she wouldn't worry, but I left out the details of the day. I would tell her someday, but I needed rest.

The Sun rose at the same time it always did, but I didn't rise from the corner I slept in for another two hours. The extra rest worked wonders, and I was ready to start my day. I knew I'd have to be smart about what I did today. I had decided I needed to go to Pokémon Tower next. As much as I'd like to take on Erika, the tower actually needed someone.

It didn't take me long to get back to Lavender Town using the Underground Path, but before I went up, I decided to do some strategizing. Pokémon Tower was filled with Ghost Pokémon, and they were amazingly immune to Normal and Fighting attacks! Sadly this meant that Raticate and Kara-Tee wouldn't help me, but I only deposited Raticate for now. I still wanted to give Kara-Tee a chance to prove itself.

I soon approached the gravesite. I climbed up to the second floor to meet with the Channeler once again. "Welcome back, young trainer," she said. "Are you ready for this task? I must warn you, your time away has only led to a tougher challenge."

Needless to say, that statement worried me. "I've done much training since I was here last. Is it possible to succeed here, with this?" I pulled out the Silph Scope and showed it to her. She nodded.

"Go then; you are as ready as you can be. You've earned the right to face this challenge." Earned the right? Not sure I agree with her wording, but up the stairs I went, ready to face off against the spirits above.

As I reached the third floor, I noticed a slight fog in the area. It wasn't obtrusive to my vision, but it certainly made the area much scarier. I grabbed the Silph Scope and put in it over my eye. I took one step, but I didn't get any farther, as I had my first random encounter in the tower with a Gastly! The device worked by firing an infrared laser that disabled the veil concealing the opposing Pokémon, letting any of my team see it too.

I sent out Daydreamer in pursuit of experience, but before I could launch an attack, another Gastly did before me! Using Night Shade, the new Gastly blasted the first and took it down in one hit! "Um, thank you?" It then looked at me, with an overly happy grin.

"What's with that look…wait, are you the ghost from outside?" I asked with surprise. It nodded…well, it was a floating head, so I'm not sure that's the right word, but it certainly looked happy to see me. "Well, I'm here now and ready to help." It nodded again, but when I tried to take a step forward, it stayed in my way.

"Uh, what? I'm here to fight like you wanted, right?" It nodded again, but this time it looked at my Poké Balls. "Oh...so you want a fight? You want to be a part of my team?" It got a nasty smile, and I could tell it wanted a fight to be mine. "Alright, then let's do this!"

I sent Daydreamer back out and the two of us began a battle! Gastly first tried to Lick Daydreamer, but that wasn't enough, as Confusion threw the gaseous Pokémon into the roof…and through it. I was worried it wouldn't come back, but it did, and ready for more.

"Not so fast, Gastly!" I signaled for Hypnosis, and Gastly fired a Night Shade in response. It hurt Daydreamer hard, but the pain was worth it; Gastly was asleep! I threw a Great Ball with glee, and with a few clicks, Gastly was caught!

After naming Spirit, I took him and the rest of my team to heal up before we continued our mission. A Channeler stood before us, and I went to talk to her to see what she'd say.

"Be gone! Evil spirit!" Hey! Oh that's it! Whether she was insulting me or Spirit, she'd pay! This lady actually used a Gastly too, making for a fitting defeat as my Gastly used Confuse Ray. She did too, but mine was stronger in the end and managed to beat the jerk.

"Whew! The spirit left!" she said after being defeated. Wait, did she mean her own Pokémon?

"What are you talking about, lady?" I asked in response. I was still feeling bitter about her statement earlier, but she explained.

"The Ghosts! They've been trying to possess me! My friends were possessed too!" I didn't believe what I was hearing. I tried to get her to say more, but she didn't offer much assurance. "You should save my friends! The tower must be cleansed of negative energy!" Thanks. Although I did decide to talk to another Channeler, but that didn't go well either…

"Urrg…Awaa…Huhu…graa.." The Channeler didn't just look possessed, she acted like it too! She swung around and released a Gastly in a spine-chilling style. I sent out Daydreamer first to take on her Gastly, and although it has a powerful Night Shade, I had a critical Confusion! "Hwa! I'm saved!"

"Wait, so you were possessed?!" I didn't know it was possible for a Pokémon to do that, but now I've seen it with my own eyes!

"Yes," she said, "Pokémon Tower is behaving bizarrely, and so are the ghosts within it." She looked at me carefully and saw what I was wearing. "The Ghosts can be identified by the Silph Scope."

"Um, yeah, I know. That's why I'm wearing it." She seemed to think she was the creator of the brilliant idea and sent me to stop more ghosts. I never imagined busting ghosts would be a thankless job…

"Kekeke….Kwaaah!" Yeah, I'm pretty sure this lady is possessed too… Spirit was a useful Pokémon, but he soon became too weak to keep up the fight, so I let Daydreamer finish off her Gastly. She had walked up to me just fine before the challenge, but after blasting away her Gastly, she was disoriented. "Hmm? What am I doing?"

"You came after me with your Gastly," I said matter-of-factly.

"Sorry!" she said. "I was possessed." I nodded and began to turn. "Wait! There are more Channelers, and with the way the Pokémon have been acting…"

"Thanks for the concern, Miss," I countered, "but I'll be fine. Just wait here." With that, I continued through the tower. The Pokémon here weren't too tough, but they were fighting harder than the average Pokémon would. Something definitely is wrong here.

And as I reached the fourth floor, things only got worse. "Be cursed with me! Kwaaah!" Now I'm worried; can they curse me? Would…Spirit possess me too? I shook the thoughts from my mind and let Daydreamer take down her Gastlys. "What!" the Channeler yelled after being freed from the ghosts' grip on her.

"Are you okay, lady?" She sat down, liberated from a double possession. Can't imagine how that felt…

"Yes…yes, I'll be fine," she muttered. "We can't crack the identity of the ghosts." Ghosts? What identity is there to crack? She must just be dazed, so I let her rest.

But the possessions only got weirder and weirder from there. "Huhuhu… Beat me not!" Clearly the higher we got, the worse the possessions got. Her Gastly went down easily enough, but what she said afterward was only more disturbing. "Huh? Who? What?"

"Madam, you were possessed. The Ghost Pokémon in the tower are possessing people." She closed her eyes and began thinking.

"I fear I know why." I wanted to question her, but all she'd say was, "May the departed souls of Pokémon rest in peace…"

Something is going on, and the Channelers may be the only ones who can answer me. I went to question another, until I saw something disturbing. "Ghost! No! Kwaaah!" Her own Pokémon just possessed her before my eyes! Then, it looked at me. "You…next…" Daydreamer came out just in time and threw the Gastly away with Confusion! But it came back strong with Confuse Ray. Could that be what they use to take the Channelers over?!

Sadly, Confusion took Daydreamer out, leaving Calcite to finish the job. "Where is the Ghost?" she asked after the Gastly vanished.

"Gone," I said. "Where? I don't know, but at least it's gone for now." The lady looked around. "Hey, I have questions about the Ghost Pokémon here, can you-"

"I must have been dreaming…" You'd think she'd believe me, since this IS her job…

The fifth floor continued to up the frightening vibe. Along with lots of darkness and tombstones, the fog in the building was still strongly present all around us. It didn't murk up my sight, but I was worried my Pokémon's accuracy would decrease if it kept increasing. I went over to the next lady and expected a next battle, but something unexpected happened.

"Come, child!" she said in a worried but protective tone. "I sealed this space with white magic! You can rest here!" Wary but willing, I entered the purified, protected zone. And, like magic, my Pokémon were fully healed!

"Thank you miss, the battles here were starting to wear down my team." She bowed to me and said I could stay as long as I needed, but that I should leave this place. "I would, but someone has to help the people here! Which reminds me…why do the ghosts possess everyone in here?"

She sighed and lamented the situation to me. "I'm afraid it all goes back to the death of the Marowak. Hers was a horrible one, and now all the Pokémon here are unsettled. Some are even evolving irregularly!" Evolving irregularly?! That really doesn't sound good… I decided to keep going forward and saving the rest of the Channelers here.

