The Year of Rocket's Revenge
Session: May, Part 2 (05.02.06/09.11.08)
Wednesday, May 1st, Pallet Town
"About time you showed up," Gary said with a smirk.
Ash chuckled. "Nice to know I'm wanted."
Ash, Misty, Pikachu, and Vaporeon trotted over to Gary and the others. Upon seeing Misty, Tracey ran over to glomp her. But as he reached out to wrap his arms around her, she ducked underneath. Tracey ended up wrapping his arms around himself, although for a second or two he didn't seem to notice.
"What an idiot," remarked Gary.
"Looks like he missed you," Ash commented to Misty.
Stephanie reached over and clasped her hands over Misty's, gazing into the gym leader's eyes in admiration.
"Amazing!" she squealed. "You've gotta teach me that move!"
"You two can talk later," Ash told them. "We've got a job to do."
Misty nodded, then walked over to Ash's side. The two of them, along with Pikachu and Vaporeon, moved in front of Gary and the others.
"Venonat!" Tracey shouted at his Pokémon. "Ready to..."
"Wait a sec there," Gary cut him off.
"But why?"
"Call it a hunch... but I think we should let the two of them handle this."
Gary then motioned at Ash and Misty, both of whom had serious looks of determination on their faces.
"So, the twerp finally arrived," Cassidy said smugly.
"And the bratty gym leader too!" Butch exclaimed. "Looks like our lucky day, Cassidy. Two birds with one stone!"
"It's time you pay for what you've done!" Ash shouted at the duo.
"Ha ha ha!" chuckled the two Rockets in disbelief.
"You can't be serious!" Cassidy exclaimed.
"We're gonna pay? That's rich!"
Misty snickered. "Well... it looks like they think we've been slacking off the past few months."
Ash smirked. "I guess they'll be surprised by what happens next."
Ash and Misty looked down at Pikachu and Vaporeon, both who were ready to attack on command.
"Very well..." Butch said. "Looks like someone's in a rush to meet their maker."
"That's why we're here, Butch."
Ash and Misty took that moment to get their first good look at the monstrosity that Cassidy and Butch were wielding.
"So..." Ash wondered out loud, "who goes first?"
"You know what they say," Misty said with a wink. "Ladies first!"
Ash nodded. "Okay then... have fun!"
"Ready, Vaporeon? Let's do it!"
With that, Misty and Vaporeon took off running, in the direction of Team Rocket, to the surprise of everyone except for Ash and Pikachu.
"She's charging right at us?" gasped Cassidy.
"She really does have a death wish," Butch commented. "Well, let's oblige her."
"Sure. Ready, Blastizaur?"
Blastizaur roared its approval, then glared at Misty and Vaporeon as they charged towards them.
"On my signal..." Misty called out to Vaporeon. "Go!"
With that, Misty veered to the right as Vaporeon suddenly disappeared from sight.
And then reappeared in mid-air in front of Blastizaur.
"A head-on attack!" Cassidy deduced, albeit too late.
Vaporeon then doused Blastizaur's head with Water Gun, much to the creature's dismay. Without second thought, it retaliated with Razor Leaf... but Vaporeon dodged it with ease.
"That Pokémon's fast!" Butch exclaimed.
Misty kept one eye on the battle and another on the grunts she was heading towards. The grunts were still recovering from being caught in the line of fire from an earlier attack, and weren't anywhere near a position to defend themselves.
Vaporeon then appeared in front of Misty and blasted Ice Beam at the grunts and their remaining Pokémon. In one sweeping action, she managed to encase the entire group in a dome of ice.
"Amazing!" Tracey shouted.
Gary was a bit shocked as well. "That's... that's amazing!"
Ash laughed at Gary's reaction. "And it only took two weeks of intense training to get that powerful."
"What power!" Cassidy remarked.
"You think the boss would reward us if we brought him a Pokémon like that?" queried Butch.
"We'll have to beat it first! Blastizaur, time to amp it up!"
Blastizaur turned about and tried to figure out how to hit Vaporeon, who was moving so fast that it was hard to keep track of her position.
"Fire Blast!" ordered Butch.
Out came a gigantic stream of fire from Blastizaur's mouth. Vaporeon reappeared in the attack's path and then suddenly enveloped herself in a stream of water. Vaporeon then jumped directly into the oncoming attack.
"No way!" Butch cried out.
