Episode 11: Thicker Than Water!
Red and Misty stood staring each other down on opposite ends of the Gym's swimming Pool, each looking very confident.
Brock stood on the sidelines with the Trainee Nurse Joy and Jim Gai, the three of them watching with bated breath to see how this battle would go down.
A referee stood on the side of the pool, raising his hand, "This match for the Cascade Badge will now go under way! Two-on-Two Battle, no time limit, and as is the norm, only the challenger may make substitutions. Begin!"
(THEME SONG HERE!)
"Go, Horsea!" Misty began the battle with her first Pokemon, from the red-and-white ball shot a small, blue seahorse-like Pokemon.
"Horsea!" It cried as it plopped into the water.
"Ready? Bulbasaur! I choose you!" Red tossed his Pokemon out, Bulbasaur landed on the dry platforms floating on the surface of the pool. Red could tell he might need a miracle to help him, Bulbasaur's grass typing definitely gave it the advantage against a water-type, but the fact that it was limited to the land was a crippler... The young trainer thought about how to deal with it given the circumstances.
"Horsea! Use Smokescreen!" Misty ordered from her end.
Red didn't know what to expect, his pokedex had rattled off its usual initial information, but given his position, it was useless.
Horsea jumped from the pool, and from its nozzle-like mouth shot a gas of ink toward Bulbasaur, having much the same effect on the grass-type as sand attack had on Pikachu when he had battled blue some three days earlier.
Bulbasaur shook its head, trying to remove the ink from its eyes, when Misty shot off another attack.
"Horsea, Water Gun!"
"Bulbasaur was knocked several feet away by the shot of water from Horsea's mouth, landing it in the water.
Red gritted his teeth, Bulbasaur was a grass-type, and could stand water... But it wasn't much of a swimmer.
Red, worried about how to win, heard Misty shout another command, "Horsea, dive!"
"She's ruthless..." Red thought to himself, glaring intently at the gym leader.
Bulbasaur and Horsea came flying out of the water, splashing everything around them in a cool spray of the liquid. The small grass-type couldn't take much more of this, bruises and scuffs from Horsea's attack were vident as it regained its footing on one of the floating platforms.
"Bulbasaur! Are you alright?" Red called to his new Pokemon.
Bulbasaur didn't move for a moment, then looked back at red and nodded, a determined scowl on his face.
Red was surprised, he knew that even Pikachu couldn't take that kind of non-stop punishment, Bulbasaur was a stubborn Pokemon.
Misty ordered a second water gun, intending to finish the Battle, when Red called out his own attack.
"Bulbasaur! Launch your Razor Leaf into the water!"
Bulbasaur obeyed its trainer, launching hundreds of tiny, Razor-Sharp leaves into the pool. The sudden impact of the leaves into the water sent a rooster tail of white water splashing up, effectively blocking water gun.
Misty was caught off-guard, no trainer she had ever met would have thought of that, she certainly wouldn't have.
The Razor Leaves floated to the surface of the pool, they surrounded Bulbasaur's foothold, creating a thin layer of green plants atop the water.
Misty wouldn't be outdone, issuing another Dive attack.
Red knew this was coming, having thought of the strategy while Bulbasaur was under water.
"Bulbasaur! Spread your sleep Powder on those leaves!"
Bulbasaur smiled, having figured out what his trainer planned, he acted quickly, the bulb on his back vibrating to release a white pollen-like Powder that coated the leaves around it without getting wet.
Misty didn't have time to warn Horsea as it burst out of the layer of sleep-powder leaves, coating itself with the powder and falling asleep before it could use its attack.
"No!" Misty exclaimed, watching Horsea fall asleep in mid-air.
"Finish with Vine Whip Bulbasaur!"
In a flash of green cords and the thud of a blue seahorse hitting the gym wall, it was over, and the referee declared Horsea unable to battle.
Misty smiled sadly, returning Horsea to its Pokeball, "You're a great Trainer, Red." She congratulated him, Red just smiled and replied;"It's not over yet Misty."
