Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, Pokémon Adventures, Soul Silver/Heart Gold and their characters and plots. Just using them as a guide for this story, so it won't follow the plots exactly. (I do have a copy of both Soul Silver and Heart Gold, though XD Also Silver, Gold, and Crystal. Ah Silver…my first videogame :3)
You guys will probably never believe this, but I have all 25 chapter of the Johto Arc planned out :D I'm starting to plan out the Kanto Arc in the meantime. There will be four arcs in total. I'm actually very excited for it :3 Anyways, I hope you enjoy the chapter.
Krisa, after her strange mishap at the Ruins of Alph, was on her way to meet Ethan. On route to the river they were meeting by, Krisa got into a few battles with other trainers. She even caught a Mareep and some other Pokémon that were transferred back to the lab using a device on her Pokégear. The river flowed by swiftly; Krisa watched the water rushing. Ethan showed up minutes later and snuck up on his friend, scaring her and making her squeal.
"Why would you do that?" she asked in irritation. She was still quite shaken up by the Unown attack.
"Haha," Ethan laughed rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry. Didn't expect you to get upset." Krisa smiled slightly at the apology. "So, I guess we should set up camp here. I'll set up the tents and you get the firewood."
Krisa saluted him playfully and said, "Sound like a plan. We'll be back."
Ethan watched as Krisa ran off with her Pidgey before he got to work in setting up their tents.
That evening, they were sitting around a campfire that Krisa and Flare set up. Krisa was holding her egg on her lap while Flappy and Flare cuddled up close to her. I wonder what's going to hatch from it, she wondered silently to herself.
Ethan catch her staring in wonder at the egg and smile. He knew what she was thinking. Having been around Pokémon eggs all of his life, Ethan knew she was probably trying to guess what Pokémon would hatch from it. He wasn't planning on showing off, but it would probably be better for Krisa to train alongside the unknown Pokémon from the start of her journey. It would only serve to strengthen their bond later.
"Hey, Krisa," he called, "let me see the egg."
Krisa was confused, but she handed Ethan the egg wondering what he planned to do. She watched as her friend took out a terrycloth and started polishing the egg gently. After a few minutes, the egg started flashing between its normal color and a blinding, white light. I-it's…hatching already?
As the light became the only color, the beams shot out and the egg began to change shape. After the shaped changed from an oval to a rounded Pokémon with a pointed head, the light dissipated and a Pokémon that looked like it was stuck in an egg began to look around. It zeroed in on its trainer and tackled Krisa to the ground. "Wow, you're strong for a little guy, aren't you?" she asked her new Pokémon. "What do I call you?"
She took out her Pokédex and it gave her the species name and data regarding this small, egg Pokémon. "Togepi, huh?" She looked over to Ethan who was grinning with pride. "What did you do?"
Ethan chuckled slightly. "Cool, huh? I developed some sort of ability after spending so much time at my grandparents' daycare. I only noticed it a few years ago. Eggs would hatch a lot quicker after I took time to clean and polish them. My grandparents' called it my 'golden touch.' It earned me the nickname Gold."
Krisa was staring at the boy with wide eyes. "That's…amazing." She looked to her Togepi and smiled. "Thanks. Now I have another friend to join me…wait, that's it!"
It was Gold's turn to be confused. "What's it?"
"Its name," Krisa clarified. "I'm going to name him Friendship." Then she thought about the aide and Professor Elm. "I should probably let the professor know the egg hatched."
Gold's eyes lit up when she mentioned Professor Elm. He had heard about the young professor while listening to Professor Oak and Mary's radio show before he had come to New Bark Town. Gold had been a child at the time, but the way Professor Elm talked about Pokémon had amazed him. The man truly had a connection to Pokémon and trainers alike while also being able to communicate with other professors. His research was all about Pokémon eggs and evolution as well which was very beneficial for the young breeder.
"Yeah, the egg hatched," he heard Krisa say into her Pokégear. "Come to the lab? Um, I guess that's okay. I'm not too far away. Just outside of Violet City. I'll head back in the morning. See you tomorrow."
Krisa looked over to her friend, but was confused when she saw him smirking. "What?" she asked hesitantly.
"I am so going with you tomorrow," he told her. "Meeting Professor Elm would be amazing."
Krisa chuckled but nodded in acceptance. "Why are you so interested in Professor Elm, anyway?"
Gold lied back on the grass, looking up at the stars. "Like I said," he started, "I have the ability to cause eggs to hatch. My grandparents own a Pokémon daycare. Professor Elm's research is all about eggs and evolution. It's stuff I'll have to learn about one day, but honestly I just want to know what he's been able to find out about Pokémon eggs that I don't know already."
