Chapter 19
6/4/0046/Noon
Mr. Mortar
Mountain Top
"Kadabra, use Psybeam!" Robbie shouted, pointing at the large, yellow, fur covered, four legged Pokemon. Kadabra lifted its spoon, firing a multi colored beam of light at the mystery Pokemon.
The Pokemon brushed off the attack with a snort before firing a bolt of electricity at Kadabra, knocking out the Psychic type Pokemon in one hit.
"Kadabra!" Robbie exclaimed in disbelief as his Pokemon came to a halt at his feet, charred from the attack. "Return…What Pokemon is that?"
Robbie took out his Pokedex, taking a quick snap shot of the Pokemon to get its data.
"Raikou, the Thunder Pokemon." The electronic voice began but never continued. The screen showing the picture went blank before a new message appeared. "No further information."
"A Raikou? No info but it's strong and it'll be a perfect addition to my team." Robbie said, taking out Croconaw's Poke-ball, releasing the Gator Pokemon. "Croconaw, use Water Pulse!"
"Cro!" It shouted, firing a condensed sphere of water at Raikou who avoided the attack with its superior speed. From there, Raikou rushed at Croconaw using Quick Attack, hitting the Pokemon dead on. Croconaw hit the ground with a thud while Raikou jumped back, giving it some time to return to its feet.
"It's fast, use Water Pulse again and follow with Bite!" Robbie said, watching Croconaw fire another water sphere at Raikou before making a bee-line toward the Pokemon.
Raikou avoided the Water Pulse with a quick sidestep before finding Croconaw latched on to its leg, chomping down as hard as it could with its teeth. Raikou glared at Croconaw, its fur standing up which told Robbie it was beginning to build up electricity.
"Croconaw, let go!" Robbie shouted, rushing over to his stubborn Pokemon who had returned Raikou's glare, refusing to let go. Robbie grabbed Croconaw's body, pulling as hard as he could to force it to let go.
Raikou enveloped itself in a Thunder Bolt, the attack causing no harm to Raikou but the electrical discharge ran straight through Croconaw's body, electrocuting the Pokemon as well as Robbie. Robbie yelled out in pain, a bright, yellow line marking appearing on his left arm which Raikou recognized instantly. Two pointed ovals beneath his left wrist with several lightning bolts pointing upward just beneath it, the Crest of Raikou.
Raikou cut off its attack, allowing both Robbie and Croconaw to drop to the ground unconscious. Raikou roared, firing a Thunder Bolt straight up into the dark skies above, clearing the clouds that had been hovering over Mt. Mortar for several days now.
With that, Raikou took off in a sprint toward the cliff, taking a huge leap from the high cliff down to the forest below.
6/4/0046/Evening
Ecruteak City
Kimono Girls Estate
"Bye Blake-kun, good luck in the Battle Circuit!" Lana, Yumi and Miyu shouted together, waving to Blake who was exiting the compound. Blake returned their cheers by raising his right hand into the air as a closed fist.
Once the girls were sure Blake was out of hearing range, everyone turned to Nozomi.
"Are you sure its right sending him off on his own now?" Yumi asked, getting a nod from Nozomi.
"He'll be fine. As of right now, only that man with Latios, Stanly and ourselves know that Blake the King has returned." Nozomi explained. "To the rest of the world, he's nothing more than a trainer who aims to get far in the Battle Circuit."
"I realize that he looks normal to everyone else, but now that his Crest reformed, it'll react whenever he's near someone else with a Crest." Hiroko said. "That may help us find the remaining Crests, but what he runs into one of the Dark Crests?"
"Blake-kun is the King, even if he runs in one of the Dark Crests, I'm sure he'll manage to pull through. And even if he's defeated, the Dark Crests can't kill the King yet, not until the Storm begins."
6/4/0046/Night
Ecruteak Battle Dome
Lobby
"I have a challenge?" Blake asked, unsure of what that meant.
"Yes. The Kanto Rookie King has organized a match between the two of you. He's been waiting for a reply for nearly a week." Nurse Joy explained. "Do you accept?"
"Sure." Blake said, wondering what the Kanto Rookie King would be like.
6/7/0046/Night
Ecruteak Battle Dome
Stadium
"Alright, people of Kanto and Johto, we have a special treat for you tonight." The announcer began. "The Rookie Kings of Kanto and Johto will engage each other in battle for the crown of Rookie King over the two regions."
The crowd roared, chanting for the start of the match.
"Blake, you'd better beat this loser from Kanto!" The fans shouted. This match had gained quite a crowd of people who love to watch matches between trainers from different regions, always rooting for the hometown favorite.