After a few seconds, Vaporeon came through the other end and continued on, charging towards Blastizaur.
"NO WAY!" Butch shouted angrily.
"That's it!" Cassidy exclaimed. "Time for your ultimate attack, Blastizaur!"
Blastizaur growled in acknowledgment, then launched its most powerful attacks - Hydro Cannon, Frenzy Plant, and Blast Burn - all in rapid succession. Vaporeon continued to head in without fear, and Misty knew this was the moment they were waiting for.
"Alright, Vaporeon! Just as planned!"
"PORRRRRRRR!" Vaporeon cried out.
Vaporeon used Double Team to create copies of herself, then they all leaped up, ready to score a succession of hard tackles. The plan backfired, though, when they were all stunned by Hydro Cannon, heavily injured by Frenzy Plant, and then destroyed by Blast Burn.
Cassidy and Butch thought they had won, laughing like evil geniuses as they spotted Misty all alone and unable to defend herself.
"So much for the Vaporeon," Cassidy commented with a smirk.
"Let's put her out of her misery before she starts feeling sorry for her own ineptitude," Butch stated as he gazed over at the gym leader.
Cassidy pointed Blastizaur towards Misty, who was standing about 200 feet in front of the fused Pokémon, just off to the right.
"Any last words before we finish you off?" they asked her.
"Just three," Misty replied. "Look behind you."
The two Rockets were confused. "Uh... look behind y..."
Cassidy and Butch were suddenly knocked off their feet as Vaporeon and Pikachu ran into their legs. As the two fell backwards, the Rockets noticed the two Pok?on's tails were intertwined as they continued heading onwards, planning to attack Blastizaur from behind.
"Pika pika!"
"Por por!"
Cassidy landed hard on her right shoulder, while Butch was a little more fortunate to crash down on his behind. Though in pain, they were stunned to see not only Vaporeon alive and well, but Pikachu suddenly participating in the battle.
"Wait a minute!" Cassidy shouted. "I thought this was one-on-one!"
"When did this suddenly turn into an unfair fight?" Butch asked. "We're the only ones who can fight unfair!"
"We're just tagging off, that's all," responded Misty.
"It's still one-on-one," Ash told them.
Ash and Misty then turned their attention to Pikachu and Vaporeon.
"Thanks for the Helping Hand, Misty!" Ash called out to his girlfriend. "Leave the rest to me and Pikachu!"
"Right! Okay Vaporeon, time to break off!"
Vaporeon glanced over at Pikachu, nodded, then methodically untwisted her tail from his. Once free, Vaporeon slowed up, as Pikachu picked up speed, pouring all of his energy into this first strike.
"Time to show them our newest move! Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!"
"Volt Tackle?" Cassidy and Butch shouted in unison.
"Pika pika pika pika pika pika pi-KAAAAAAAAAA!"
Pikachu was enveloped in a yellow stream of light, with electricity visibly crackling around his body. Pikachu then slammed right into Blastizaur's stomach, making the monstrosity yell in excruciating pain. Blastizaur fell on its back, limbs flailing wildly as it tried to get back to its feet. It was finding it hard to do, considering the Pokémon was being to subjected to electric aftershocks.
"It's paralyzed!" Cassidy stated matter-of-factly, still nursing her hurt shoulder.
"That's not good!" Butch exclaimed in a sitting-up position.
"That's simply unbelievable!" gasped Tracey.
"I've never seen anything like it!" gushed Stephanie.
Gary was at a loss for words, but at the same time, his facial expressions seemed to suggest he knew this was going to happen.
"Now, Pikachu!" Ash yelled, "THUNDER!"
Sparks flew as Pikachu summoned all of the electric power he could from the sky. Already sensing what was coming, Misty recalled Vaporeon and then ran towards Gary and the others, hastily motioning them to get down. The group followed Misty's order without hesitation, as they all hit the ground, lying on their stomachs. Misty dived down too, as a gigantic bolt of thunder rained down from the sky... and straight at Blastizaur! Ash hit the turf just in time as the large bolt of thunder struck the triad Pokémon. Upon impact, the immediate area and then, subsequently, the whole town, was engulfed in a blinding flash of light!
Across the Kanto region, the huge dome of light was visible to varying degrees. In nearby Viridian City, which was already under the control of Team Rocket, numerous grunts and operatives were stunned by this display of power - many mistakenly believing it was coming from one of their agents. A good deal's away, in Saffron City, the illumination from the dome was the only thing visible - yet Sabrina, in the midst of preparing a group of local physics for an inevitable attack from Team Rocket, could sense the power emanating from it.