"Bulba!" Bulbasaur chimed in, smirking at Misty.
"Alright, Starmie, I choose you!"
Misty's Starmie sped out of its' Pokeball, spinning in place and landing in the water, its purple Points sticking out of the water along with half of its gem-like core.
"Starmie, The Mysterious Pokemon. Typing: Psychic/Water."
Red's Pokedex stated publicly. Red's eyes widened as he remembered something about Bulbasaur.
"Starmie! Use psychic!" Misty's attack was carried out, Starmie glowed a pleasing light for a moment, and in a bright flash, Bulbasaur did too, but this attack sent Bulbasaur reeling into the wall, fainting it in a single hit before Red could react.
Bulbasaur wasn't just a grass-type, it was a poison type as well, and Red had let it take a hit like that. He mentally kicked himself as he returned Bulbasaur to its Pokeball, "I'm sorry buddy, I promise I wont make the same mistake twice." Red scowled across the field as his small Yellow mouse Pokemon scampered up to his side.
"Pika!" Pikachu said to Red, electricity crackling from its cheeks.
"You sure you feel well enough buddy?"
Pikachu nodded, glaring at Starmie.
"Alright then, Pikachu, I choose you!"
Pikachu dashed onto the foothold in the water as Bulbasaur had.
"Alright, Pikachu, shock wave!"
"Starmie, avoid- it?" Misty stood in Shock as Starmie was helplessly electrocuted by Pikachu's unavoidable shock wave.
Starmie recovered, but only just barely, the burn marks on it were proof of its supereffective hit.
"Starmie, don't let Pikachu catch you off guard again!" Misty called, Starmie floated out of the water, squaring off to the Electric Mouse across from it.
"Starmie, use Psychic to-!"
Red cut Misty's attack off, "Pikachu, Thundershock!"
Pikachu shot its thundershock at Starmie, landing a direct hit on the Purple Star-shaped Pokemon, and KOing it.
"Starmie is unable to battle, the winner is the Challenger!" The referee called out, ending the match.
Misty begrudgingly returned Starmie to its Pokeball, and turned to Red, forcing herself to smile at Red's genuine joy at having won.
Red let Pikachu up onto his shoulder, scratching it behind its ears and thanking it for the work it put in.
"Your Pikachu's incredible Red, it's awfully lucky to have a trainer like you." Misty complimented genuinely.
"Thanks Misty, its good to hear that from you." Red said as Brock joined him.
Misty handed Red a blue teardrop-shaped badge, "Here's your Cascade Badge, good luck with your gym challenge."
In that moment, the three young people heard a bustle of people behind them, they turned to see three women, each of them different ages but all older than they were, Red noticed that other than the height, the fact that they were Blonde, Brunette, and Black-haired, and their ages, they all bore a striking resemblance to the little Redheaded Gym Leader.
"Hey little sister!" Said the tallest one, running over and hugging Misty, who seemed just as surprised as Red and Brock given the circumstances.
"Uh... Hey Violet, what are you guys doing here?" Misty said aloud, as if she wasn't expecting her sisters.
"Remember Misty? We were only going away for a month!"
Misty made Violet release her, only to be met by her other two sisters, whose names were Lily and Daisy.
After some cheerful reunion and introduction, Misty, her sisters, Red and Brock all left for the nearest restaurant. Misty's sisters insisted that the young trainer celebrate his success in obtaining his badge, and wouldn't take no for an answer, and Brock certainly wasn't in any rush to leave the three beautiful women.
"So, Misty, this guy beat you?" Asked the Black-Haired sister, Violet.
"Yeah, but it wasn't easy..." Red responded before Misty could say a word.
"Oh don't be so noble!" Teased the Blonde Daisy, "We watched the whole thing!"
Misty shot a glare in their direction, "What?!"
Violet shrugged, "Well it's not like we could just interrupt a gym battle!"
