Ash and Adam made a quick trip to the Cerulean Pokemon Center where they gave their pokemon to the local Nurse Joy who began the proess of heaing their pokemon. While they waited they began idle conversation about the upcoming gym battle.
"I'm telling you, Luxio is all I need for the gym battle." Adam said, while wiping his spear, as they sat in two plush green sofas. Ash was sitting in the other, cleaning of some muck on his hemet with some cleaner that Adam gave him.
It had been awhile since Ash could just sit down and talk with a friend. Caught up in all the excitement of becoming a pokemon trainer, the creature attacks, and everything related to pokemon, Ash hadn't had the time to just sit down and relax.
"I'm just telling you to be prepared. Keep Sparrow or Ekans nearby, just in case they pull something unexpected." Ash reasoned, while taking off his cuirass and inspecting the furs that hung on the shoulder plates for anything that may have gotten stuck in it.
"You haven't heard, have you? The Waterflower family has been going through a rough patch lately. Apparently they're so afraid of what little Misty has to say, that they are spending everything they have on finding her. They haven't been paying much attention to the gym, and their pratically giving away badges. And I've heard they're planning on calling some mercenaries to find her." Adam said.
"Like I would let them lay a finger on her. You see those scars on her. Those are the marks of abuse, and she has enough for an entire lifetime." Ash said.
Before long Nurse Joy had all their pokemon healed and they set out to the same field they battled in earlier. By the time they arrived, the sun was setting, but Misty was still chasing Eevee and Julia was still under the tree, reading.
"Hey Julia its time to go!" Adam called, catching their attention.
"Alright, Misty and Eevee time to go.", she said, closing her book and putting it in her bag. While Eevee ran back to her trainer, Misty went back to Ash and gave him a hug.
"You ready for dinner?" asked Ash so softly, that it surprised Adam. Back in Pallet Ash wasn't considered the nicest person. It wasn't like he was nice, he jut showed it in a different way.
While Adam and Julia goofed around, Ash was usually the one to keep an eye on them. Most of the time they would hang out in Julia's parent's restaurants, but sometimes they would venture to the forest around Pallet looking for pokemon. One time they angered a fully grown Raticate, Ash had drove it off, but scolded them about their antics.
Misty excitedly nodded her head, before pulling out a poke-ball with a wave-like design on it.
"Where did you get that?" asked Ash.
"Julia gave it to me. She said since I like Water-type pokemon I could keep it.", she said happily. Ash looked at Julia, who smiled and nodded her head.
"Well we better get going. Its getting dark." Adam said pointing at the darkening sky.
They wandered a bit in the large city before they found a small cafe, tucked away in a corner of a busy street. Finding that all the other restaurants had long lines they decided that it was the best decision.
It was cozy inside. A small fire blazed in a fire place at the back, gently washed the room with flickering light and small lights that hung from the ceiling joined it in lighting the room.
Small couches dotted the room accompanied by small tables. Most of the customers there were elderly, some with pokemon, others without. A large water tank sat by the fire, and a large, scarred Seaking floated in it. Its large horn gleamed in the light, it was almost 3 feet long and it put Misty's Goldeen to shame.
Ash released Mael into the large tank, but gave him a stern look saying, "Leave the Seaking alone." Judging by those scars, the old Seaking had seen worse foes.
The group, except for Misty, released their pokemon for them to snuggle by the fire. Adam's and Ash's were especially tired from their battle. Smaug came to Ash's side and curled up by his leg, while Ash began his head.
It took a couple of minutes, but by the time the waitress came by asking for their orders. Everyone besides Ash, who ordered a meat pie, asked for some of the Miltank Stew with some cheese cake for dessert.
Scientist, seeing that gathering meat from pokemon was too dangerous, began cloning them mostly the ones that gave the best meat. The clones were jusst simple crtures tht just ate and reproduced.
While they waited for their dinner, the weather outside began worsening. Rain lashed at the window and thunder began bellowing through the sky. Lightning began illuminating the sky and the winds began thrashing Cerulean.
Strangely though, all their pokemon raised their heads and looked at the thundering sky. Ash would have asked what was wrong but Misty was quivering in fear from the thunder outside, so Ash buised himself with calming the four year old.
By the time the food arrived, the storm was in full swing aand thrashing Cerulean with its fury. Lighting cackled through the sky as the wind threw trash and debris everywhere.
The bowls of soup produced clouds of vapor, that seemed to calm Misty as she took hesitant spoonfuls from the hot soup.
Ash was enjoying his the variety of meat that the pie gave, and he happily shared some with his pokemon. The meat, sauces, vegetables, and pie crust mixed together quite nicely and made an excellent meal.
Soon Misty couldn't eat anymore and passed her half eaten bowl back to Ash, who raised his eyebrows in question. She seemed tired, her eyelids were heavy so he let her sleep on his cloak beside Smaug, who kept her warm with his tail flame. Tyrunt also curled around her, making sure her other side was comfy.
Their dinner passed in relative silence, they spoke about idle things here and there, but they just foucsed on their food.