"Zombies!" Yet another Gastly, and quite an odd statement too. But they were acting like zombies, so maybe not. Either way, she lost with ease. "Ha? I regained my senses!" Good, hopefully the rest will too.

"Urgah… Urff…." Why are they so weird? Is it just that the possession isn't accurate? Or maybe ghosts don't know how to act like humans? Either way, this Channeler had another Gastly, but like before, I won! "Whoo!" Uh…glad she's happy about it too. Her senses regained, she said, "I fell to evil spirits despite my training!" Troublesome…

"You…shall…join…us…" These Channelers are becoming a nuisance. Or rather their Gastlys, but Daydreamer was beating them down with ease thanks to the healing magic, so I had no more worries. The ghosts were hardly even scary by this point. "What a nightmare! I was possessed!" the Channeler said once freed.

I moved on to the next Channeler. "Give…me…your…soul…" Okay, no, they're still scary. Seriously, what?! Then the unexpected happened; the Channeler released a very scary Haunter. If I remembered right, it was the next evolution of Gastly, but that only made it much, much scarier.

"You have lots of power, you evil spirit, but I have Hypnosis!" I shouted to knock away any fear, and watched as Daydreamer worked his magic…or whatever. It was a tough fight, but she was beat!

"Gasp!" she uttered as her consciousness returned. I was about to offer some comfort, but defeating her Haunter had an added bonus: Daydreamer is evolving! His limbs thinned out and he grew a ring of fur. He had become a Hypno! My powerhouse finally became far more powerful. With a brighter Pokémon, the dank tower felt brighter too.

First I looked at the newly sane Channeler, and then looked Daydreamer over again. For once, my quirky friend was weirded out, but he was smart enough to understand what I was up to. Assured he looked normal, I patted my newly evolved friend on the head while the Channeler stood up. "I was under possession!"

"I noticed," I answered, recalled what her Haunter said… "Do you know how many more of you there are?"

"Only three more, but be careful. As the fog thickens, the power of the Ghosts increase. They may try to take you…"

That's…great. Before I went to the sixth floor, I went to heal again. I'm not taking any chances. Having Spirit on my team was a bit worrisome too, but I figured the rest of my friends wouldn't let me get taken over, so I let him lead for awhile.

"Give…me…blood…" …Okay, I want to go home now. My Gastly was fast enough to use Confuse Ray, but it could have just been because that Gastly kept watching me…

But that wasn't enough, as the possessed Channeler sent out another Gastly! "Confuse Ray!" Spirit's speed continued to keep me in the lead, but he was getting tired now. "Lick it till it faints!" I shouted, hoping to inspire my newest friend. He certainly was happy to fight for me, and didn't worry about beating on his wayward associates.

After beating the second Gastly, the enemy had a third! We both used Confuse Ray, but that was okay, as I'd let my new Hypno finish it off! Daydreamer had no trouble taking down the Gastly, freeing the Channeler from a rather extreme possession. After being freed from the ghosts, she truly looked dreadful. "Groan! I feel anemic and weak…"

"Miss, just please, try to rest. Help will come soon." She nodded and rested against a tombstone. This was going too far.

"Ke..ke…ke…ke..ke…ke!" the next Channeler uttered. I don't know if these Channelers are getting creepier or not, but I just want them gone. Spirit got a lucky break and managed to finish off her Gastly without breaking a sweat. "Keee!" she (or maybe the ghost) shouted. I won again! And as if that wasn't enough, Spirit evolved!

Now a terrifying Haunter, I was worried for a minute that something was wrong with him, but he gave me a joyful smile and messed with my hat with his new hands. "Hey!" I said in a mock-angry tone, but then it hit me. "Wait, you only just grew hands now, right? How did you put your hand on my shoulder earlier?"

Spirit looked at me with a face that just seemed both juvenile and apologetic. "You…didn't…right?" He smirked, his tongue sticking out. I gave him a hardened stare. "Please don't put your tongue on me again." He nodded, but still laughed to himself.

"Ahem," the lady behind us muttered. "What's going on here?"

"Um," I said to myself, my new Haunter having a hard time holding in his laughter. "It's a long story, ma'am."

"Urff… Kwaah!" What is wrong with these ladies? Spirit crushed her Gastly, and removed yet another threat in the process, but they were just too weird. As she came to, she said, "Something fell out!" Uh…do I want to know what it was? "Hair didn't fall out! It was an evil spirit!" Not the words I would have used, but I'm glad she's better.

After another visit to the strange purification square to heal my team, I was ready to go to the seventh floor. However, it wasn't that easy. The fog, which before had been just below a hindrance, was now almost clouding one specific spot: the stairs to the next floor. I wasn't going to question it, until I heard something…

"Be gone… Intruders…" Another talking ghost? Could it really be possible? And it was, as the Ghost appeared!

"That's not possible, not with the Silph Scope!" Sure enough, the Silph Scope began making a loud hum to try and identify the Pokémon, and unveiled the Ghost's identity! The ghost was Marowak!

Could this be the Marowak everyone was talking about? The one that died? "Look, Marowak, I don't want to fight." Considering that she tried to throw a Bonemerang at me, it did. "Fine! Go, Spirit!" I hoped Spirit could talk to her, but she wouldn't talk at all! "Just use Confuse Ray, that might help get through to her!"

Confuse Ray did work, but the mother wouldn't listen to a word I said. "Um…wait, I know!" I figured catching Pokémon made them friends… "Go, Poké Ball!" But rather than be captured, it dodged the thrown ball! "Ugh! This Pokémon can't be caught! Can it?" Spirit sadly shook his head.

The confused Pokémon hit herself again, giving me time to think. I knew what the only option left was, but I didn't want to take it. "Confuse Ray one more time, and try to commune with it!" Spirit didn't seem to like my plan, but he followed orders loyally.

As if to mock my requests for communication, she used Leer! I sighed, realizing I had little choice. "Fine…Spirit, attack with Night Shade." Marowak followed up with Leer, but it wouldn't last another turn against Spirit. "Night Shade again," I said sadly. But somehow, it hung on! It threw another Bonemerang, but Spirit dodged with poise! "Night Shade!" And with that, the enemy Marowak fainted.

We both weren't feeling too happy with the conclusion, but we had to face facts. "The Ghost was the restless soul of Cubone's mother. Right?" Spirit nodded. "I understand it was tough to fight her, but it was for the best. The mother's soul was calmed. It departed to the afterlife…" Spirit smiled modestly. I think he was satisfied too.

The final floor was surrounded by people instead of Pokémon. And aside from one old man, they were all Rocket Grunts.

Since I had severe doubts the Rockets had any Ghost Pokémon, it was time for Kara-Tee to shine! "What do you want? Why are you here?" the first grunt asked.

"What do I want? To beat you. Why am I here? Well, I think I answered that too." He was super mad, so he angrily threw his Poké Ball to the ground, letting out his Zubat. Kara-Tee surprised me in the fight, paying more attention to my hand-commands and acting less lazy, yet she had been continuing this trend since Giovanni.

Kara-Tee was on a roll today, laying out critical hits again and again on the grunt's two Zubats and fighting off confusion! At first I was worried about the gross new Golbat the Rocket sent out, but Kara was still able to handle it, albeit more dangerously. Using Leer to weaken Golbat's defenses, Kara ended the fight with some Karate Chops!

"I give up!" the Rocket cried. We looked smugly at the Rocket, knowing he never stood a chance. But anger lived on in his eyes. "I'm not going to forget this!" He walked off, never to be seen again.

"This old guy marched right up to our hideout. Then, he starts ranting about how Team Rocket's abusing Pokémon!" Well, you are. "So, we're just talking it over as adults." That's very hard to believe, but regardless, I intended to beat up his team! My Machop had a tougher time with his Koffing, but she pulled it off.

With the threat of a Drowzee, I brought out my heavy hitter, Hypno, just to show off. Flash dropped his accuracy, allowing Daydreamer to Headbutt his without a worry! He did manage to put Daydreamer to sleep, but as soon as he woke up, the match was over!

"Please! No more!" Clearly my team was getting really good to inspire fear in the gangsters. But as if that wasn't enough, Kara-Tee evolved! I don't know what made this fog so special, but if it was messing with evolution, then it led to threeevolutions in a row! My Machoke was impressed with herself and me.