Krisa thought about it and understood right away. Since she was always interested in evolution, Professor Elm's research interested her. "Anyways, I'm going to bed," Gold said enthusiastically before heading into his tent. "See you in the morning."
"Good night, Gold," Krisa said trying out his nickname. Gold paused going into the tent, smiling slightly at her using his nickname.
"Good night, Krisa."
The next morning, the two children headed back towards New Bark Town. As they were walking, Krisa learned that Gold also came from New Bark Town, but spent most of his time near Goldenrod helping out at his grandparents' daycare. Their random small talk made the walk seem shorter and, before they knew it, they were walking into the lab, though it was early afternoon when they had finally arrived.
"Ah, Krisa, there you are," Professor Elm greeted as he was getting files from a box on the top of one of his shelves. "Oh, and I see you've brought a friend."
"Yeah," Krisa said with a smile. "This is Ethan."
"Yeah, nickname's Gold. It's great to meet you."
"Ethan…" Professor Elm muttered as he climbed down his ladder. "Ethan, Ethan, Ethan, Ethan…why does that name seem so familiar?" Once his feet were planted firmly on the ground, he tapped his pointer finger against his chin before realization flooded into him. "Ah, I know. Ethan, as in Jovi's boy." Ethan looked shocked when the professor mentioned his mother's name. "Well, it's nice to meet you, too. I heard you were on your way to Goldenrod."
Gold looked a little guilty, rubbing the back of his head. "Yeah, got sidetracked. So anyway, you're doing research on the egg you gave Krisa, right? What kind of research."
"Ah, the egg!" Professor Elm exclaimed remembering the reason for this visit. "Let me see. What Pokémon was it?"
Krisa took out her Pokéball that held Friendship and tossed it into the air. The Togepi appeared and Professor Elm took out a Pokédex and read the information. "Hey, what's that?" Gold asked when he saw the mini computer.
"It's a Pokédex," Krisa told him taking out her own. "It's a small computer that collects data on Pokémon you've seen and captured. It has something to do with Professor Oak's research."
"Really? That's so cool!"
"Yes, your mother said you were highly interested in Pokémon and breeding," Elm mused. "Say, from a breeding standpoint, was sending the egg to a trainer a good call?"
God shrugged slightly, but didn't look convincing when he said, "Yeah, it was. Just, it should have been carried in a special egg case. You see, it reduces the eggs movements when someone is travelling. I had one, though, so that helped."
Professor Elm smiled at the boy, nodding in understanding to his words. "That's an excellent tip. I'll keep that in mind. Since you seem to know a lot about Pokémon, especially in a way a scientist wouldn't think of, would you like to join Krisa in helping with mine and Professor Oak's research? I'm sure this Pokédex would get more use with you."
"You're kidding," Gold replied. "You really want me to help."
Elm nodded. "It would be beneficial for both me and Professor Oak. What do you say?"
"Heck yeah, I'll help!" Gold exclaimed.
"Great," Professor Elm said handing the Pokédex over to him. "Then take this, and also, I think the last Pokémon I was researching would benefit from travelling with a trainer." He moved to get the Pokéball from his desk and handed it to Gold. "This one is called Chikorita."
As the grass Pokémon was released from the ball, it appeared in front of Gold and Krisa. Letting out a happy cry, the Chikorita ran to Gold and nuzzled against his leg. While Gold was bonding with his new Pokémon, Professor Elm handed a rounded stone to Krisa. "And this is for you, as thanks for helping me with that egg."
"An evolutionary stone?" Krisa asked hopefully.
Professor Elm chuckled at Krisa's eagerness. "Not quite," he replied. "This is actually an everstone. You give it to your Pokémon to prevent evolution. It's used by Pokémon researchers when they are interested in studying a specific form of a Pokémon for longer as well as seeing what moves a Pokémon learns at different levels without evolving."
Krisa took the stone, though she was sure she wouldn't have need for that type of stone in her travels. If there ever was a Pokémon, though, that she wanted to study more intently, she would have a way and for that she was thankful. "I must say," Elm stated breaking Krisa out of her thoughts, "that you definitely have a talent for research, Krisa. Big things are going to happen with you. You'll be able to take any challenge with your Pokémon. I'm sure of it!"
"For a new trainer, you and your Pokémon work surprisingly well together. They know what you all need when you need it, and that connection is something you will need in future challenges."