"Representing Kanto, in the blue box is the trainer known as Brain with an impressive record of 26-25-1 against Blake, the Johto Rookie King who has a perfect record 25-25-0." The announcer said, introducing the two trainers that had the undivided attention of the crowd.
"Trainers, Clash!" The ref shouted, raising both flags into the air. Blake selected Quilava's Poke-ball, looking across the field at Brain, a brunette that was no taller than Blake, clad in a pair of pale green cargo shorts and a black sweater, holding a Poke-ball in his hand.
Both of them threw their Poke-balls onto the field, surprising the crowd since both of them had used the Hook as their choice throw for the Clash. Sparks went flying as Quilava and a Hitmonchan appeared on the field, both of them glaring at the other.
"Battle begin!"
"Hitmonchan, use Bullet Punch." Brain said, pointing at Quilava.
Hitmonchan burst forward, closing the distance between itself and Quilava in an instant, unleashing a fury of fast punches that sent Quilava tumbling backwards.
"Quilava, on your feet and use Ember." Blake said, watching Quilava quickly get back on its feet, igniting the flames on its back and head before firing a burst of flames at Hitmonchan.
"Hitmonchan, use Fire Punch." Brain said. Hitmonchan right hand ignited with flames. From there, Hitmonchan began to swing its arm in a circular path, taking the flames from Ember to raising the strength of its Fire Punch. "Now attack!"
"Quilava, counter with Flame Wheel!" Blake said quickly.
"Quilava!" It said, its body becoming enveloped in flames. Quilava rushed toward Hitmonchan, hovering four inches over the ground to meet with Hitmonchan's fist. Flames went flying in all directions as Hitmonchan and Quilava fought for dominance.
"Hit-mon-chan!" Hitmonchan shouted, overpowering Quilava in the clash which sent the Pokemon sliding across the ground on its back, its fur charred from the fire attack.
'Hmm, Hitmonchan beats Quilava in power, but I'm sure Quilava is faster.' Blake said to himself, watching Quilava return to its feet, checking its burnt fur.
"Hitmonchan, use Thunder Punch!" Brain shouted, planning to finish Quilava off now.
"Quilava, use the Pyro Quick Attack." Blake ordered.
Quilava burst forward, a red dome forming around its body as it left a red streak in its tracks, rushing toward Hitmonchan who was building up electricity in its left hand.
"Hitmonchan, block it!" Brain shouted, realizing the attack would hit before Thunder Punch was ready.
Before Hitmonchan could place its arms in front its torso in a desperate attempt to block the attack, Quilava rammed itself against Hitmonchan, sending the Pokemon reeling while inflicting a Burn on it.
"Hitmonchan!" Brain shouted as Hitmonchan came to a halt on its back at the center of the field.
"Quilava, follow up with Flame Wheel." Blake said, capitalizing on this opportunity. Quilava continued sprinting, rushing toward the downed Hitmonchan as the Flame Wheel developed around it. As Quilava made contact with Hitmonchan, both of them became engulfed a dome of flames that blocked both of them from sight.
Inside the dome of flames, Quilava, like Hitmonchan was taking damage from the attack, but Hitmonchan received much more extensive since it was the primary target of the flames. The flames cleared which revealed Hitmonchan and Quilava who were both still standing, both covered in heavy burns.
'Huh?' Blake said, confused on why Quilava had taken damage from the attack.
"Hitmonchan, put all your strength into one last Fire Punch." Brain said, beating all or nothing on one final attack. Hitmonchan's right arm, its hand becoming engulfed in flames before it glance at Quilava, ready to attack.
"Quilava, use the Pyro Quick Attack again." Blake commanded since he knew Quilava would lose this clash if it used Flame Wheel.
Both Quilava and Hitmonchan rushed at the other, their final attacks ready. The two met with a burst of flames,Hitmoncham failing to hold its ground for more than a second before it was sent flying in Brain's direction. Brain ducked, narrowly avoiding Hitmonchan's airborne body followed by a loud crash. Brain turned around to see his Hitmonchan resting against the wall of the Stadium, a pair of black swirls replacing its eyes.
The ref ran over to Hitmonchan to check the Pokemon before raising the red flag which declared Blake and Quilava the winners.
"After several explosive clashes between these two trainers, Blake, the Johto Rookie King has come out on top!" The announcer shouted as the crowd burst into cheers for Blake's victory.
"Aww man, I lost." Brain exclaimed, returning Hitmonchan to its Poke-ball before smiling at the round object. "But you did good Hitmonchan."
Blake crossed the field, approaching Brain who was about to leave the stadium. Blake offered him a handshake which Brain accepted as a reporter approached them.