"I hope you learned your lesson, sir." Not sure why I was polite to the jerks, but I was in a good mood. "You really shouldn't use them for such evil purposes."

"Pfft, please!" he ranted. "Pokémon are only good for making money. Why not use them? You stay out of our business!"

"Not sure my Machoke heard that. Care to repeat it?" He didn't dare, and walked off as fast as he could.

I was finally close enough to call out to the elderly fellow. "Sir, are you alright?" The Rocket Grunt cut me off, both with words and with his body.

"You're not saving anyone, kid!" With four Pokémon, he wouldn't be a pushover, but I had an evolved team with me now! And with Calcite, his Zubat's brittle wings were battered by Rock Throw! A critical hit downed the bat, forcing the Grunt to use a Rattata.

"Go! Kara-Tee!" She was tired and weak, but a Low Kick sent the rat crashing into the wall; fainted in one hit! "Got anything better?" I said slyly. He threatened to throw in Raticate, and I asked Machoke if she could handle another round. With a cocky nod, I let her stay once more.

"Raticate, go, win! Use Tackle!" The moment the rat came out, it went for a Tackle, throwing Kara-Tee across the floor. But she hung on! With a unctuous look, she charged in and followed the Tackle with a Low Kick, fainting his rat in one hit! "GAH!" the grunt yelled. The old man behind him couldn't help but smile. "ZUBAT! End him!"

Kara-Tee had enough, so I had her come back and let Charmeleon end the battle with a critical Ember! Talk about an easy match! With the last Rocket defeated, he yelled at me in malice. "Don't fight us Rockets!" I gave him a questioning look, but he ignored it. "You're not getting away with this!"

"How right you are," I know that man's voice.

"But since you lost, you should just go!" And the girl's…

"Yeah! Scram!" And…the cat's…

"Really? Wasn't beating you in your own hideout enough?" I said with lots and lots of exasperation. I was getting tired, and my team, despite all the healing, was getting tired too. I went to grab a newer, fresher Pokémon, since I knew a fight was inevitable.

"Stop right there!" James cried. "If we didn't let Mr. Fuji leave, we certainly can't let you go!"

"Not after that humiliating defeat in Celadon, at least!" Jessie continued. "Grandpa here wanted to complain, so we're setting him straight." They both reached for their Poké Balls…were they going to fight together?

"Unless you're really that cowardly," Meowth said in a derisive manner. "So render yourself invisible, or prepare to fight!"

Sure enough, the two Rocket Grunts threw out their Pokémon together. But if they wanted a double battle, so be it! It seems like they also had evolved their Pokémon; Jessie sent out an Arbok and James sent out a Weezing. "See, twerp, we're so much better than you already!" Jessie boasted.

"Sure, let's go with that," I said, sending out a tired Kara-Tee and Calcite, who was itching for a battle. Needless to say, they were worried I had evolved Pokémon too. I knew they'd go straight for my weakened team member, so I immediately retracted her and brought out Daydreamer!

A flurry of Poison Sting barbs and a blob of Sludge flew at my Pokémon, but all it did was hit my Hypno, hardly hurting him at all. "Uh oh," they murmured in unison.

In one swoop, Hypno used Confusion, throwing the snake into the roof, and Calcite pummeled Weezing with Rock Throw. They only lasted one more turn, the two trying to Bite and Tackle Daydreamer, but he stood tall as the two opponents fainted!

The Rockets became very worried and very afraid, so in defense, Jessie grabbed Meowth and threw him at Daydreamer! "Fight, Meowth! Save us!" His screams were ignored as he slammed into my Hypno, but Calcite was getting annoyed by being ignored.

He walked over and picked up Meowth by the tail. "Hey, watch it buddy!" As soon as he realized Calcite had three arms left, he tried to use Screech, hoping it would hurt our ears, but Calcite only got madder. "Just Tackle it away!" I yelled over the loudmouth. And with that, Meowth flew across the graveyard and right into his friends!

With that, the Rockets were beat, and Pokémon Tower was saved! "Ugh…this isn't over, brat…" James said.

"Yeah," Jessie said, picking herself up. "We only lost because we went easy on you."

Meowth, barely able to stand, continued with, "Just wait till we tell the boss about this!"

"Guys, just, just please give up," I responded. "I know you're trying, but seeing you lose is starting to get painful."

They weren't happy about hearing the truth. "You'll pay!" they said together. "But until then," Weezing floated up slowly, unleashed more Smog than there was fog. "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!"

I finally, without distraction or delay, could walk up to and talk to the old man. "Are you alright, sir? I think all the Rocket Grunts are gone.

"Heh?" he said as I walked over. "You came to save me?" I nodded to show my approval, and he bowed to me. "Thank you. But, I came here of my own free will."

"Why? You did know how dangerous it is here, right?" Even with the villains gone, I could still see the ghosts acting peculiar. It was not a settling sight.

"I came to calm the soul of Cubone's mother." He took a great sigh before continuing. "Team Rocket still being here, I didn't expect it, and they prevented me from doing what I had to do. But, I think Marowak's spirit has finally left us." I nodded again, but still kept quiet. No words were needed to confirm that fact.

With that matter settled, he looked at me and smiled. "I must thank you for your kind concern. Follow me to my home, Pokémon House, at the foot of this tower." I did, and he brought me to the orphanage of Lavender Town. As we walked back, I learned his name was Mr. Fuji, and I told him about the quest Professor Oak sent me on. H was surprised to hear that name, but only said that, "All old people know each other."

Mr. Fuji, as it turns out, ran and lived in the house, taking care of Pokémon and children from all over Kanto. "Red…" he said with a warm and somber tone. "Your Pokédex quest is one that requires strong dedication. Without deep love for Pokémon, your quest may fail. I'm not sure if this will help you, but I'd like you to have it." He dug in his pockets and pulled out a Poké Flute…and gave it to me!

"Upon hearing the Poké Flute, sleeping Pokémon will spring awake." I could tell this would be a very useful item! "It works on all sleeping Pokémon. It's quite rare, but it was a great gift from Pokémon Fan Magazine. But I think you'll have better use for it. Try using it on Pokémon that are sleeping obstacles." Obstacles? Not sure I understood him, but with one final good-bye, I left him to his business and went on my own.

As I left the building, I ran into the same lass I met from the exit to Rock Tunnel! She still seemed like a bratty girl, but she asked me a question I didn't understand. "Did Mr. Fuji get any foreign Pokémon yet?"

"Uh…they all looked like local Pokémon to me," I answered. She cursed in response, which took me by complete surprise.

"The Pokémon here are so chunky!" …Chunky? Like…rock Pokémon? "There should be a pink one with a floral pattern!" With that, she walked past me and went inside. She must have been dreaming, there was no way there'd ever be a Pokémon like that.

Now that all my efforts were finished, having taken down all of Team Rocket (except the Saffron City Rockets), and with plenty of training, I could finally take on the Celadon City Gym!

I hurried over, healing along the way, and Cut past the trees. But I wasn't the only one at the gym; an old man was looking through the windows. "Um, excuse me sir, is there something wrong with the gym?"

He looked over at me, a huge, almost terrifying smile on his face. "Wrong?! Silly boy, no way! Heheh!" He could barely talk over his jubilation. "This gym is great! It's full of women!" Uh…well, okay…

As I expected, Jim wasn't here, but he must have already written Blue's name on the Winning Trainers list. It didn't matter either way, as I was going to probably beat him again eventually. What mattered now was taking on the nature loving princess and the rest of her Gym Trainers.

"Hey! You are not allowed in here!" What?! Since when? I didn't care; I was going to get my badge after all I went through! And it didn't matter, as her Bellsprout and Weepinbell fell to Charmeleon and his relentless Ember. The only surprise was they didn't go down in one hit. "You're too rough!"

"So what? You girls can't kick me out just because I'm a boy!" She was very, very angry about that, but the Lass knew I was right.

"Bleaah!" she bellowed. "I hope Erika wipes you out!" I don't know what her problem was, but at least the other Gym Trainers didn't get snippy with me (although one girl thought I was the peeping tom…). Nor did their Pokémon give us problems, which only made me wonder if I really should use Charmeleon. I did want some challenge after all…

So after beating the other Gym Trainers, I decided I'd have Charmeleon sit back and act as a last resort. He was already the strongest Pokémon I had, so he didn't need the experience as much.