Krisa was instantly reminded of Sage Li's words back at Sprout Tower. At the time, she just deemed them words that Li would have said to anyone, but now Professor Elm was saying something similar. Two people, one who knew her well and one who knew her from one battle, both said that something big was going to happen with her, that there would be challenges she would face in the future. Krisa, however, had only planned on stopping her brother and taking on the Pokémon League Challenge. She was prepared for the difficulty of the league, but she was hoping that talking to her brother would be easy. Now, she felt uncertainty creeping into her heart. She had just assumed Petrel would listen to her. She never considered what would happen if he ignored her pleas.
"…So before you go, you should visit your mother," Professor Elm said as an afterthought to something Krisa missed while she was having her minor debate.
"Yeah, I will," she said with a strained voice and forced smile. Gold and his new Pokémon both noticed something change around the girl. He didn't voice his concern, though, because he wasn't certain yet if something was bothering his friend, and he certainly didn't want to ask with an audience.
After Krisa and Gold said their goodbyes to Professor Elm, Krisa started walking on a path to her house. Gold was shocked when he saw that not only was her house next door from the lab, but that it was only about a block away from his.
"We're neighbors?" he asked in surprise. "Well, that just means we'll have to hang out more when we're both back here."
Krisa looked taken aback but then smiled and giggled. "Well, we'll be hanging out all the way to Goldenrod, so you don't have to worry about that. Anyways, I just want to check on my mom, grab some of my money for supplies, and then head back out."
Gold nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Besides, I want to get to training Chica here." Chica, which Krisa assumed to be the nickname of his new Pokémon, made high-pitched cheers in response to his statement. Despite the Pokémon's small appearance, it seemed to be just as feisty as its new trainer.
Krisa didn't bother to knock on the door before entering her home. "Mom?" she called inside questioningly before entering the building. Gold followed her in and looked around.
The mother in question came out from her room and smiled brightly. "Krisa, I wasn't expecting to see you home so soon," Lyra said warmly. "I see you brought a friend with you as well." She walked over to the two kids and smiled when she recognized Ethan. "Krisa, what have I told you?" she teased. "You're not supposed to date until you're at least sixteen years old."
Both Krisa's and Gold's faces turned red as Krisa scolded her mother. "That's not it at all!" she exclaimed. "We just ran into each other. And I had to come back because I needed to do something for Professor Elm."
"Krisa, I'm only kidding, sweetie. I know Ethan. You've really grown up. I bet your mother is proud."
Gold chuckled slightly at his friend's exasperated expression. "I guess," he replied.
Lyra turned her attention back to her daughter and said, "I'm actually glad you came home. I have some money I've been saving for you. You might need it for more supplies."
The mother placed the money in her daughter's hand, forcing Krisa to take it. After some more teasing was out of the way, Lyra made lunch for the two kids before they headed back to Cherrygrove.
Krisa was feeling drained and stressed by the time they reached Cherrygrove. She had made this journey just the other day to find her brother and failed. Now she was stuck because of her obligations. Petrel hadn't been in Violet City from what she had seen, but that didn't mean his business there never transpired. If she wanted to find him and talk to him about his involvement with Team Rocket, she needed to reach him. He wasn't back at home so that only meant one thing.
He went on further.
She knew she needed to get to Azalea Town quickly if that was the case, but she couldn't just come out and say that to her friend. Gold would want to know why they needed to rush. To protect her brother, she couldn't say anything. Instead she had to wait with him. They would need to stop over in Cherrygrove for the night. It was already starting to get dark. Krisa didn't know what to do.
"You okay, Krisa?" Gold asked noticing the girl's unease.
Krisa jumped when he asked her the question. Was she really being that obvious? Well, he had already called her out on it, so she was going to need to say something. "I just feel like I'm back at square one," she admitted. It wasn't a lie; she just wasn't telling him the full truth, not yet.
Gold frowned slightly, definitely understanding how Krisa feels. He always made the journey between New Bark Town and Goldenrod City on his own to visit his grandparents and check on his mom. Once his talents were noticed by his grandparents, they always wanted his help at the daycare center. The only reason he went other than enjoying the city life and seeing his grandmother, Gold only went so often because his mother encouraged him. Truth was, Gold did want to be a breeder, but he did not want to stay in one spot forever. Still, he wanted to make both his grandparents and mother happy, though he hated leaving his mother alone for so long like his father had. That was why he made these constant trips.
He looked around the Pokémon center at the other trainers and another girl caught his eye. This girl was tall, blonde, and older, and she was also a customer from his grandparents' daycare. She owed him a favor.
"Hey, Cara!" Gold exclaimed bringing both Krisa's and Cara's attention to him.
The teenager saw him and smiled. "Well, if it isn't my good buddy, Gold," Cara greeted also muttering a quick "hey" to Krisa. "What brings you back to Cherrygrove? Visiting your mom again?"
