Reupped, with paragraph breaks. They were somehow removed in my initial ipload, but I put them back.
First things first, just to get it out of the way. I discovered that LuciferIX has written a story also called Reaching for the Stars. I hereby apologize to him for using the same title; I didn't even know of that story's existence till just now. So, LuciferIX, if you happen to be reading this and reach this chapter, I didn't mean to steal the title, rest assured that aside from the title and pairing no other things are the same. I hope, because I've decided to finish my own story before reading yours, so as not to give myself ideas other than those I already had. Yeah. Bottom line, if I somehow plagiarize you I don't mean to, although I do think the plots of our stories are very different.
Here it is, Chapter 5; a long one this time. Things will finally get under way, and Team Rocket will make their first appearance at long last. Enjoy, and don't forget to review!
Chapter 5: Appeals, Abductions and Airships
Finally, the day of the Contest had arrived. Both Dawn and May were ready to put on their absolute best, and their Pokémon were in great shape. Everything was set for an amazing Contest, and all those involved were prepared to make sure it would be nothing short of magnificent. The main hall of the Contest Hall was bustling with activity, even more so than when May and Dawn had gone to register themselves.
'Heh, a few days ago all I worried about was who I'd cheer for,' Ash thought to himself. 'I wish it'd stayed that simple…'
("Ash, are you okay?") Pikachu asked.
Ash shrugged. He hadn't told Pikachu that Dawn was helping him get closer to May, but he knew that Piplup had informed him.
"I'm just worried about May and Drew," he said.
("Dawn's helping you, right? Don't worry about it. You should just cheer for May and Dawn in the Contest and deal with everything else when the time comes. There's no sense in worrying about it now.")
"You're right. Let's go find some good seats. Wouldn't wanna miss anything," Ash replied with a smile. Even though he was still worried, he resolved to put it aside and listen to Pikachu's advice.
Ash, Brock and Pikachu made their way to the spectator's area of the Contest Hall, and managed to get the last front row seats.
"I wonder who's gonna win this one," Brock said, pondering. "They've both trained really hard for this."
Ash nodded. "Well, in terms of power and experience I'd say May will win," Ash began, "Even so, Dawn is pretty skilled herself, and if she comes up against May Piplup will have a type advantage despite his small size. There's really no telling who will win."
Brock nodded. "I agree. Aside from them, we shouldn't forget about Drew and Harley. We haven't seen them compete in a while, and if we go by what May says about them they've become even stronger than they were before."
("Harley's the one who worries me most. I really don't trust that guy,") Pikachu said, frowning.
Ash nodded in agreement. "That guy is nothing but trouble. But he already made a lot of enemies; I doubt he'll be able to pull any weird tricks."
Meanwhile, in the dressing rooms, May and Dawn were preparing for their appeals. Piplup and Blaziken were stretching and getting warmed up while the girls fixed their hair.
"Good luck, Dawn," May said with a wink.
Dawn smiled and replied, "You too. Don't lose till you're up against me, okay?"
May stuck out her tongue and said, "Just don't be too upset when I beat you."
Dawn's smile widened. It was now more of a grin. "That goes for you too."
Despite her cheerful demeanor, Dawn still felt irritation towards May for making Ash worry so much. She knew it wasn't reasonable of her and that May didn't do anything wrong, so she tried to squelch the feeling.
May too, however, wasn't entirely as joyful as she pretended to be. She still suspected Dawn of being together with Ash. When she had come back from her walk with Drew at Amity Square, she noticed that Ash and Dawn were talking, slightly away from Brock and the Pokémon.
She'd gone over to Brock and gestured at Ash and Dawn. Brock had caught on immediately and said, "Don't worry about it. I'm sure they're just talking about the Contest."
"So why did they go over there?"
Brock shrugged. "You know how Dawn is about her appeals. Ash is pretty much the only one she trusts with them before the Contest. You know, if he's been helping her and stuff."
May nodded, unconvinced.
"It's fine, May, trust me," Brock said.
May looked at him and saw him smiling encouragingly. She smiled back. "You're right. I'm worrying too much."
Now, however, with Dawn so close by, she couldn't help but feel slightly suspicious of the blue-haired Coordinator.
'Calm down, May,' she thought to herself. 'You're giving this way too much thought. Don't let it get to you.'
("It's almost time, May,") Blaziken said, shaking May from her musings.
"I know, I'm ready," she replied.
"I'm done too. Let's go, Piplup!" Dawn said, stretching and getting up.