I approached the only lady left to battle, a woman dressed in a kimono. She had almost a sleepy, downright airy look to her. She actually didn't even notice me for almost a minute until I said something. "Um, excuse me, Miss. You're the Gym Leader, right?"

It took her a few seconds, but she finally responded. "Hello," she yawned, as if in a dream. "Lovely weather, isn't it?"

"…In the gym?" She's…really weird.

"It's so pleasant," she continued. She finally turned her eyes on me. "…Oh dear… I must have dozed off. Welcome. My name is Erika. I am the Leader of Celadon Gym. I am a student of the art of flower arranging. My Pokémon are of the Grass type."

"This is all well and good," I answered, "but you're kind of winding on, and I'm here to battle…" I didn't mean to be rude, but her yawning was contagious.

"…Oh, I'm sorry. I had no idea that you wished to challenge me." Well yeah, why else would I be here? "Very well, but I shall not lose." Her smile, and confidence, was contagious too.

"Come on out, Victreebel." She said lazily. Wow, that thing looks tough, but I have someone tough to fight it!

"Go! Spirit!" But she wasn't impressed, or scared. She just yawned! I decided to inflict her Victreebel with Confusion to show we mean business. "Confuse Ray!"

Spirit was faster, and therefore the attack hit the plant immediately, but it didn't help. "Victreebel, it's getting late." I didn't get it at first, but then Victreebel spewed out Sleep Powder!

The first shot missed, but she hit me the second time! "That's fine; we've got plenty of time to win!" I jested.

"I know," she plainly answered. She was mocking me! "Autumn is coming soon," she murmured, and in response her Pokémon shot Razor Leafs at my sleeper! But once my Haunter woke up, I motioned to Spirit to do Lick. It did damage, but with the confused status, it only hurt more! Plus, Victreebel got paralyzed!

I gave Spirit the order for Night Shade; it hit so hard, that I really wondered if I could sweep her! "You've got an odd way to order your Pokémon around, but I'll still win!"

"Perhaps, but you make me sleepy." She wasn't just mocking me, she was using Sleep Powder! That only would last for so long, yet she wasn't worried. Not a bit. But that was okay; Spirit would wake up soon. "Leaves are fun to sleep on." This girl is weeeird. But Spirit woke up and Licked her Victreebel to defeat!

Next was her Tangela, and next was my Machoke! "Heh, I don't normally need to resort to her so soon." What? But she's a lower level! Whatever, I ordered a Karate Chop. Erika didn't seem fazed by my hand-commands; instead, she made a new command. "Please watch where you cough." Her confusing tactics worked, because Kara-Tee got struck with a PoisonPowder! Kara-Tee was poisoned, but she also landed a critical hit!

Erika wouldn't stand for the pain though. "Let Mother Nature take care of you." What? But I saw the move soon enough: Ingrain. It would reward her with health, but I was going to win regardless! I almost felt bad about how easy this was, but Erika had another order. Literally.

"I'm feeling hungry." Tangela somehow stole my Machoke's health, leaving my Pokémon reeling! These attacks were a lot stronger than I thought. I pulled my Machoke back in. "That was Giga Drain, by the way. Not an easy move to live through."

"Fine, take her down, Daydreamer!" My Hypno was more than happy to help, but first… "Daydreamer! Stop sniffing the flowers!" The weirdo couldn't help himself, taking in the smells from all around him. My hand covered my face in shame, but then I saw Erika and Tangela do the same thing! "What are you three doing?!"

Erika kept sniffing as she answered, "Why, don't you like flowers? Surely pausing a fight to smell them can't harm your chances."

"Look, Miss," I said with growing fury, "I don't have any fear about winning, I just want to get this fight over with." She let out a sigh.

"Very well," Erika answered, "I'm sorry, little Daydreamer. Please get better soon." Daydreamer couldn't dodge in time; he was pelted with poisonous dust!

Daydreamer gathered his wits and saw I commanded Hypnosis. Erika got jealous as Tangela fell asleep. I only got madder. But all that was needed was a Confusion to take down Tangela! Erika stood up, and judging by her face, was finally feeling some energy.

Erika grinned. "Come on out, Vileplume!" With such an easy fight, I only needed Daydreamer to end the fight. "Hmm…very well, have some dinner." Before I could even blink, my Pokémon's health was drained to near-defeat!

"But…I…that was, instantaneous!"

"Practically," she said, half smiling, half sleeping. I wasn't happy, but I had to keep control. I threw in Gloom, as if to show off which evolution of Oddish was better, but Gloom's Acid was hardly a painful move against Vileplume.

"We should all take a nap," Erika randomly said. But Vileplume got the message, unleashing a cloud of Sleep Powder!

"No! Gloom!" I managed to keep from being battered, but everyone else, including Erika's Gym Trainers and herself got hit! Vileplume and I were the only ones awake… "Uh…you put your master to sleep, you know." Vileplume nodded, and waltzed over tap her awake. I had to think fast before Erika could order a Giga Drain, and then it hit me: the Poké Flute!

I pulled it out just as Erika began to stir, when I realized, "How do I play a flute?!"

"Mmm…" Erika uttered. Shoot! I didn't have a choice, so I put my lips to it and blew as hard as I could, wiggling my fingers on the air holes. A song, albeit a really crappy one, came out, and Gloom woke up!

"Great! Okay Gloom, hit that Vileplume with Cut, now!" Erika woke up in time just to see Vileplume fly across the grass and into a tree! Vileplume was shaken up by the attack.

"Vileplume! Start coughing!" Vileplume shot a giant wad of Acid at Gloom, but I had Gloom follow suit! Both Pokémon were hit, but my attack was critical! Vileplume fell over, conquered!

"Oh! I concede defeat. You are remarkably strong," she said with a big smile. Compliments make me smile too. "I must confer you the Rainbow Badge." Yes! Another badge! Finally!

"The Rainbow Badge will make Pokémon up to Level 50 obey. It also allows Pokémon to use Strength in and out of battle." Hmm, that sounds useful. "Please also take this with you." I received TM19! "TM19 contains Giga Drain. Half the damage it inflicts is drained to heal your Pokémon. Wouldn't you agree it's a wonderful move?"

"Thank you!" I said with great vigor! All this will help me beat the other gyms and collect all sorts of Pokémon for the Pokédex!"

She looked quite surprised when I said that. "You are cataloging Pokémon? I must say I'm impressed. I would never collect Pokémon if they were unattractive." I see…

Before healing (since none of my team had fainted, I didn't need to), I went to talk to Jim Gai, but he was a bit busy… "They offer rare Pokémon that can be exchanged for your coins. But, I just can't seem to win!" I guess that explains why he has none…

I asked about his job and he answered, "Yeah, don't worry; I caught the end of the fight, just barely, before the girls kicked me out." I wasn't going to ask about that embarrassing story…

With a call to Mom to explain about my triumph at the gym, she was super proud of me. But once again, I was too afraid to tell her about my experience against the mysterious Giovanni. How could I tell my mother I fought a mob boss? And if I couldn't tell her now, then maybe it was better to not tell her at all…

All these thoughts crossed my mind as I lay under the stars with my Pokémon. I figured there was no reason to worry about gangsters or bike thugs or any sort of thief; we just beat the fourth gym in Kanto, and my team was brave and strong.

Charmeleon lay behind me, our heads meeting. Gloom lay at my feet, not sleepy, but tired from lots of fighting. Daydreamer sat with her too, but he was clearly sleeping. Spirit was also nocturnal, so he didn't really lie down, but I could only imagine he'd sleep floating. Kara-Tee and Calcite seemed to have a bit of dispute, which Charmeleon was about ready to forcefully stop, but they calmed down and slept at opposite sides of me.

Overall, the team was happy to finally rest from fighting. Truthfully I wanted to keep going on, but I needed a break from battling, so I decided I'd make tomorrow fun for everybody. That night, I had strange dreams of mountains and shadowy warriors of relentless power.