"You may have beaten me this time, but I'm going to win in our next showdown." He said before leaving Blake and Quilava.
"So Blake, how do you feel about your first victory over Kanto?" The female reporter asked, handing Blake the mic.
"It'll be the first of many." Blake replied, looking up at the crowded stands where the people were shouting compliments about his battle.
"And now that you've ascended to the B-Class, what do you plan on doing next?"
"I plan on entering the IBF Tourney." Blake announced, silencing the crowd which was the reaction he was expecting.
"He may be good, but the IBF Tourney is only for the big leagues." Someone whispered.
"He'll ruin his perfect record entering the IBF Tourney so early in his career." Another person said.
"Is there any more questions?" Blake asked, getting a quick no from the reporter. "Alright then, have a good night."
Blake left the stadium, ignoring the crowd that thought his ego was growing from his title as Rookie King.
Battle Dome
Lobby
Blake and another trainer stood in front of the desk where Nurse Joy was normally stationed to heal Pokemon or assist trainers with their Battle Circuit needs. At the moment, Nurse Joy was missing which prevented these two from moving on with their night.
"Hey, I saw your match." The boy said, getting Blake's attention. "You got some skills. My name's Matt, what are you here for?"
"I'm going to enter the IBF Tourney." Blake responded.
"Really? Me too." Matt said, slapping Blake's back which nearly pushed him over. "Are you from Johto?"
"Yeah, aren't most trainers in Johto, from Johto?" Blake asked in return.
"Well I'm from Kanto." Matt replied.
"What are you doing in Johto then?"
"I don't really know, one night while I was still in Kanto, I met this weird Pokemon that knocked me out. Then I woke up in New Bark Town." Matt explained, the story coming out naturally since he had finally come to terms with the fact that he was stuck in Johto.
"A weird Pokemon?" Blake asked, rasing one eyebrow. "What did it look like?"
"Luckily, I got a picture of it just before it got me." Matt said, taking out his Pokedex.
"You have a Pokedex?" Blake asked as Matt went down the list of Pokemon he had seen and retrieved data on already.
"Yup, I got it from Professor Evergreen in Kanto…here it is. I looked up the Pokemon but it said there wasn't any information on it." Matt replied, showing Blake the picture of the blue, four-legged Pokemon with a long purple mane.
'Suicune!' Blake exclaimed mentally, remembering one of the three Pokemon the Kimono girls had shown him before he left their estate. Blake glanced at Matt.
"Whoa! What're you doing?" Matt asked as Blake grabbed his left wrist, pulling it up so that he could inspect it.
"Let me see your right wrist." Blake said since he couldn't find Matt's Crest on his left wrist, earning a confused look from the boy.
"O-kay." He said slowly, raising his right arm so that Blake could get good look at it. Blake grabbed Matt's forearm, causing a pair of pointed blue, pointed ovals to become visible just beneath his wrist. Below the ovals was a set of lines and a wave that Blake believed were supposed to represent wind and water. "Whoa, how'd you do that?"
"Matt, I believe this will be the beginning of a very strange friendship." Blake said before dropping Matt's arm as Nurse Joy reassumed her position behind the counter.
"What can I do for the two of you?" She asked kindly.
"My name is Blake."
"And I'm Matt."
"And we're both entering the IBF Tourney."
6/8/0046/Morning
Mr. Mortar
Lodge
"Are you sure he's alive?" A deep voice asked.
"What do mean 'is he still alive?' Of course he's alive." A feminine voice replied.
"Well here, put him on the couch until he wakes up."
Robbie shot up from the couch, rolling off the chair and falling to the floor, hitting his head on the glass table that was next to the couch on his way down. The sound of glass breaking caused the sound of two sets of foot steps to come rushing into their living room.
"Ouch!" Robbie shouted, grasping the side of his head which had broken the glass without receiving any cuts.
"Are you okay?" A high pitched girl voice asked, rushing over to Robbie.
"Who're you?" Robbie asked, looking around the room.
"My name is Gwen." The blonde haired girl replied before motining to the large man that was still standing at the entrance to the room. "This is my father. Introduce yourself dad."
"Six…months." The man mumbled under breath.
"Six months? What kinda name is that?" Robbie asked, giving Gwen an odd look which only received a sigh.
"Six months!" The man yelled at Robbie. "I spent six months making that table only to have it break two days after I put it in?"
The man stormed out the room, leaving Robbie dumbfounded.
"I'm sorry; he's a lot nicer than he was just now. But you just smashed the table he had been working on for a few months." Gwen said. "His name is Victor. I'll see if I can calm him down a bit."