"Nah, business," Gold said, while waving his real reason off, trying to act cool. "How's that Dewgong working out for you?"
"I was amazed at how much it learned at the daycare," Cara replied. "I'm really glad you were able to drop it off for me. Work has been getting more hectic lately."
"No doubt," Gold responded nonchalantly. "Speaking of which, when does your shift start?"
"Not for a couple hours, why?" Cara asked. Krisa looked to Gold like he was nuts for asking this woman any kind of question.
"I was wondering if you could do me and my friend a favor," he started. "You see, we were on our way to Azalea when…"
Krisa couldn't believe that Gold had managed to get them a ride back to Violet City. The girl, Cara, had been planning to work the late night shift as she had explained to Gold, but she was more than happy to take an extra twenty minutes to drive the two back to Violet to cut their time in half. There was still a little light outside, just enough to give them time to get back to where they had been the previous night. They decide that this time they will stay overnight at the Pokémon center since they reach it as it gets dark and have no time to set up camp. Their plan, to continue to Azalea Town the next day with Krisa secretly hoping that she can catch up to her brother in time.
In the morning, the two ate breakfast that the Pokémon center offered to travelling trainers. Many different trainers, hikers and fishermen and even picnickers and campers, were all in the Pokémon center cafeteria. "I can't believe how many people are here," Krisa marveled. "I've never seen this many people in one place."
Gold chuckled at the girl's reaction. "If you think this is impressive, just wait until you see Goldenrod. It's a huge city. This is nothing, just some passersby hanging around this spot." Krisa looked at Gold, waiting for more on an explanation sensing there was more. "Because of the cave to Azalea, hikers journey here to explore. Since there's a small lake, fishermen gather. That doesn't even begin to cover all the newer trainers, students taking a break from the Pokémon Academy, or tourists visiting the ruins. Route 32 is a hotspot, that's for sure."
The blue-haired girl hadn't really thought about all of that. Her sole focus had been finding her brother and finding Silver. She hadn't even really explored Violet City much and didn't pay attention to the people. And then there was Professor Elm's research and the gym. If she hadn't had that, she wouldn't have even gone to the Pokémart to meet the aide. Maybe instead of stressing out over her predicament, she should take a page from Gold's book and actually observe more.
"Hey, you kids!" Krisa and Gold looked to see a man heading their way laughing. "Those fish are really biting today, huh?"
Krisa blushed slightly feeling a little awkward about the sentiment. She didn't want to ruin the man's good mood. "We wouldn't know," Gold spoke up, shrugging. "Neither of us are fishermen. I don't even own a pole. What about you, Krisa?" Krisa pursed her lips shut and shook her head nervously.
"That's too bad," the fisherman said. "Young people really should fish more. Hey, I have an idea!" The man took two of his poles, both happened to look incredibly small and beat up. "These are some of my old rods. I'll give these to you so that you young folk can appreciate the art of fishing."
Fishing's art? Gold wanted to say, but before he could old rods and lure balls were placed in front of them.
"Here kids," the fisherman said. "Enjoy! Maybe you'll end up being fishermen too!"
The jovial man sauntered away leaving the two stunned children with their new equipment. "Yeah, not likely," Gold muttered in response to the older man's comment. Krisa stifled a giggle, hiding behind her hand. "So yeah, that happened. I guess we can take a break and try out the rods. Besides, these lure balls help in catching hooked Pokémon."
"Really?" Krisa asked.
Her naivety caused Gold to laugh. "Man, Krisa, have you ever left New Bark Town before?"
Krisa frowned and turned away from Gold causing the boy's playful expression to sour. "We haven't gone anywhere since I was a kid, not since…"
Gold could sense that his friend was sad and, where he became curious as to why, he wanted to make her feel better. "Hey, we should get out there while there're still fish." He got up and pulled Krisa up, starting to push her to the door. "I saw a ton of those fisher guys heading out there."
Krisa mentally sighed and grumbled, "Why do I feel like you're always pushing me around?"
Gold and Krisa were headed to the lake when Krisa noticed a girl hiding behind the Pokémon center. "Gold, who do you suppose that is?"
The dark-haired boy looked to where Krisa was and saw a girl with black hair hiding in the bushes and giggling. She looked to be about their age in her frilly pink dress. Her deep, violet eyes showed so much mirth. The fact that she was hiding seemed to be entertaining her.
The two walked up behind her though she wasn't aware she had company. "Hey there!" Gold greeted enthusiastically causing the girl to jump and Krisa to smack him, irritated that he startled the girl.