The morning shined on us, and we all stretched and yawned ourselves awake. "Alright, guys, I've been thinking about things, and I figure you all deserve something special. The past few days have been really tough and scary, and you all made me proud. So for today, just chill out around here, hang out, and later we'll do something fun, like a game or something! Sound good?" They all cheered, and I smiled wide.

Kara-Tee and Calcite stood by themselves, still sore about the near-fight they had, just exercising and trying out their new forms. Gloom and Daydreamer were off smelling trees and flowers and such; Gloom had best be careful, or she'd be as eccentric as him. And Spirit…well, he played pranks on everybody, including me and Charmeleon. We figured out pretty quick what we wanted to do with the team, so we just decided to chill out.

I was getting bored, but I saw Charmeleon was napping, and I didn't want to disturb him yet, so I reached around in my background to find some TMs to look over when my hand smacked something hard. "Ow! What in the world?" Digging for a bit, I pulled out my old and forgotten Teachy TV!

The old man from Viridian City (apparently named Old Man…) gave me it so long ago, I had forgotten. "Well, I might as well watch, see if I've progressed beyond his grandson." It was easy to turn on, and it led me to several different program options. I chose the first, "Teach me how to battle."

Teachy TV's logo flashed on the screen, and the grandson walked on screen. "Hey, all you Trainers out there! HELLO, TRAINERS!" Uh…

"Come on, let me hear you! HELLO, TRAINERS!" Um…hello trainers? "It's me, the Poké Dude!" Really? "Today, the Poké Dude's here to tell you about how you can battle Pokémon!" I have a feeling this runs in the family.

"Say you're out for a stroll when, suddenly, a wild Pokémon appears! It's up to you to smartly use your Pokémon and their moves to reduce the opponent's HP to nothing, and claim victory!" Well, he certainly has good advice for novice trainers so far; I'd say he's better than his grandfather.

"I'll show you how to do that in person and for sure!" he said as he motioned toward the grass behind him. "All righty, here goes! Keep your eyes glued to the super Poké Dude Show!" Uh…

He soon battled a Pidgey with his Ratatta. He won the battle pretty quick despite being underleveled. "Huh, I guess I was wrong to misjudge this thing. Maybe it would have helped when I started out."

The show finally ended, with the Poké Dude's parting words. "Remember, Trainers, a good deed a day brings happiness to stay!" …Corny?

I watched a few more after that. It got sillier. "Just imagine… A groovy Pokémon suddenly appearing in the wild!" What? "Oh, you want it! You just can't help it!" Very creepy now…

His other videos weren't helping that. "All it takes for you to see me is pressing one button! That kind of attention is a little embarrassing!" No kidding…

After having enough of his silly antics, I focused back on the game at hand. I had everyone gather together. "Okay guys, so I thought about it a lot, and I decided that our game would be to find me!" They looked at me very confused; exactly as planned.

"You each team up and try to find me. It won't be easy, but you'll be in pairs, so there's hope!" They seemed confused but willing to try. "Okay, start looking in five minutes! I'll see you all soon! And don't go too far!" I said as I ran into the woods. I knew it was kind of dangerous to go into a deep and dark forest, but I had faith this game would pay off.

After seeing what happened between Calcite and Kara-Tee, I decided the team needed a bonding moment, so I made sure to have Charmeleon pair them together. Charmeleon himself would be with Spirit to reel in the mischief-maker, and Gloom and Daydreamer were working together.

But after five minutes passed, I was already getting a bit bored. I figured it wouldn't hurt to go a little deeper, and I was right to do it. After squeezing through a few more trees, I noticed a clearing in the forest, filled with flowers and dozens of Pokémon!

"Wow," I said. I couldn't keep my exclamation private. Even ignoring all the Pokémon, some even rare, the area was beautiful.

"It truly is a marvel," a woman replied to my left. Startled, I saw her emerge from the trees; it was Erika! "You're Red, right?" I nodded, and she waltzed into the garden and kneeled down, motioning me over.

"This little space is reserved for the peaceful Pokémon of the forest," she commented. "Not many people get to see this place, and for good reason." A wild Tangela came over and actually started nuzzling against her lap!

"Seeing wild Pokémon so friendly," I remarked, "It's so unique. Most Pokémon seem only interested in battle." She nodded as a couple baby Growlithe wandered over. I couldn't help but kneel down and try to pet them; to my surprise, they let me!

"Yes, well, out there, it's a battle for territory," she answered. I looked to her face, and for once it wasn't just sleepy; it was forlorn. "But here, it's as if Pokémon decide to keep this spot precious and natural. The young ones don't fear humans; in here they're raised like we raise children, mostly." She motioned behind me. "When they get older, they go out there, mature and ready to take on the world, quite literally. But," she said, words locked behind her lips, "it used to be much different."

"Different?" I asked. "You mean this place was a battleground too?" She nodded. The little Growlithe nibbled my fingers, but I ignored it to hear the story.

"Many years ago, when I was your age, this enclosed area was actually a natural arena for the Pokémon to duel. Unlike anywhere else, it was special because all of the kids from town would come to watch the battles, cheering and jeering with respect and disdain. Overall, it was quite horrible."

"But Pokémon are meant to fight, right? I mean, that's what you do."

"Yes," she answered, "but these fights…were not respectable." She was having a tough time with the words. She looked at me, as if trying to judge if I was ready to hear them. "You're too young to know this, but the fights were barbaric, to say the least. Very rarely did Pokémon survive…"

I could tell the story wasn't getting any more pleasant, but I wanted to hear more. "And…did no one try to help them? Or stop them?"

"It doesn't matter," she said dejectedly. "It happens everywhere, it was just in this spot where we watched it like a sport. Pokémon are very harsh at times, and even if we try to help them, they can be harsh to us humans." The words were haunting, reminding me of what could have happened to Beedrill, and the attack on me by that Zubat.

"I'm actually glad I got to see you again." I looked up at her curiously. "I noticed our battle much more than you did, and I was worried at what kind of trainer you really were." I was very confused by this remark, so I pushed for more information. "You fight with a fiery passion. I admire it. Heh, it reminds me of myself sometimes."

"You?!" I said too loudly, and felt stupid for it.

"Yes, I was more expressive with my passion as a child. You see," she said as she picked up a Poké Ball from under her kimono, "I met my Vileplume here. Well, an Oddish. She was going to be forced to fight, but I saw her scared look and carried her home. When she finally grew up to be a strong Gloom, we came in the middle of the night and fought all the Pokémon in the area."

I was surprised, since she never struck me as a proactive person, but it was no lie. In her eyes, that passionate side flared; she still had it in her. "After we beat them all, I made it clear we owned the land now, and after that it became a peaceful enclosure." She was back to her sleepy smile again.

For some reason, hearing all that, both the good and bad, put me at peace. I let myself lay on the ground and looked through the leaves into the sunlight. I had learned more with her than I had expected, and I felt much better for it.

"Where are your Pokémon, Red?" she asked. For a second I felt too sluggish to answer, but then I realized what she said.

"Oh yeah!" I exclaimed. "We were playing hide-and-seek, and they haven't found me yet!" I went to jump up, but she held me down.

"Don't worry, they'll find you. It is part of the game after all." She was right, but I was still troubled. "You really love your Pokémon, huh?"

"Yeah," I admitted, "I cherish them like, well, family. I guess that's not weird to you." She shook her head with a smile. "I just wish it wasn't so hard. Sometimes I feel bad letting them get boxed."

She closed her eyes and sighed. "Yes, it can be tough to lose friends. But think of it this way," she turned, "You are young and have many years ahead of you. You have much training to do if you want to be a Pokémon master, so you'll have to continue training new members for your team. But as long as you remember all the friends you made along the way, and as long as you help them grow and mature, they'll love you for it."

It was logic I just couldn't disagree with, and knew that I wouldn't want to. Within a couple moments, Charmeleon and Spirit arrived on the scene, and it didn't take much longer for Gloom and Daydreamer either. They all were stunned by the flowery field, and had fun playing and stuff.

Eventually Calcite and Kara-Tee came too, still annoyed at each other. After they got over the shock of seeing the beauty, I came up to them to talk. "What took you two? Were you fighting again?" They looked dismal, but even without that my Pokégear could tell they had hurt each other somewhat.