Misty took a bite of her food in order for her to hold her tongue.
"What do you mean Daisy?" Red asked, feeding Pikachu a piece of food.
"She means if you had used that Pikachu from the beginning, that match would have been over in a few seconds flat." Lily said, smirking at her little sister. If looks could kill, her expression could send them ten feet under.
Pikachu liked the compliment, it squeaked and took another piece of Red's food.
"That's probably true." Brock said, his eyes set on the oldest girl, Red snickered at how stupid he looked mooning over her. Violet took it in stride, as if she was used to it, "So Brock, aren't you a gym leader too?" She asked directly to Brock, immediately the young man's face turned more red than Red's Jacket and he stuttered out a response. Red, Misty and her sisters could barely hold their laughter back, but Brock didn't notice.
"Y-yeah..."
"What type do you specialize in? I've been all over Kanto and I never actually made it to Pewter City." She said, smiling and putting her head in her hands, which were connected to her elbows on the table.
"R-rock-Type..."
Violet and her sisters (Including Misty) Laughed out loud, leading Brock to confusion, somehow returning his confidence.
"What's so funny?" He inquired, his face returning to its usual tan.
"Oh nothing, it's just so easy to beat Rock-Types, we thought that the league pushed them out for that new steel-type..."
Red saw the spark in Brock's countenance, as did Pikachu, who hid in his trainer's backpack.
Where there was once teenaged-smitten infatuation had been replaced by a passionate rage.
"That does it!" Brock growled, slamming his fist on the table.
"I don't care who you are, nobody disrespects my Pokemon!"
The group fell silent, Misty, Daisy, and Lily's eyes widened in shock, as did Violet's, who actually seemed even more surprised than her sisters.
"I challenge you to a battle, right now!" Brock said, pointing to Violet.
(Who's that Pokemon?!
"It is highly adept at several martial arts forms, primarily using its fists for battle. It is similar to a japanese martial artist")
Violet accepted the challenge, and they stood on opposite ends of an empty street, Red stood as the Referee.
"Begin!" He shouted to the battlers.
"Go, Vaporeon!" Violet began the battle with her first Pokemon, a small, blue fox-mermaid like creature stood across from Brock.
"Onix, go!" Brock sent Onix out, the massive Snake Pokemon leered over Vaporeon.
Violet yelled her command first, knowing Vaporeon was much faster than Onix.
"Vaporeon, Bubblebeam!"
Vaporeon obeyed, shooting a rapid stream of glowing bubbles from its mouth straight at Onix.
"Onix, harden!"
Onix quickly stiffened in place, the rocks that made up its body grew a sheen, reflecting light like polished rocks.
Vaporeon's attack struck Onix hard, it flinched in pain, but the hardened Rock Pokemon stood its ground, scowling down at Vaporeon.
"Vaporeon, swift!"
Vaporeon's tail glowed a pleasing gold light, and swung it around to shoot dozens of tiny stars toward Onix.
"Onix, harden again!"
Onix grew tougher, enduring the strikes from Swift.
Violet gritted her teeth, Brock stood glaring at her from across the field.
"There's no way I'm going to let a Rock-Type defeat my Vaporeon! Use Hydro Pump Vaporeon!" Violet yelled in frustration.
Vaporeon did as it was told, shooting a massive high-pressure blast of water straight toward Onix.
"Onix, dig!"
In an instant, Onix had dug under the dirt road, leaving a gaping hole where it once was.
"Vaporeon, careful! It could come up anywhere!"
Violet warned her Pokemon.
They waited for a few moments, Vaporeon worriedly looking around it while awaiting an order from its trainer.
Brock glared across the stadium while Violet thought about what to do.
"GORORROONX!"
Onix roared as it burst from the ground right beneath Vaporeon, striking it like a literal ton of Rocks.
"Vaporeon!" Violet called after her injured Pokemon, which hit the ground with a thud and a squeak.
"Onix, slam!"
Onix swung its tail and ended the match, effectively fainting Vaporeon.