With fire blazing in their eyes, May and Dawn got up. For now, both put away their suspicions. It was finally time for the Contest.
Behind the stage, a trio of stagehands was busy setting things up. One had long, red hair, the second half-long blue hair, and the third was small and appeared hairless.
"Jessie, why are doing this?" The blue-haired man asked, in a slightly whining tone of voice.
The redhead hit him and answered, "Shut up, James. Keep going. We need this ready when that freaky Cacturne man gets on stage."
James sighed. "Yes, but when did we become his allies?" he asked.
"It's not our job ta ask questions, so shut yer trap!" the small person said.
Upon closer look, one could see that it wasn't a person, but a feline Pokémon.
"Dat weirdo works fer you-know-who, and so do we."
James sighed again. When had the noble Team Rocket been degraded to second-rate grunts?
"Hey, you three!" a voice said, startling the trio. "What are you doing here?"
The Rockets turned around, sweatdrops clearly visible on their foreheads. "We're stagehands, sir, nothing suspicious about at all!" Jessie chirped, feigning innocence.
"Dat's right! We're preparing the stage fer da Coordinators!" Meowth added.
"There's nothing here but us, continue on with your work!" James said.
The man who had called out to them placed his hands on his hips and frowned. There was an almost audible 'gulp' from Team Rocket, but then the man sighed and said, "Alright, but you'd better make sure everything goes without a hitch!"
"Of course, sir! Now, why don't you get yourself a coffee?" Jessie said, slightly manically pushing the man away.
"Ugh, we'd better get this done. There isn't much time and I don't want to have to act like some stagehand much longer," Jessie said with obvious disgust in her voice. James and Meowth nodded and they got back to work.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to the Pokémon Contest of Hearthome City! I'm your host, Marian! I hope all of you will have a great time watching the hard work of the many Coordinators who've been training hard for a shot at this ribbon!"
She held up a ribbon so the crowd could see.
"And now, I'll introduce the judges. First, Mr. Contesta!"
A man in a red jacket with a black bowtie nodded when his name was mentioned. "It's good to be here," he said.
"Our next judge is Mr. Sukizo!" Marian announced.
A small man with narrow eyes and a big smile said, "I'm sure this will be a remarkable Contest!"
"And finally, our very own Nurse Joy!"
Nurse Joy nodded and gave a friendly smile. "A pleasure to be here, as always," she said.
"The first round is the appeals. In this round, the Coordinators show off their Pokémon's skills and splendor to impress our judges and dazzle the crowd!" Marian said enthusiastically. "Now, here are our Coordinators for today!"
Under thunderous applause the group of Coordinators entered the hall.
"May! Dawn! Good luck!" Ash yelled.
("Give them your best!") Pikachu added.
"We'll be cheering for both of you!" Brock yelled, waving at them.
May and Dawn scanned the crowd, and grinned when they saw their friends. They gave each other a glance and nodded. They were ready to give it their all.
Farther back in the crowd stood Drew, a confident smirk on his face as he heard his name chanted by a lot of people, most prevalently nearly drooling fangirls, most of whom wore T-shirts with his face on it.
Not all the noise was positive, though. There was one Coordinator who was jeered at rather than encouraged.
Harley, despite all the negative comments he heard from the crowd, had a cocky grin on his face as he stood with his eyes closed.
"Just wait, you simpletons…this will be a match like none you've ever seen," he muttered under his breath.
With the Coordinators introduced to the crowd, they left the stage and Marian announced the first appeal.
It was a young Coordinator who seemed very nervous, and called his Pokémon with an unmistakable quiver in his voice. In a shower of stars, a dragonfly with a green head and a red body appeared.
"Yanma, use Sonic Boom!" the Coordinator ordered shakily. And with that, the Contest was finally under way.
As the appeals went on, the Rockets finished installing their mysterious machine. "Right, that should do it," Jessie said.
"Now I hope that Cacturne freak does his job, or else I'll beat him up," she seethed.
"I just hope this goes quickly," James groaned. "I mean, these kinds of things never seem to work."
"Shut up, James. This time we're not operating alone," Jessie said.
"Dat's right! We're doing dis fer dat spiky haired guy!" Meowth said.
A walkie-talkie on Jessie's belt crackled to life. "Are you idiots ready?" asked Harley's voice.
"Who are you calling idiot, idiot?!" Jessie scolded him.
"Are you ready or not?" Harley demanded, completely ignoring Jessie.
"Yes, we're ready, your majesty," Jessie spat.
"Good. Then get out of there. You're no longer necessary."