"Look, I think you two should go relax with the others tonight, but you guys need to work as a team here; we're on our way through the Pokémon League after all!" Calcite seemed apologetic, but Kara-Tee was still very lax.

I sighed to myself. "Go ahead, go play." They did, but Kara-Tee was still quite negligent to participate in the fun. I could only imagine that she wasn't fitting in, but I wasn't sure what to do.

"A troublesome one, isn't she?" Erika said, startling me at my side. I composed myself and nodded. "Yes, I know the feeling. I would suggest letting her be alone for awhile. She may not help your team now, but someday you'll be older and wiser, and that is when you can truly impress and train her." She began to walk away toward the forest.

"Hey, where are you going?" I asked. She looked back, that sleepy smile still on her face.

"I can see you have things under control here," she replied. "But before I go, just remember this Red. Passion is great, but don't let it overwhelm you."

It was an amazing night. The stars were obscured by the lights of Celadon, but some poked through still. The real fun came from the Pokémon that all hung around with us. I had called Mom to tell her about it; she was quite jealous! Even Kara-Tee was having some fun, but mostly just slept. The others were still playing when Charmeleon lay beside me.

He still had a gleam in his eyes as he stared skyward. I wasn't sure what it meant, but my imagination could continue to wonder. Those fantasies began to pull me into the dream world, and soon I was asleep. The morning was actually very abrupt to me, as a pack of Growlithe wandered in, the littlest puppies nibbling on my shoes.

The parents, also Growlithe, seemed to trust me, so I didn't fret that I was surrounded. After everyone was roused awake, I told them we'd finally head to Cycling Road, and get on our way. I didn't know what to expect, but no obstacle would stop me!

Except a Snorlax. When I had left Celadon City, I went west to Route 16. It was a narrow path with a fence on one side and trees on both. I didn't notice Snorlax way ahead, only a lookout station, but now that I was back on the route, I realized I'd have no way of getting past the gargantuan. Luckily, it only took me a few moments to remember how to pass it: my Poké Flute.

I played the Poké Flute, and Snorlax woke up! It attacked in a grumpy rage! I was just thankfully out of range of the massive attack, but I was ready! "Go! Kara-Tee!" I knew going into this fight Snorlax was a Normal type, and judging by its size, it would be a tank to take down, but my superpower Pokémon could do this!

With all the faith I could muster, I ordered a Low Kick! Amazingly, Snorlax fell like a top! "Nice job girl! You took down half its health!" For once, Kara-Tee looked to me and smiled. Since Snorlax is such a rare Pokémon, I knew I had to be careful here, and instead went for a Karate Chop. Snorlax didn't take too much damage thankfully, so I was in the clear!

But it did Rest! With Rest, Snorlax could regain all its health and sleep. With another Karate Chop, and then a Low Kick, lowering Snorlax's health seemed easy! Snorlax did Amnesia, but that was fine since I only had no problems with Snorlax's special defense! With one more Karate Chop, the health was getting lower, but Snorlax repeated Rest, delaying the inevitable.

Then, something unexpected happened. Snorlax, rather than repeating Rest again, used Headbutt! The critical hit thrashed my Machoke, sending her flying into the forest! I couldn't see her, but judging by my Poké Gear, she still had some health. Snorlax stood, waiting for her to emerge, and soon she did, clearly bruised more than she liked.

I could tell she wanted to fight more, but Snorlax's health was too low to risk it, so instead I threw a Great Ball. "Darn! The Pokémon broke free!" I was running low on balls, so I was not feeling confident anymore. "At least it's sleeping again." With another Rest initiated, that gave Kara-Tee the chance to attack!

Kara-Tee whittled it down again, but it didn't matter. "Kara-Tee, look-" It was too late. Snorlax used Headbutt. Kara-Tee flew through several trees, and fainted.

Sending out Calcite, I figured a brute should take down this brute. Snorlax lead with Amnesia, but I used Defense Curl, preparing for the worst. My fears were unfounded however, as Headbutt did very little damage!

I had enough defense, so I decided to stick with throwing a Great Ball. But it failed. "Grr…Calcite, do Rock Throw," I said as Snorlax used Rest. Rock Throw hardly hurt, but that was okay. I only had a Poké Ball left though, so I was in trouble.

From that, I did my best to whittle Snorlax's health down, but with a lack of luck, Calcite couldn't do as much damage as I needed. And worse, Snorlax had used Headbutt! I didn't have much hope left, but I tried my last Poké Ball!

…It didn't work. After all that work, I had failed. And I wasn't happy. With silent rage, I said, "Calcite. Selfdestruct." Too loyal to question me, he raced to the large creature and exploded in a fantastic light, blasting dirt in all directions.

As the dust began to settle, I saw the two Pokémon. Despite being out of health, both were staring each other down. Not wanting to wage any more war, I returned Calcite to his ball. Snorlax got up and walked north through the trees. With a big yawn, Snorlax returned to the mountains!

I sighed to see it go. As I thought about it, it wasn't so bad. There was still Snorlax on the other side of Kanto, but the real bothersome thoughts came at how I lost both Kara-Tee and Calcite, and for basically nothing. I sighed again and went back to town for some more Poké Balls. Afterward, I marched on to go inside the lookout tower.

Before I got too far inside though, the guard stopped me. "Excuse me! Wait up please!" He startled me with such a quick response, but I obeyed and walked over. "No pedestrians are allowed on Cycling Road!"

"What?!" Already this was looking like Saffron City all over again. "Why?"

"You do know why it's called Cycling Road, right? Bikes only!" It was then that I finally realized I still never claimed my bike from the bike shop in Cerulean City.

"Fine…I'll be back." The guard didn't seem to mind and went back to…guard business, while I decided to go upstairs to think about things.

There wasn't much up here. A little boy and his girlfriend who were going on Cycling Road soon, some chairs, and two sets of binoculars. One set was pointed to Celadon Department Store, while the other looked at a long path over water.

Getting a bike would be a tough walk back. The only real way back would be through Rock Tunnel, and there was no way I was doing that again. I could try going back Lavender Town; I didn't get to see the south exit, after all.

In any case, I need Poké Balls, so I left the tower and made my way east along the route. But I was actually surprised when I finally noticed a tree that could be cut down. I figured I could take a quick detour to check it out.

After Gloom hacked away with Cut, I saw lots of grass…and a Doduo! It was a good thing I had bought some Great Balls, because I was going use one to catch it! "All right! Doduo was caught!"

Glad to have caught the Twin Bird Pokémon, Doduo was transferred to Bill's PC and I went on my way. I soon noticed the lookout tower was actually much wider and had a second entrance. Inside was an old man.

"How'd you get in?" he asked. Once I told him how, he responded with, "Good effort!" He didn't have much to say, so I went through the other door in back, and he didn't stop me!

'Yes!' I thought to myself. 'I can sneak around!' But I was wrong; Cycling Road was still blocked off by a high wood fence. "Eh, I don't feel like climbing that and getting hurt." Instead I went into a small house enclosed in the fence. A woman inside greeted me.

"Oh, you found my secret retreat!" She didn't seem too happy I discovered her secret place, so she continued. "Please don't tell anyone I'm here. I'll make it up to you with this!" Before I could even say a word, she pushed a disc into my hands. I received HM02!

"HM02 is Fly," she explained. "It will take you back to any town. Put it to good use!" Her Fearow crowed happily, but I was still confused.

"Well, I promise not to say a word," I stated, "but why are you being so secretive?" She blushed hard just at the question alone.

"Well, ahem, uh…let's just say winning lots of contests make you a big target for fans and paparazzi." I wasn't sure what she meant, but I wasn't going to bother her further.

After thanking her, I walked out and realized just how great this HM was. "With this, I can just fly to Cerulean City! Yes!" I rushed back to town to grab a flying Pokémon; it's time to finally start making progress!

To choose my next team member, a flying Pokémon, I'd need to return one of my teammates. I couldn't lose Daydreamer or Gloom because of their HMs, and I could never part with Charmeleon, so it was between Spirit, Kara-Tee, and Calcite. Spirit was the newbie, so I wanted him longer. And while I liked Kara-Tee a lot, she had reached her highest form for now without trading.