"Vaporeon is unable to battle, Brock wins the match!"
Violet stood dumbstruck as did her sisters, while Red couldn't help but grin like an idiot as Brock returned Onix to its Pokeball.
"Good match Violet." Brock said, suddenly calm and stretching out a hand to help her off the ground, where she was comforting Vaporeon.
Violet said nothing for a moment, returning Vaporeon to its Poke Ball. She looked up to Brock, who still had his hand out, to everyone's surprise, she took it.
"Thanks, you too..." She smiled sadly, having lost but showing sportsmanship as maturely as she could.
(Poketrivia!
"Did you know?
The Pokemon Nidoran comes in two forms, a female and a male, and the gender of the Pokemon determines what it will evolve into!")
The group of friends returned to the Cerulean Gym after the battle.
Misty and her sisters were actually very sportsmanlike, admitting their mistake in assuming Rock-Types were weak. Brock, now in a much better mood, accepted the apology and the group continued in a social hour... Which consisted mostly of Brock talking to Misty's sisters about one thing or another, and the three of them completely enthralled.
Red and Pikachu honestly weren't amused... the young trainer was anxious for his next gym battle, but he didn't want to just leave Brock behind... Although truthfully he wasn't certain Brock would mind.
"Hey Red, you okay?"
Red turned his head to find Misty sitting down on the couch next to him. They had all retired to the gym's leisure room, which was actually quite plush, almost like a college dormitory.
"Oh yeah, just bored."
"Why's that?" She questioned, leaning back.
Red gestured to Brocksanova over at the other couch, still chatting it up with the other teenage girls.
"Ohh, gotcha."
There was a slight awkward slience, Pikachu broke it by climbing off of Red's shoulder and into Misty's lap.
"He likes ya, that's a good thing." Red said, attempting to break the ice.
"How so? Most Pokemon are friendly." She responded, scratching Pikachu's chin, which it responded to ecstatically, thumping its tiny foot in pleasure.
"Well, he wasn't very social when I got 'im.. But I think the little guy's opening up the more we travel."
Misty smiled as Pikachu agreed, then got a bit irritated when Misty stopped scratching it.
"Speaking of that... I was wondering..." Misty started, looking a little nervous to speak, Red calmly responded.
"What is it?"
"Well, since my sisters are back, they'll be running the gym.. So I was wondering if it would be okay for me to travel with you and Brock?"
Red raised his eyebrows and looked at Pikachu, who was nodding happily in encouragement.
"That'd be cool, as long as ya can keep up!"
Misty's smile went ear-to-ear, looking the happiest she had been since Red had met her.
"Thank you! Lets go tell them!"
After exchanging a few well-said goodbyes, Misty packed a small bag with essentials... With Red's help. Red noticed that it seems no matter how tomboyish a girl was, they always seemed to like packing a ton of stuff.
"Misty, there are washing machines and dryers at Pokemon centers, and Brock's got like, six sleeping bags!"
"I know! But what if we're lost for days?"
"We wont be!"
"Better safe than sorry!"
"Better light than heavy!"
The argument escalated a little until Brock stepped in with Misty's sisters.
"Alright you two, calm down."
Brock managed to mediate Misty by packing more of her things into his larger backpack, as he was the oldest and most certainly the strongest of the three of them, he was alright carrying a few extra changes of clothes.
The sun set over the end of the Cerulean city skyline, with Red, Pikachu, Misty and Brock beginning their travels together down the road to Vermilion city.
"This is the third time you two have failed me this week... You're losing your edge." A deep voice spoke from behind a chair in a dark room.
This dark room was lit only by blinds slightly open to the side. From that light, a desk and old ceiling fan could be seen, but not much more.
"We know sir. But our work hasn't gone without fruit sir."
Jessie spoke, standing at attention alongside James. The two of them were meeting with their Boss, discussing future plans.
"Really?" The boss spoke, "What good has come from your streak of failure?"