Jessie was about to yell into the walkie-talkie when James pulled her back and said, "Let's just move. We'll grab what we can once that weirdo makes his move."
Jessie scoffed angrily, but she calmed down. "Let's go then," she said curtly. Silently, the Rocket trio snuck away.
"And now, please welcome our next Coordinator! From Slateport City, Harley!" Marian announced, gesturing at the curtains.
The crowd quieted down. They didn't like Harley, but they were too civilized to openly boo him.
"He'd better not try to mess with the Contest," Ash growled through gritted teeth.
("If he does, I have a Thunderbolt with his name on it,") Pikachu threatened.
"Calm down, guys. We don't know if he will try anything fishy," Brock tried to calm Ash and Pikachu.
Ash frowned. He really, really didn't trust Harley. The purple-haired man had always been bad news, and Ash was sure now was no different.
Harley entered the hall and approached the stage. Instead of calling out his Pokémon, he started to talk.
"Greetings, Hearthome City! Today will be a day you'll long remember! I, Harley, will take this town into a new realm. Today, I'll show you what it means to reach for the stars! Now, behold the new world!"
He tossed up a Poké Ball, but instead of revealing a Pokémon it exploded in a flash of brilliant light. From the curtains and all around the stage, black smoke erupted, obscuring the whole Contest Hall.
Shocked gasps went through the hall, and Ash growled, "Harley…you…"
Suddenly a voice sounded over the speakers, but it was not Marian.
"Citizens of Hearthome, Coordinators, welcome," the voice said.
"My name is Cyrus. I am the leader of an organization known as Team Galactic. My associates and I strive to make this world perfect. For this we will require your Pokémon. You will give them up to us, or the consequences will be dire, I assure you."
"What the hell is going on?!" someone demanded.
"No one is getting my Pokémon!" someone else yelled angrily.
Angry murmuring went up all over the crowd, and Ash was inclined to join in. There was no way he'd give Pikachu up.
"Come on, buddy. We'll find out where this Cyrus guy is and put an end to his evil plans," he said.
("I'm right behind you,") Pikachu said grimly, and he jumped onto Ash's shoulder.
"Ash, wait!" Brock yelled, but Ash had already jumped onto the stage.
The dressing rooms too had been filled with black smoke when Harley had set off his trap, and the Coordinators present there had also heard Cyrus' ominous speech.
"May! Where are you?!" Dawn yelled from somewhere within the clouds of smoke.
"I'm here! Are you okay?" May yelled back. She looked around, frantically trying to see through the thick haze.
"Yeah…wait, I'm coming over to you, say something again," Dawn replied.
"I'm here. Can you find me?" May asked.
Suddenly she felt an arm on her shoulder. She stiffened, but she heard Dawn's voice say, "Relax, it's just me. We have to get to Ash and Brock."
May nodded, and then realized that Dawn couldn't see it. "Yeah. Come on, let's go."
Holding hands, the girls tried to find the exit of the dressing room.
"Stop right there, girlies," a woman said.
"What? Who's there?" May asked, cursing the smoke that still obscured every attempt at seeing anything.
"I am Mars. I am one of Team Galactic's Commanders," came the reply. "You will hand over your Poké Balls or I will be forced to take them from you."
May heard Dawn scoff. "We'll never give you our Pokémon. Just try to take them from us!" she yelled angrily.
"Very well. Go, Purugly, take them out!"
A white light briefly flashed in the smoke, but the Pokémon that had been set free was invisible within the darkness.
"How can you attack us when you can't even see us?" May taunted. She wanted to buy time while she came up with a way to fight back.
"Who says I can't see? Do you really believe us such fools that we would fall for our own trap?" Mares replied.
May didn't know what to say, but Dawn spoke for her. "As a matter of fact, we do, actually."
"You little…Purugly, grab their Pokémon with your Aerial Ace!"
"Yeah, I don't think so," May said. "Blaziken, take the stage!"
With a brilliant light, May's fiery starter appeared.
("I didn't see this coming,") the Blaze Pokémon said as she appeared.
"Neither did I. Can you take care of that Purugly somewhere in this smoke?" May asked.
("Sure, as soon as I know where it is,") Blaziken replied.
Just then, May felt something hit her side and grab her pack. "Here!" she yelled. "Sky Uppercut that cat!" May ordered, "It's got the rest of my Pokémon!"
("I'm on it!")
Blaziken's fist glowed and she dove into the smoke behind May, where Purugly was supposed to be.