When they were done with their meal, they returned all their pokemon, and paid the waitress for their meal. Ash had wrapped Misty in his cloak and was carrying her in is arms, when they were ready to go.
Thunder still lashed at the sky, and the rain pelted them harshly. Rain rolled in between their armor getting them soaked. Even Misty, who was wrapped in a water resistant cloak and Ash's protective arms, was getting drenched.
The walk to the Pokemon Center was horrible. The only way they could find their way was for the light from the lightning bolts that dashed through the sky. Water filled every pocket or space on their beings. Water sloshed in their shoes and boots, their clothes were hanging low with water, and they felt all miserable.
When they finally made it to the Pokemon Center, they all just lumbered of to their room. Once they were inside, Ash gave Misty to Julia, who went to the bathroom and the sounds of water were heard.
While the girls were inside the restroom, Ash and Adam stripped off their armor and plopped it in a corner of a room. While Adam grabbed some spare clothes out of his bag, Ash, in his green waist coat and black shorts, both lined with chain mail, headed out to the main desk for towels and extra blankets.
When Ash returned to the room, Adam was just heading into the bathroom, while the two girls were in their pajamas. After locking the door, Ash handed the blankets to Julia, before sitting on the couch, waiting for Adam.
A couple of minutes passed before Adam got out, steam rolling off him, and gestured for Ash. He grabbed a towel and his night wear and headed into the bathroom. He stripped of his damp clothes and turned on the hot water and relaxed into the tub. He really didn't want to think because he felt so tired so he spent as little time.
Ash got out the water, dried himself off, put on his night wear and got in bed. He was so tired that he fell asleep almost instantly.
Ash awoke to the gentle stream of sunlight coming from the window. He looked at the clock on the wall and saw that it was about 7:00 a clock. Nobody else was awake, but the streets were already bustling with activity.
Ash slowly got out of the bed and grabbed his armor, now thankfully dry, and headed to the bathroom to change. When he finished he walked out of their room and released Smaug from his poke-ball. He gave a yawn and stretched before turning his head to Ash.
"Hey buddy, you ready for some training today?" asked Ash. Smaug gave Ash a thumbs up, before blowing a stream of fire into the air.
Ash and Smaug exited the Pokemon Center, and left for the field they were at yesterday. Once they were there, Ash released his pokemon. He had some serious plans for the gym.
Time Skip: Three Days
The three trainers stood in front of the gym, all of them ready for an intense fight. Ash had left Misty with Smaug and Julia's Weedle to look after her. They wouldn't risk taking her to the Gym Battle and having her parents recognize her.
The inside of the gym was a cheery sky blue with a large, deep pool in the middle of the gym with several platforms floating on it.
A group of people with different shades of hair were standing on the opposite side, whispering silently, before looking up at them as they arrived.
"Welcome! I'm assuming that you are here for a gym battle?" said what looked like the man of the house.
All three nodded their heads.
"Well lets get started shall we?"
Time Skip: 30 minutes
It was finally Ash's turn and he was quite unimpressed. The gym leader's pokemon were all weak and they disappointed them all. Adam and Julia both only used one pokemon and the battles just went by too fast. He wanted a challenge.
"May I make a request?" Ash asked.
"And what will that be?" the gym leader asked. His family, who sat on the bleachers next to the pool eyed him with curiosity.
"I want your two strongest pokemon against mine.", he said.
The gym leader gained a flabbergasted look before saying, "Sure, but if you lose you will have to battle me again."
Ash released Mael into the pool, who seemed quite happy in being in his natural habitat He swam and dove for a while before resurfacing and eyeing the gym leader.
The gym leader took out two poke-balls and released the the occupants. Two Gyarados. Their serpentine bodies coiled around each other in the water. Their fangs gleamed, and their scales were strong and sturdy. Gyarados were some of the most feared water-dragons for a reason. Their brute strength and nasty tempers were legendary.
"Hyper Beam!" ordered the gym leader. Orange-whitish energy began forming in the two titan's mouths and they began getting larger and larger.
"Get in between them!" Ash said to Mael. He sped through the water before stopping in between the two. The Gyarados aimed at him, their attacks ready to fire.
"Fire!"
"Dive!"
The two trainers ordered. While Mael dove beneath the water, the two beams of energy slammed into the opposite Gyarados. The massive amount of energy exploded, making the two Gyarados to thrash in pain before they began attacking each other, both in a blood rage. They bit, coiled, and slammed into each other, ignoring their trainer's pleas.
While the two Gyarados fought, Mael silently arose from the water.
"Ice Beam." Ash whispered to his pokemon. A sphere of light blue energy began forming in front of Mael's snout and was blasted at the the other water-dragons. The temperature dropped instantly, as the stream of energy slammed into them. Ice began covering them like a shell as they still fought each other. Soon, they were completely frozen, within a couple of inches of ice.
Ash thought he won the match, but was surprised by the gym leader's next move.
"Outrage!"
Ash didn't know how they heard the command, but a blackish-red energy enveloped the two Gyarados and they began quivering inside their icy prison. Cracks began appearing on the glossy surface, and pieces began falling off. Then, with a burst of energy the ice prison exploded sending pieces of ice everywhere. But instead of a triumphant roar, the two dragons swayed slowly. Ash smiled. The same type of smile when luck befell someone.