Calcite had as well, but he was at a higher level, so I let him stay and chose Doduo. As soon as she was out of the box, I had her learn Fly and went outside. Truthfully, Doduo didn't have wings, but the Pokédex did say it could fly, just poorly.

Amazingly enough, the Fly HM did work on her. "Huh…so, can you fly me to Cerulean City?" I asked the bird. She gave me a quizzical look. "Oh…maybe I have to point which way?" She nodded, and so I said, "Okay. Well, it's in," I looked at my Town Map, "that direction."

Suddenly, Doduo swooped its heads under me and threw me onto its back! Before I could do anything, I grabbed for whatever I could hold on to, which turned out to be the necks! But they didn't mind; instead, they took that as a signal to go, and so they ran, jumping and flying through forests and trees and buildings, faster than I could blink!

I couldn't be sure how long it took; it felt like seconds. But within no time we had arrived in Cerulean City! "I'm going to have to get used to that," I said shakily. Doduo nodded, and I returned her to the ball.

But as soon as I had regained my sense, I remembered what I was here for. My main priority was, of course, to cash in that Bike Voucher at Mirage Cycle.

As soon as I approached the counter, I slapped the Bike Voucher right in front of the owner. "Oh, that's…A BIKE VOUCHER!" Um…you can calm down now. But he was far too excited, immediately pulling out a brand new bike! "Okay! Here you go!" As soon as I exchanged the Bike Voucher, he handed me the very lightweight bicycle!

"Wow, I can't believe it, thanks!" He was very proud, and the two other people in the store looked on, one of which said, "Wow. Your bike is really cool!" I positively agreed!

"How do you like your new bicycle? You can take it on Cycling Road and in caves!" A great idea I was sure to make use of, but I had a better idea where to take it for my first test ride.

Heading south of Cerulean City on my new bike, I found the old day care house I visited so long ago, or at least it felt like so long ago. Driving down the hill was fun. The incline wasn't too steep, but it was downward, and the wind that passed me by was gentle and soft, cool to the touch. I could definitely get used to riding a bike!

Inside the day care stood the same emotionless man, and he asked me the same questions as last time. Of course I had remembered I left Diggy, my Diglet, here to train up and gain experience. In his place I left Calcite; I wanted him to be as strong as he was hard.

However, unlike my jolly friend Raticate, Diggy was not as amused by the experience. "Uh, what's wrong?" I asked. Diggy gave me a displeased look. I guess he wasn't happy about being left alone. He was always a shy guy, but being on his own must have been very lonesome. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy either…

I lived in Pallet Town all my life. It was rare I ever left the tiny place, so the only kids I had to get along with were Blue, Yellow, Green, Leaf, and Daisy. We all got along well enough when we were younger, but there were lots of times where I was alone, so I got used to it.

Essentially, I'm used to being alone; I've learned to take care of myself. But I'm not sure Diggy was used to it. After finally getting him back, he seemed very reticent, more timorous than usual.

He hadn't been too happy with me either. I had tested some battle with him, and thankfully he was still loyal, but now I wasn't sure if that was because of me, or because of the badges…

Nevertheless, I didn't want to delay things further, and I'd try to talk to Diggy tonight. But for now, I let out Doduo and decided to "fly." As Doduo bounded through the landscape at high speeds toward Celadon City, two thoughts crossed my mind.

Firstly, I really needed to get a better grip on Doduo if she was going to be my flier. And second, wondering how I could get Diggy's affection back. We arrived quickly in Celadon City, but we only stayed long enough for me to return Doduo to her ball. For this stretch of the journey, I wasn't going to ride her, or even walk, but use my brand new bicycle!

It was such a blast riding through Celadon. Being a compact city, that didn't take long, but with the wind racing past me, and the landscape blurring with movement, I was hooked. Who would have thought listening to an old man talk about his Rapidash would be so worth it?

I entered the lookout station and spoke with the attendant. "Cycling Road is a downhill course by the sea. It's a great ride. You have a bike, right?" I nodded and showed it off. "Good! Then enjoy Cycling Road!"

As I exited the door and looked upon the landscape, it was truly beautiful to see the waves bounce off the beach of Cycling Road. To my right I saw the house I got Fly, and I could have sworn I saw the girl inside wave. And to my left was the steep hill leading down to Fuchsia City.

But the beautiful picture had one flaw: the bikers from earlier had taken over Cycling Road. I should have been nervous; they were twice my size and could kick me senseless, but I had an advantage: my Pokémon could do the same to them.

One of the bikers turned and saw me. "What do you want?" I shook my head, but he was in a bad mood it seems. "I think…you want a pounding!" He sent out a tough Grimer, but I had Diggy! Diggy was still getting used to my hand commands, but he understood them a lot better than the biker Lao! "Hey, no cheating!"

There was no cheating here, as Diggy smacked Grimer from underground! Grimer had taken a critical hit, so no hope of Grimer retaliating! Diggy grew a level, but he was about to have a harder time with Lao's Koffing. Koffing's were famous for having the ability Levitate, so I couldn't use Dig. But I had a good feeling about Diggy, and left him.

First I commanded a Sand-Attack, blinding his Koffing a bit, but it still got a Tackle in. Then I commanded a Scratch, which Diggy performed, but was weaker than I expected! Opting to stick with Diggy, I fired off another Sand-Attack, but Koffing shot Smog in return! Diggy wasn't looking good, but I was working on a strategy, and I wanted to leave my faith in my Diglet.

And that faith was rewarded as Smog missed! With a couple more Sand-Attacks for good measure, Koffing was coughing Smog in all the wrong directions! Koffing desperately tried to follow Lao's commands, but it was no use. "Hit that mole! Now!" He screamed. Other bikers nearby were getting curious.

Diggy drove in for one last Scratch, flying past more Smog and delivering a defeating blow! Koffing had fainted, and we won! "Don't you dare laugh!" Lao said. But things only got better. Diggy started to evolve! A bright light encompassed Diggy, and he evolved into a Dugtrio! But the best part of it was, as I looked at his three faces, I could start to see a smile on all of them once again.

I returned my new Dugtrio, intending to heal him, but I gave the biker one last look before I left. He interpreted it and responded with, "We like just hanging here, what's it to you?" I wasn't going to test him any farther, so I returned to town to heal Diggy.

I came back shortly, and decided it might be best not to get into a rabble with the bikers. I didn't want to get myself in trouble. Unfortunately, they did. "Nice bike!" one guy said as he rode over to me. "Hand it over!"

He sent out a Machop, but I had a new Dugtrio to take him on! His Karate Chop was too slow to hit my speedy digger, and even though he got a Leer in, I finished Machop with a critical Scratch! After that, he chose a Mankey, so I switched to Doduo. She needed experience after all, and even though Mankey was fast with a critical Karate Chop, Fly was stronger!

"Bah!" the biker yelled. Fine, two done," he grumbled as he sent out another Machop. I let Doduo sit in a turn to get some experience, but immediately switched to Diggy again. My three-headed mole had no problems taking the Machop down. "No! This can't be the end for Cue Ball Koji!" …Cue Ball? "Knock out!"

He grumbled more as his money was transferred to me through our Trainer Cards. "Forget it, who needs your bike!" I did, of course, but with all these Bikers and…Cue Balls, I was going to need my Pokémon a whole lot more.

"Come out and play, little mouse!" said Cue Ball Luke. While I contemplated why trainers would choose a class rank of Cue Ball, he sent out his Mankey. I stuck with using my Dugtrio, determined to make him as strong as he could be. With a critical hit, his Mankey was no problem, and neither was his Machop.

With both of his Pokémon defeated, he felt insulted. So he insulted me. "You little rat!" he responded, and then bumped my bike! "I hate losing! Get away from me!" Well, I wasn't going to argue, so I moved on to the next biker. I was starting to realize that they weren't a threat, just like Team Rocket. Maybe that's why the police hadn't done anything about them yet.

I started to peddle away, and multitasked to switch my party so I would grab for Daydreamer in my next battle…and then I accidentally caused it. I felt myself suddenly stop, and then a Biker yelling at me. "Hey, you just bumped me!" Biker Hideo was very displeased, and responded with a powerful Weezing!