"Purugly, dodge it, go to the right and Aerial Ace that other girl!"
"Oh no you don't!" Dawn said, just as May told Blaziken, "You heard her, protect Dawn!"
("Got it.")
Shortly after, a painful scream came from Purugly as Blaziken found her mark and used Sky Uppercut.
"Ugh, that was a mistake…Purugly, return!"
A red beam shot from the smoke, and May said, "Blaze Kick, you know where she is!"
("Blaze Kick!") Blaziken yelled, and May could see the fire on Blaziken's leg as she launched herself at the origin of the red laser.
"I don't think so, girly. I may not have both your Pokémon, but these will do for now. Bye bye!" Mars said tauntingly.
"Come back here with my Pokémon!" May shouted.
"You won't get away with this," Dawn added.
The girls and Blaziken ran through smoke and almost crashed into the wall in the hallway.
"Dammit, she fled," May said angrily.
"Come on, we've got to find Ash and Brock. Maybe they're having more luck than we are," Dawn said.
May wasn't happy at all that they'd lost the Galactic Commander, but she knew Dawn was right. "Alright, let's go."
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled.
("Thunderbolt!")
A powerful blast of lightning pierced the smoke, but struck nothing but the floor.
("It's no use, Ash. I can't see them at all,") Pikachu said, clearly annoyed by this.
Ash and Pikachu hadn't found Cyrus; instead they'd ran into Team Rocket who were now once again attempting to steal Pikachu, even though they, like Ash, couldn't see a thing.
"Seviper, Wrap!" Jessie yelled from the smoke.
Even though she couldn't see, Seviper didn't have that problem. With his heat sensitive vision he could locate Pikachu even through the thick layers of smoke.
("Ash! Seviper has me!") Pikachu cried from within the smoke.
"Thunderbolt him!" Ash yelled desperately.
("Thunderbolt!")
There was a glow from the smoke, but it was clear that the Thunderbolt hadn't done much damage.
"Seriously, twerp, did you think we weren't shockproof by now?" Jessie taunted.
"We're always prepared for a little Pikachu-stealing!" James chimed in.
His Carnivine had been beaten by Pikachu's Iron Tail almost as soon as the battle began, because its Bind hadn't been strong enough to contain the Lightning Mouse.
"Dat's right, now say goodbye ta yer Pikachu, twoip!" Meowth added gleefully.
"You'll never take Pikachu from me, Team Rocket! Infernape, get them!" Ash released his Fire/Fighting Pokémon and it appeared in a white glow.
"Infernape, get Pikachu back from Seviper," Ash commanded.
("I'm on it…if I can see him…") Infernape growled.
"So long, twerp!" Ash heard Jessie's voice form the smoke, moving away.
("Ash! Help me!") Pikachu yelled. His voice sounded muffled, as if it came from behind a wall.
"Come back here! Infernape, let's go!"
("Right behind you!") Ash and Infernape dashed into the smoke, holding their hands in front of them so as not to hit the walls.
"I'm beginning to get really tired of this smoke," Ash said angrily, as he once again felt a wall in front of him.
("Let's just say you're not the only one,") Infernape replied.
Suddenly, after what seemed like ages, the smoke started to clear. Ash and Infernape saw a big airship, with a stylized gold G on the sides.
"That must be Team Galactic's…" Ash muttered. He turned to Infernape.
"I'm going to recall you and see if I can get on board; maybe Team Rocket took Pikachu there," he said.
Infernape nodded. ("Okay. Let me know if you need me,") the Flame Pokémon replied.
Ash recalled Infernape, and then proceeded to sneak towards the airship. Before he could reach it, though, he felt strong hands on his shoulders.
"You'll be coming with us," a voice said.
Ash twisted his neck to see who held his arms, and saw two men with blue, round hair wearing spacesuit-like clothes with a golden G on the front. Behind them was a man in a similar uniform, with dark blue hair that stood up at the sides.
"Let me go!" Ash yelled, thrashing about to get loose.
The dark blue-haired man smirked and said, "Take him away."
The Galactic Grunts nodded and hauled Ash towards the airship.
"Hey! Put me down, you bunch of…!" Ash shouted, still trying to escape.
"What's the problem? You wanted to get on board, no?" The man asked, grinning as he followed his underlings towards the airship.
Well, that's it for Chapter 5. Chapter 6 should be up in a few days. That one will mainly be the aftermath of this Chapter's events, although it will be very important to the plot. Meanwhile, don't forget to review this one! I really need the feedback! Thanks in advance!