Back in Pallet, nearly ten minutes had passed by the time the light had completely die down and it was safe for anyone to see. Some smoke still hung around the area, and Ash was already seeing to getting rid of that.
"Pidgeot, whirlwind!"
Pidgeot appeared out of his Pokéball and started to used his large wings to clear away the smoke. As that was happening, Ash ran over to Pikachu, concerned that he seemed a bit dazed and confused after the use of two consecutive powerful attacks.
"Pikachu! Are you alright?"
Ash picked Pikachu off the ground and cradled him in his arms.
"Pi... pika pi?" Pikachu asked, panting in semi-exhaustion.
"That was awesome, Pikachu! You really showed that Pokémon who's the boss!"
Pikachu nodded, lifting up two fingers in a 'V' shape for victory. Ash then glanced forward, and only then realized that he was two steps away from stepping into a crater formed from Thunder's impact with the ground. The crater, about 25 feet across and seven-and-a-half feet deep, pretty much destroyed Pallet's defacto 'town square' and the two main paths that intersected the most central location of Pallet. And at the bottom of the crater was the vanquished Blastizaur, completely knocked out.
Gary and Umbreon walked up next to Ash and Pikachu. Umbreon instantly struck up a conversation with Pikachu, while Gary did the same with Ash.
"Whoa! Where did you teach Pikachu that move?"
"It's a long story," Ash replied.
After having tied up Cassidy and Butch and all of the Rocket grunts, Ash and Misty told the story of where they've been for the past two months or so. All while omitting certain 'events' and still keeping the story coherent. But Gary and the others seemed to get the gist of it.
"That's unbelievable!" squealed Tracey. "To be trained by the Hoenn League Champion?"
"I have to admit," Gary said to them. "How did you two manage to convince him to help you train for such an extended period of time?"
"I guess you could say that he saw something in us," Ash sheepishly admitted.
"So I assume you're ready to retake the position of Junior Master, huh?"
"Well, Gary, I think we have more important matters to attend to at the moment."
Gary was pleasantly surprised by the maturity and wisdom Ash was showing. Misty acknowledged Gary's observation by putting a reassuring hand on Ash's shoulder.
"Any idea why Team Rocket started this grand-scale attack?" Misty asked.
"No one seems to have a clue," answered Gary. "They just started this morning out of blue. The way it was organized, though, means that they had been planning this for quite awhile."
"They have to be stopped!" Tracey declared.
"Of course they do!" Stephanie added before pointing to Amber. "How will Amber figure out what to do with her life if everything is destroyed before she turns 18?"
"Very funny, Steph," Amber replied sarcastically.
"We'd better figure out where to go first," suggested Ash.
A few minutes later, the entire group was gathered in Professor Oak's laboratory. Along with the professor and Ash's mom, they glanced down at a large map of the Kanto region. They all watched as the professor started marking the map.
"So, according to the latest reports, Team Rocket already has complete control of Viridian, Celadon, and Fuchsia. Not to mention that they will also have Pewter within the hour."
Misty gasped as she shot a worried glance at Ash. "Brock..."
"I'm sure Brock's okay," Ash reassured her. "He knows how to take care of himself."
"What about Cerulean?" Misty asked, worried about her sisters.
"No reports of any Team Rocket sightings. But I hear they're already taking all the necessary precautions. As are Vermilion and Saffron."
"And the Indigo Plateau?" wondered Gary out loud.
"For the moment, safe. But given the fact that the Elite Four and many other top League officials are in the process of spreading all around the region to try and help recover the captured cities, any attack with numbers near the overwhelming forces that took Celadon and it will fall for sure."
"Is Cassie doing anything?" Ash asked.
"If she is, the League isn't telling anyone," Gary replied.
"Especially given what happened to Marco, and then you, Ash," Professor Oak added. "Watching a third Junior Master disappear would be the worst thing that could happen right now."
"I think our best chance of stopping Team Rocket is to figure out what city they'll try to take next," deduced Ash.
"I say Cerulean," Misty quickly concluded.
"But why?" Tracey shouted. "Your sisters haven't done anything to draw the ire of Team Rocket!"
"Neither did any of the other cities, but they still attacked them!" Gary stated in objection.