"Hang on, do you have a Restoration Machine here?" Robbie asked.
"Yeah, just go down the hall and make a left." She said, pointing to the doorway that was opposite the one she was entering.
"Thank you." Robbie said, receiving a smile from Gwen. Once Gwen had left the room, Robbie gave himself a pat on the back. 'Boy she's cute. But where am I?'
Robbie rose from the floor, observing the wooden walls and plush couch he had fallen off of.
"Professor Elm?" Robbie asked through the phone, looking at the screen that provided a picture of the Professor in New Bark Town.
"Oh Robbie! It's been quite some time since I heard from you." The Professor said, pushing away the Butterfree that was trying to land on his head. "Is there anything you need?"
"Actually, yeah." Robbie began. "I ran into this really strong Pokemon at Mr. Mortar and when I looked up in the Pokedex, it said there was no information on it besides its name."
Professor Elm's face darkened instantly.
"Robbie, but your Pokedex into the port." He said immediately.
Robbie did as he was told, waiting a few minutes before Professor Elm gasped.
"What, what's wrong?" Robbie asked, pressing his nose against the screen.
"A Raikou has reappeared." Professor Elm said in disbelief.
"What's so special about it?"
"…Alright Robbie. Since you stumbled onto the Pokemon, I guess that means I'll share the details with you." Professor Elm began. "Raikou is a Legendary Pokemon that was believed to have-"
"A Legendary Pokemon? Like Arceus?" Robbie asked.
"Correct. Arceus is the only remaining Legendary up until now. So like I was saying before, Legendary Pokemon were believed to have gone extinct with the exception of Arceus, but now that one of them have reappeared, I'm sure others have returned as well." Elm explained.
"So does this change anything I'm supposed to do?" Robbie asked.
"Nope. In fact, with more training, I would encourage you to try and capture one of them." Elm said, getting a large smile from Robbie.
"With a Legendary on my team, I'd be unbeatable." Robbie said to himself. "Good bye Professor, I have some training to do!"
Robbie hung up the phone and attempted to find his way of the lodge, only to run into Gwen who had been looking for him.
"There you are." She said, greeting Robbie.
"Can you tell me where the exit is? Oh but first, where's your dad?"
"I'm sorry for breaking your table sir." Robbie said, trying to sound as sincere as possible. "I had no idea you put so much work into it."
Victor glanced at Robbie, raising one eyebrow before snorting.
"I'm sorry to kid. I didn't mean to blow up at you." Victor said, giving Robbie a small grin. "But my daughter told me that she found you out cold on the mountain side, what were you doing there?"
"…Well I was training until I found this really cool Pokemon. I started to battle it but my Croconaw wouldn't let go of it when it was charing up for an electric attack so I tried to pull Croconaw off my self." Robbie explained. "In the end, both of us got zapped."
"Well that's kind of embarrassing." Victor stated. "I was hoping to hear you fought to the death with a pack of Machoke's or dueled with a Golem, not you passed out from an electric attack."
"He-y." Robbie said, glaring at Victor.
"So what Pokemon was it?" Gwen asked.
"I bet it was a Pichu." Victor cut in, getting a glare from Robbie.
"Well it was yellow, on four legs and it had a purple main…oh wait, I have a picture of it." Robbie said, taking out his Pokedex. After scrolling down the list, Robbie stopped at the picture of Raikou, showing the image to Gwen and Victor.
'Raikou!' The two shouted mentally before looking up at Robbie.
"It looks pretty cool doesn't it?" Robbie asked, getting a nod from the two.
"So Robbie, you were looking for the exit right?" Gwen asked suddenly.
"Yup, I have to continue my search my Raikou. If I catch it I'm sure I can become the strongest trainer ever." Robbie declared, raising one arm to flex what he called a muscle.
"Just down the hall right there, and make a right. That'll take you out to the front of the Lodge." Gwen explained.
"Thank you!" Robbie said, gathering his belongings before leaving the room.
After hearing the front door close, Gwen turned to Victor, getting a nod from the man.
"So another Crest has appeared." Victor began.
"What are we going to do Victor?" Gwen asked.
"Well first we're going to follow him. The Dark Crests are rising and I'm sure he'll become a target now that his Crest has formed." Victor replied.
"So we're going to watch over him?"
"Yes, we have to do our part before the Storm arrives."
'The Storm?' Robbie asked himself, leaning against the wall of the hallway which he hadn't left since his curiosity was peaked when Gwen suddenly wanted him to leave. He had faked leaving the lodge pretty well, making it sound like he left even though he hadn't yet. 'What're they talking about?'