James spoke up, "We managed to obtain this, sir..." James laid three objects on the desk, their boss turned around, the darkness still obscuring his face.
"What are they?"
James pointed out the first object, a piece of rock shaped like an eyelash.
"The DNA sample you ordered."
The boss' attitude softened.
"Alright. Very nice. What of these other two?"
Jessie pointed out a piece of machinery, "This is the machine we used to gauge the Power of Zapdos. This will.."
"Give us the knowledge we need for the project.. Very good... And this third?"
"This... Is a Master Ball." Jessie said flatly in response.
"Silph co. finished it?"
"With our help and... Incentive, yes." A dark smirk crossing James' face.
"Good... Alright, you know your next assignment. Go."
They both saluted and walked out the door.
The boss was left alone, he pet the large cat Pokemon at his side, a Persian that purred at the contact with its master.
"Soon, I will succeed... Very soon."
Well... Sh*t..
Firstly, I'd like to apologize to everyone for being so late on this chapter, lotsa stuff going on...
Aaaanyway, lets get to the ol' mailbag!
Jac Bandit Writes: My mind has been blown. That was an awesome chapter! It was so exciting! I was at the edge of my seat! It was just that cool!
I especially liked the Battle Scenes. From Bulbasaur fighting that Ekans to the battle with Zapdos: it was incredible!
Also, does Team Rocket keep Pokemon more for utility than battle? Because I bet they only carry around the Abra for its Teleport.
Reply: Thanks dude, it was fun to write! And I worry about the battle scenes.. I don't want 'em to be boring!
Team Rocket, in my continuity, see pokemon as tools and a means to an end, nothing more.
iwish328 Writes: no surfing pikachu? no wtp oh man this was a little different
Reply: Goldurnit... I wanna put surfing pikachu in here now!
Sceptic62 Writes: Sorry I didn't review til now, but I just discovered the story and wanted to read all the chapters before reviewing. Your story is perhaps one of the greatest rewrites of Pokemon of all time, and while there'd are somethings that I disagree with on a fundamental level, the story is amazing. For example, contests are not useless, just next to useless, if it wasn't for contests, I wouldn't have a level 5 Milotic. Also, Farfetch'd was never relevant, isn't currently relevant, and should never have an evolution, I just hate the stupid bird that much. Also, nice touch on how you explained away elemental stones, having normal rocks exposed to legendary levels of an element must have some effect. Especially when the frickin things are the result of a crevice carved by electricity. Love the story, and the WTP sections. Keep doing what you do, signed me, myself, and I.
Reply: Hey, if we all had the same opinion, how boring would that be? The fact is, we all love pokemon! "Maybe if we started lookin' at what's the same, instead of always lookin' at what's different.. Well, who knows?"
X) Anyway, that's your opinion, and I will love and tolerate the living sh*t out of it X3
And I wanted to explain how rocks can get that kinda power, and I like when things that aren't explained elsewhere can be explained here.
Once again, one of my personal favorite fans writes..
Steelrush Writes: Sorry for the late review...AGAIN. XP
Anyway, no WTP this time? Meh, no big deal. So now onto what counts:
This chapter was, awesome. And I especially liked the use of Zapdos, although I would have liked to see him fry Jessie and James, it makes sense why you allowed them to live. :P
I also thought it was an innovative idea to have them control Zapdos with that exo-skeletal device, and it makes me wonder what they'll do with Mewtwo.
So anyways, this makes me hyped for the next chapter, and I'd like to see what happens next, BUT-
I do want to say that after watching some more of the BW series, I was stunned at its flaws. I heard better voice acting coming from a cat, Iris and Cilan were an ear-ache, and...
You get my point.
See, this is why I'm reading your story, it IS how Pokemon should have happened, and every chapter I read is even better than any episode of the anime that I've seen.
I'm no genwunner myself (my favorite Pokemon happens to be from Gen V), and although there's some newer things from the anime I like, I AM one of those guys who enjoyed the anime right up to a certain point, and then...