"I love my sisters, but I don't have faith that they'd be able to defend the gym by themselves."
"Given Lieutenant Surge in Vermilion and Sabrina in Saffron, I'd have to agree with your assessment, Misty," the professor said in agreement.
"Oh my!" gasped Mrs. Ketchum.
"I guess it's settled then," Misty declared. "Ash, we're going to Cerulean!"
Ash nodded.
"Where's Pikachu, mom? He's gonna have to rest on the way there."
"It goes against my better judgment," Professor Oak cut in before Mrs. Ketchum could answer, "but I'll get him for you. This is an emergency situation, and we don't have time to wait given how fast Team Rocket is moving."
The professor got up to retrieve Pikachu.
"What are you gonna do, Gary?" Ash asked his childhood friend.
"I'd like to come along and help, but grandpa might need me here. Especially until we're sure Team Rocket won't send another attack force here."
"And I suppose we need to check in on our loved ones," Amber added.
"I can come with you!" Tracey said ecstatically, jumping towards Misty.
Stephanie grabbed Gary by the arm and pulled him away.
"Be a good boy and help us help out Gary-poo!" she yelled at him.
"Meep... yes, miss..."
"So..." Misty said to Ash. "How are we getting to Cerulean? I'm sure the roads are blocked."
"And I'm sure Charizard's not fully recovered from the long flight here himself."
"What about Pidgeot?"
"Great idea, Misty! Pidgeot can get us there in a hurry!"
Misty then got up and headed for the videophone. "I'd better call ahead and tell my sisters to expect us late tonight."
As Misty walked away, Ash started to focus on the task that laid ahead.
"We took care of Cassidy and Butch," he thought to himself, "but who knows what else Team Rocket has up their sleeve. That Blastizaur has only got to be the beginning..."
Ten minutes later, Ash, Pikachu, and Misty were taking off on Pidgeot, waving goodbye to the others as they began their flight for Cerulean.
"Be careful, Ash!" Mrs. Ketchum called out.
"Stay safe, you three!" Professor Oak shouted.
"Until we meet again, Misty!" Tracey cried out.
"Go take Team Rocket down!" Amber and Stephanie yelled in unison.
Gary flashed a smug, all-knowing smile. He knew what Ash was capable of. And he knew that he would be okay.
"Alright, Pidgeot!" Ash said to the bird Pok?on. "Let's fly!"
"Pid-GEOOOOOOO!"
With that, Pidgeot took off like a rocket, and it didn't take long for Gary and the others to lose sight of them.
While one Pidgeot was departing Pallet Town, another Pidgeot was making a landing in Lavender Town on the other side of the region.
As he touched down, Tomiko leaped down and then helped pry... uh, get Brock off of Angela and pull him into a standing position on the ground. As Angela was about to hop off, a green cloaked figure emerged from a nearby abandoned building and hastily ran over to them.
"Mistress!" Angela cried out. "You shouldn't be out here!"
"Yeah!" exclaimed Tomiko as she draped Brock's right arm over her shoulder. "Who knows who could've followed us here!"
"It's a risk I'm willing to take," the 'Mistress' replied.
At the sound of the voice of the 'Mistress,' Brock suddenly began to stir.
"Oh my God, I think he's waking up!" Tomiko shouted.
Brock opened his eyes, just in time to see the 'Mistress' take off the hood from her cloak, revealing her face. And Brock got quite a shock when he saw whom she was.
"It's... it's... you!"
"Nice to see you again, Brock."
Meanwhile, about 20 miles southwest of Saffron City, two young men and a Sandslash were setting up camp as night fell. They were hastily trying to do so before their sunlight was completely gone, as they purposely were avoiding using flashlights or lighting a campfire.
"I can't wait to get to Saffron to find this lass!" one of the men declared. "If this gal is just as great as Miss Masters says she is, then Sandslash and I can't wait to challenge her to a Pokémon battle!"
"You better be careful what you wish for," stated the other. "She's very dangerous. You don't want to piss this girl off."
"Come on! That gorgeous little thing? I doubt she gets ticked at anythin'! Isn't that right, Sandslash!"
"Slash!" Sandslash responded, in the midst of cutting some rope to tied down the tent with.
"Regardless of how enthusiastic you are of meeting her, we have to actually find her."
"I can't believe all we got to go on is that she's somewhere in Saffron! How are we supposed to locate her in a big city like that? And what if Miss Masters' worst fears are true? Team Rocket might already be lookin' for her, too!"