'I made the right choice,' I thought to myself, grabbing and sending out Daydreamer! With a Flash, Weezing was already in trouble, missing with Smog. I couldn't help but smirk as I commanded Confusion next, and watching as Weezing was thrown straight into the ground by Daydreamer's telekinetic attack!

"A critical hit won't help you!" Hideo said, and managed to land a critical hit of Smog. It barely hurt, but it did poison my partner! Wanting the battle over, I signaled for a Headbutt, which was more than enough to end the battle! "Kaboom!" He yelled…for some reason. "You can also get to Fuchsia from Vermilion using a coastal road."

It was very random for him to say, but it did jog my memory. I still had to take that way, and more importantly, I still had to take on that Snorlax that gave me so much trouble.

In the meantime, I would face off against Cue Ball Camron, who was feeling hungry and mean. I would have been worried, but he only had a Machop, and even poisoned Daydreamer was not worried. It didn't go down in one turn, but Camron had underestimated me and wasted his turn with Focus Energy. Headbutt from Daydreamer ended the fight, and of course Camron complained. "Bad, bad, bad!"

"Maybe you shouldn't try to be so scary," I said. He could yell and say he was feeling mean, but if he couldn't handle a kid, he didn't need to be so unruly.

He seemed offended by my suggestion, however. "I like my Pokémon ferocious! They tear up enemies!" I looked at him hard enough to make him realize he didn't hurt me a bit. "Well…usually…" he said sheepishly. I rolled my eyes and went on to yet another biker.

He had been watching all the battles, and he looked resolute and ready to face me. As soon as he saw me peddle over, he said, "Sure, I'll go!" With that, I took on Biker Ruben. His first Grimer was easy with Daydreamer, thanks to Confusion, but after leveling up, I decided to use Spirit for his next Grimer.

Confuse Ray kept Ruben's Grimer from harming me, and Spirit's Night Shade kept Grimer hurting! Grimer beat itself up, determined to tear apart the ducks above his head. The biker was very displeased, but I sure wasn't! Grimer managed to focus enough to use Disable! Sadly, I had to order a Lick attack, which Spirit hated me for a while.

With Grimer defeated, and another on the way, I returned poor Spirit and sent out Doduo. Doduo used Fly, leaping high into the air and hovering…somehow. Grimer tried to attack, but was too slow, so he waited until Doduo had dealt a critical blow before attacking with Pound.

Pound didn't mean much as Doduo flew yet again, and was finished by Doduo's soaring smash! Unfortunately, Biker Ruben was the ultimate in undistinguished and sent out his last Pokémon: a Grimer. Let down by a lack of diversity, I let Doduo continue and finish off Grimer the same as before.

The biker looked ready to jump off his bike, saying "Don't make me mad!" I shook my head in disappointment. He was angry about my reaction, and said, "I like harassing people with my vicious Pokémon!"

"If they were vicious," I said plainly, "they would have won." He was furious, livid, but speechless, for he knew I was right. I biked back to town, healing my team and hoping the ongoing journey would not be so devoid of logic or niceties.

My journey has always been rough in a way. Sometimes I'd have to camp outdoors; other times sit in a corner in a Pokémon Center. But the roughest part was always the battles. Even when the fights were easy, I'd still worry if something went wrong. Maybe it was leftover fears from Beedrill, or maybe they were always there, but they were here now.

Still, as worried as I was, the road ahead looked fine. Well, actually, it looked like I was going to go downhill…very fast, very hard to control it. At least the bikers here were quite easy. "What do you want, kiddo?" Grasping my Poké Ball while on a steep slope wasn't easy, but he got the message.

Cue Ball Isaiah's Machop and Machoke were hardly a problem. "Whoo!" he uttered in defeat. He didn't seem to take loss well as he shooed me away. "I could belly-bump you outta here!" Not wanting to take my chances, I moved on down the hill.

The next Cue Ball, Raul, was barely a threat. "There's no money in fighting kids!" Either he thought I was poor, or he knew his Mankey and Primeape were no match for me and Daydreamer. "Burned out!" he exclaimed. "Good stuff is lying around on Cycling Road!"

I'd believe it when I found it, because all I kept finding was more Bikers. "You heading to Fuchsia?" Biker Virgil asked. I nodded. "WELL…beat me first!" Uh…okay. His two Weezings and Koffing fell immediately to my Hypno's confusion. "Crash and burn!" Indeed. "I love racing downhill!"

"If you just wanted to race, we could have done that instead," I commented.

"Nah, I'd definitely beat you there," he said as he patted his motorcycle. "I'm the best that ever was!" Right…

Still, he gave me a fun idea, to just rush down the hill. With such speed, no bikers would stop me! And then they did. "We're Bikers! Highway stars!" said Biker Billy. Billy's Muk was intimidating, but fell quickly to the power of my Hypno. "Smoked!" he cried out, returning Muk to his ball. "Are you looking for adventure?"

"Well, yes," I admitted. Like Virgil before him, he looked at his bike as he answered me.

"Well kid, maybe you can join us. After all, you beat the greatest Muk in the land. You gotta be good for something!" His compliment tasted like an insult, but his eyes spoke sincerity. Still, I had no intention of joining a gang; Mom would kill me if I did. Instead, I rode on, hoping not to catch another biker's gaze.

On the way down, I rode between two ponds, and found a notice wedged in-between. It stated that I should watch out for discarded items. But unless they were buried, I couldn't imagine where they'd be. Another notice told me that all Pokémon are unique, and that even those of the same type and level grow at different rates. I noted to ask Oak if that actually was a tip or random weirdness.

Another sign got in my way, this time tell of using brakes on bikes. Apparently the pond path was full of signs, even reminding you of what route I was on. Still, now it was all past me, and I could rush down the hill!

"Nice bike! How's it handle?" Or I could get caught by Biker Jaxon. This time I opted to let Doduo gain experience, and she sadly could barely stand against his Weezing. Poisoned and beat down, I let Spirit fight his next Pokémon, Muk. It was another tough fight, but I needed to level up my team, so they'd have to take the hits.

"Shoot! The slope makes it hard to steer!" Clearly he was trying to blame his loss on the territory, but considering his Pokémon would hardly care, I didn't put stock into his statement. Still, with weakened Pokémon, I realized it might be best to heal again, even if it meant the risk of more bikers later. Riding uphill would be a nightmare, but Doduo had Fly to make the trip much easier.

After facing off against so many bikers, and riding up and down the hill to face them all, it was nice to finally just let myself cruise down the hill and take the wind to my face. It was a pleasant change that I greatly appreciated, and made sure to keep a clear path as I dropped down the road. It didn't take too long to reach the bottom, but once I did, I finally took a look upon the landscape.

The hill didn't have much feature, but it was a large hill, and there was a lot of water surrounding the area, as if we were about to jump into the sea. I was tempted to let everyone out and jump into the waves, but with the setting Sun, I figured I should sit back and prepare for the night. Fuchsia City wasn't far away, but I had grown used to camping.

I released the team and we set up a spot to start eating. As they ate their Pokémon blocks, I thought about the adventures ahead. There was still a lot to do, and a ton of Pokémon to get. Fuchsia City's Gym was the next big challenge, and according to the Town Map, the Safari Zone also was in range.

I also remembered that the Pokémon Zoo was in Fuchsia City, and that I had been there once as a kid. There was a reason we only went once though...sadly, they didn't have a lot of Pokémon to show off when I was younger. Hopefully, though, that's changed.

However, the only thing that changed was the sudden onset of motorcycles! Out of the peace and quiet came the roar of their engines, as all the bikers rode out of the guard post to the east! I hoped they wouldn't notice me, and thankfully it seems they didn't.

"Darn it! We couldn't convince all those Westside Biker punks to join us!" It was the bald guy, Paxton. "You four," he pointed to four of his new crewmates, "are clearly the best guys your gang had to offer! You won't let me down!" Apparently they liked that a lot.

He started revving his bike up and pointed back up the hill. "Let's go, boys! We'll take down Team Rocket, and claim Kanto for ourselves!" The nine of them revved up and drove up the hill. I wasn't sure what was about to happen, but I was just thankful it was happening far away from me.