...wanted to say WTF to the anime's writers after watching the remains of a once-good TV show. The writers of the BW series have an "I don't give a f*ck" attitude now, and don't care that a once-good show is now shitty, and they're letting down millions of Pokefans (of ALL ages).
Jerks...
So THAT'S why I'm reading this story, because, like I said before, YOU represent the will of the fanbase (the part that has entertainment standards). Even some of the die-hard Pokefans I know of are disgusted by the BW series, and you seem to be a better writer than the ones the anime has now.
This story is good, you're good, and the rest will undoubtedly be good.
So far, you've done a splendid job and succeeding where the anime's writers have failed.
No pity badges, no pointless characters, no pointless episodes (even the fillers of this story are more useful than the ones in the anime), just focusing on what matters.
The main character going through the world collecting badges and fulfilling his dream, while occasionally stopping the bad guys.
Speaking of bad guys-
Although I probably already pointed this out (forgive me, but my memory of this stuff is terrible, because I have had loads of conversations about these topics), I also have another suggestion.
Even though this is your story, I recommend that you keep the "teams" exclusive to the regions they appeared in.
One thing that was a huge flaw throughout the entire course of the anime past the Johto series was how many times Team Rocket has appeared.
Don't get me wrong, Jessie, James, and Meowth are cool in my opinion, but they have been far too overused for so many years.
The basis of Giovanni's agenda is no different than it was when you and me were kids, and the missions he gives to the three are pretty much the same things again and again...
Although I know that you can give them more original missions as time progresses, I'd say that you should probably pull the plug on Team Rocket before the Hoenn saga begins.
Game Freak seemed to have realized that Team Rocket was no longer needed when Ruby and Sapphire came out, and still acknowledge that.
But the anime's writers didn't, and still don't.
However, you and I do.
So like I said above, my advice is to get rid of Team Rocket before Hoenn. As for the other "teams", I'm sure you have plans for their length already.
So anyways, excellent job on the story so far. Although the events are different, it provides a touch of nostalgia, and feels even better knowing that the rest is going to go just as good, if not greater.
For the first time in YEARS, I somehow have the feeling of excitement I got when a new episode of my favorite show aired, when I see you add a new chapter.
You're one of the best, Crobatman, update when possible-
Reply: Take notes, ladies and gentlemen, THIS is how to review.
Anyway, you basically read my mind when it comes to the teams being in their own separate regions. They may make cameos, but I'm gonna stick to what feels right!
rammer9107 Writes: This is one of the best pokemon fics in this site.
I loved the original anime as a kid, but I stopped watching after johto.
Recently I came across Pokemon Adventures comics which brought me back to pokemon. One of the things I loved most about it was how the gym leaders surge,koga and sabrina were working for team rocket-A real contrast to the anime where team rocket were annoyances than real enemies.
I like the fact that your changing things around in this fic, but I feel that here you just made up two OCs and gave them the names Jesse and James. The rocket trio in the original anime were some of my favorite anime characters, but without the talking meowth, their team rocket motto or seeing them blast off, I feel that you have overlooked some of the most enjoyable aspects of the anime in this fic.
The story is otherwise good and I will continue to follow it.
Reply: Thank you good sir!
I actually plan on having the Gym Leaders take bigger roles.. perhaps not villainous, but they'll be important!
Dragonfire97 Writes:
This is way better than the anime, the only problem for me is that whenever you call Ritchie "Yellow", I'm going to think that your talking about the character from the manga. Because the Yellow from the pokemon special manga is female, some things such as red and Ritchie sharing a room or something could be kind of funny
Reply: ..Yeaaahhh... I... Well... Okay, shoot me, I couldn't tell that yellow was a girl in the manga... X( But now I can!
Keep reading, the story might surprise ya!
Anyway guys, that's it for today!
... Alright, I owe you guys big, so I promise, next chapter's gonna kick serious butt! I won't let ya down again!
-TheCrobatman