"We'll just have to beat them to her, now won't we, AJ?"
"Heh," AJ smirked. "You're just as itchin' for a fight as I am, Arius."
Arius pulled a hammer out of his bag and started to set the tent stakes in the ground.
"It's gonna be hard to pitch this tent with no moonlight. Gimme a hand, will ya?"
AJ shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, sure. Rest first, then tomorrow, we begin our mission in earnest!"
A few hours later, Ash, Misty, and Pikachu, all riding aboard Pidgeot, breathed a sigh of relief as they saw the large twin spotlights coming from the rooftop of the Cerulean City gym. Ash directed Pidgeot towards them. As they got closer, Misty rejoiced when she saw Daisy, Violet, and Lily on the ground in front of the entrance sign, waving at them with both hands up.
Once they were safely on the ground, Misty hopped down and found herself instantly smothered by her older siblings.
"Where have you been? You had us worried!" Lily cried.
"You shouldn't worry us like that, Mist," semi-scolded Violet.
"Like, we're just glad you're safe!" Daisy said in relief.
"I'm sorry I was gone for so long," apologized Misty. "I should've called."
The three of them let go of Misty and then turned their eyes on Ash, who was recalling Pidgeot to his Pokéball while still holding Pikachu in his arms. Daisy, Violet, and Lily's faces all turned serious as they glared at Ash.
"Should've figured it was him," Violet scoffed.
"Like, he's so irresponsible," Lily admitted.
"Still..." Daisy said, eyeing Ash up. "He's grown into quite the young man..."
"Easy, Daisy," Misty stopped her. "We're still dating, remember?"
Ash, realizing what was up, decided to step forward and clear the air.
"You shouldn't blame Misty. It's all my fault."
"Wha?" Daisy and Lily gasped.
"So, you're admitting your own guilt?" asked Violet.
"Misty came looking for me, and when she finally found me, I didn't want her to leave my side ever again. I kinda kept her occupied while I was doing some training in the Hoenn region."
Misty was shocked, yet touched by Ash's attempt to cover for her.
"Oh Ash..."
"Hey, don't think that gets you off the..." Violet threatened before Daisy put a hand in her face and cut her off.
"We, like, will have plenty of time to talk about this in the morning. It's very late and we, like, have to be well rested in case Team Rocket decides to drop in on us."
Violet didn't seem as if she wanted to table the issue until morning, but she decided to abide by her elder sister's wishes anyway.
"Fine."
Violet turned about and stormed towards the entrance. Lily, out of concern, followed Violet inside.
"Sorry," Daisy apologized for Violet. "She's understandably stressed out, given everything that's gone on in the last 24 hours."
"She's not the only one," Misty admitted. "If we don't stop Team Rocket soon..."
"Don't worry," Ash reassured his girlfriend. "We'll keep Team Rocket from taking over the Kanto region, and then we'll make sure Team Rocket is taken out. For good."
The next morning, new Team Rocket activity was taking place on the outskirts of Vermilion City. A small wave of Rocket Grunts were charging in from the north on Route 6, and another wave was stationed to the east just outside the entrance to Route 11. Four small black-painted yachts sat two miles south of the harbor, each with several visible Rocket agents standing on deck.
Meanwhile, in the city, panic was already ensuing as citizens scrambled for shelter, Officer Jenny and the local police were trying to guide them to safety, and the local militia was hastily setting up blockades to try and stop the invasion.
Among the soldiers was Lieutenant Surge, barking orders at the men.
"Let's go, people! We're not gonna let Team Rocket take this city! Not before they take down every single one of us!"
Up above, an Arbok-shaped air balloon was assessing the situation from the air, watching the blockades come into place. Aboard the balloon were a Grunt to pilot it... and Marco, peering down on Lt. Surge with a pair of binoculars.
"Lieutenant Surge... that arrogant blowhard," Marco said aloud. "I've been relishing this from the moment the boss assigned me the task of capturing Vermilion. I'm going to enjoy taking him down!"
He then pulled a walkie talkie out of his pocket and relayed a message to all of his troops below.
"It's a full go, Rockets. Take no prisoners!"
The troops that were standing by on Route 11 began their charge in, while the boats at sea began their approach on the harbor. Vermilion City was completely surrounded... and there was no way out.
To be continued next week in Part 3!