The Gyarados were weakened with their lack of energy. Already tired with their battle wit each other, they had used all their energy to escape from their prison. They were vulnerable to attack.
"Use a barrage of Dragon Rages." Ash ordered. It was a plan that Ash had come up with. Instead of using a full power attack, Mael used smaller, but faster versions of an attack. Blasts of draconian energy began pouring out of Mael. They slammed into the Gyarados and the water and platforms around them, exploding sending pillars of water into the air and smoke. The roars of agony were droned out, and two colossal splashes were heard.
When the smoke cleared the two Gyarados were floating on top of the water, unconscious. The Gym leader hesitantly gave them the Cascade Badge. A small token shaped like a tear drop. Ash placed it next to his Boulder Badge, in his badge case, that he placed neatly in his satchel.
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The group left right after the gym battle. There was no point in staying, especially when Misty felt uneasy in the city now. The night before she was scared out of her mind that Ash was going to leave her with her old family and it took the combined forces of Ash, Julia, Adam, and their pokemon to calm her down.
Since their pokemon took no real damage, they skipped healing their pokemon from the Pokemon Center. So far the gym leaders they had faced were not a problem, but the gyms to come would be exponentially more difficult. The next gym in Vermillion City was lead by Lt. Surge, who was famous for being one of the toughest trainers in Kanto. His pokemon were extremely tough and each day, dozens of trainers lost to them. Ash really needed some serious training.
The path to Vermillion was a large field that stretched all the way to the Vermillion. Forest surrounded the plains and the grass that grew were almost as tall as Misty. They just stayed on the dirt path, that had been paved by the Pokemon League to guide trainers to the next city. Wild pokemon shifted the grass around them, but they steered clear away from them with Smaug and Luxio out. They stayed in relative silence, until a loud roar sounded off.
They instantly gathered around Misty, while drawing their weapons. There were loud noises being heard all around them. Then suddenly an Abra tumbled out, but something was terribly wrong. Its usual golden fur was stained with blood and its left arm was mangled. It was frightened for sure, it kept turning its head around and around, looking for something. It was being hunted.
Ash leapt to action. He grabbed the injured Abra and began bolting down the dirt path, followed by the rest, all keeping an eye out.
Luckily for them, a Pokemon Center was nearby. Some Pokemon Centers were located in the wild for trainers in a desperate situation. Like the one near Mt. Moon where he found Misty, it was for the safety of trainers and their pokemon.
They dashed in, to the surprise of the local Nurse Joy. She was about to ask what was the matter, but then she saw the Abra. She snatched it out of his arms and headed to the Emergency Room, followed by several Blissey. Misty was quivering in Ash's arm. She was quite scared, it seemed for the hurt Abra. He half guided the rest into the armchairs making sure they didn't hurt themselves. It seemed they were too... sensitive for gore. Not that he wasn't but it just didn't affect him that much.
Several hours passed before Nurse Joy emerged from the operating room, tired. They looked at her hopefully.
"She'll live, but she lost that arm. She won't be able to participate in battles anymore but she is very powerful or her age. Could any of you look after her?" she asked hopefully.
Ash's hand was the fastest. He had many reasons to take in the injured Abra. First if she was left in the wild, what ever hunted her would surely come back for round twenty. Second, Abra's and their evolutionary line, were powerful psychics and could lift things 20 times their size.
"Thank you young man. You can see her now. She is on the first room on the right." she said with her usual cheery smile. Ash nodded and headed for Abra's room.
He found the young, psychic type resting in a bed. Her left arm was gone, replaced with a stump that had been bandaged. She breathed in gently and a voice was heard in his head.
'Why are you here?' the voice said. It was clearly feminine and it was quite soothing to Ash.
Ash pulled out a chair and placed it nearby the bed and sat on it. "I'm the one taking care of you during and after your recovery.", he replied.
'You do realize I will no longer be able to participate in any of your human battles, correct?' she thought.
"I am quite aware of your condition and I have no intention of putting you in a battle."
'Then why would you look after me?'
"Unlike some trainers, there are more uses to pokemon than just battling." Ash said.
Abra stayed silent for a moment before thinking, tiredly.
' You are wise for some one your age'
"That's a compliment coming from you." Ash said, while sitting up.
"Get some rest, your still weak from your injuries. I'll show you the team when you get better.", he said while getting up from the chair and began walking out the door. He turned to Abra and found her breathing rhythmic and gentle.
Ash returned to the lobby and saw that his companians were gone. He looked over to Nurse Joy.
"They rented a room. Its down the hall.", she pointed.
Ash entered the room and saw that it was pretty dark outside. Adam and Julia were curled up on a bed together and Misty was curled up with Luxio. Seeing everyone was content, Ash took of his armor and slipped into an empty bed, tucking his scabbard with him. He slowly slipped into the dream world.
Lordofire here, hoped you liked this chapter. Like I said, I update once a month now. Check out my Harry Potter story, which is also being updated once a month.