The girl, though, was not frightened in the least. Instead, she turned around and smiled widely at them. "Well hi there!" she exclaimed. "Today is Friday! It's my favorite day!"
"Is it, now?" Gold asked with a chuckle. "Who are you?"
"I'm Frieda," she answered. "Frieda of Friday. I'm one of seven siblings, and we give gifts to trainers who can find us." She took out two harpoon-looking objects dusted with a purple dust. "Take these poison barbs. They're supposed to make poison type moves that much better. Anyways, now I have to find a new hiding place since you two found me. Have a happy Friday!"
Frieda disappeared into the bushes after that leaving two confounded children behind. "The heck just happened?" Gold questioned his friend as the two of them looked to the barbs in their hand.
"I have no idea," Krisa responded. She looked to the barb and studied it. "One of seven siblings, huh? Must be one strange family."
"What family isn't strange?" her friend joked.
Krisa responded with a small smile. She couldn't really answer his question.
The two children were close to the lake. They could hear the shifting waves as well as the giddy cheers of fishermen. Surprisingly, they felt excited at the prospect of learning to fish. They figured they could even catch new water Pokémon to work more on the Pokédex. Before they reached the water, they were met with a heavyset man, and he said something that greatly angered Gold.
"You kids look like you're a long way from home," he said with a tinge of humor in his voice. "How would you each like to buy some tasty, nutritious Slowpoke Tail? It's only 1,000,000 yen."
Gold's normally good-humored expression darkened into a rage that Krisa didn't expect to see in her friend. "How dare you? Do you know how painful that is for the Slowpoke?"
The man glared at the boy and asked, "What are you going on about? The tails grow back. It doesn't affect them at all. They're just dumb, little blobs."
"Oh that's it!" Gold exclaimed. "It's people like you that I can't stand! I'll-"
"Hey, what's going on here?"
The three turned to see a ranger standing there with his hands on his hips. "Oh, nothing, nothing," the weird salesman replied a little too quickly. He turned to the kids and said, "Have a good day, young travelers," before running off.
The ranger sighed and shook his head. "That's the third guy I found trying to sell travelers banned goods around here. I'm getting worried."
Krisa was thankful that the ranger had shown up when he had. If he hadn't, she was sure Gold was going to punch the salesman. His fist was clenched and shaking at his side the entire time, and Krisa was worried about what the young boy had planned to do. Yes, what the salesman was doing was cruel, but it would have been really bad if Gold had gone down with him for attacking him.
Gold sighed and somewhat ordered Krisa to follow him as they got closer to the lake. Fishing was definitely an activity that they both hoped would distract the boy from his anger.
With the old rods, both children were only able to reel in Magikarp. Even though Magikarp were considered to be weak by many trainers, the ones they caught were very tough and they had to battle together to make sure they got away without bruises from powerful tackles. When the two kids had raced away with their Pokémon, they fell to the ground in relief and began laughing at the ridiculousness of their antics.
"Well, if it isn't the young kids I ran into," the fisherman from before greeted with a chuckle. "I see you two have been having some fun."
"Yeah," Krisa replied sitting up. "Thank you for the rods, by the way. We've been enjoying fishing."
The fisherman smiled at her and said, "It's no problem, girlie. Say, you two are trainers, right?"
"Yup," Gold answered. "We are, why?"
"How's about the two of you join me and my bud in a double battle?" the fisherman suggested. "We have so much energy and our Pokémon seem to be feeding off of it. What'dya say?"
Krisa and Gold exchanged determined glances and nodded to each other before looking to their challenger. "You've got a battle," they accepted in unison.
The fisherman called over his friend and the two of them stood opposite from Krisa and Gold on the bridge. Other fishermen gathered around to watch the battle. They were all very anxious to see what their fellow fishermen had caught.
"Alright, kids, let's go!" the fisherman declared as he sent out his Poliwag and his partner sent out a Goldeen.
"Chica, go!" Gold called sending out his new Pokémon. Likewise, Krisa simply looked at Flappy and the Pidgey instantly knew what she wanted.
"Flappy, gust!" Krisa ordered as a gust of wind stirred the water of the lake. The gust attack hit the Poliwag dead on as Gold ordered Chica to use bullet seed. As the bullets pelted the two opponents, Poliwag used water gun to push Flappy back while Goldeen took a few hits to peck Chica. Flappy tackled Goldeen to get the Pokémon away from Chica taking on its peck attack.
"Chica, razor leaf!" Gold exclaimed as an army of leaves fired at the two opponents, knocking both of them out.
The fishermen called their Pokémon back and grinned. "Impressive team work, kids," the first one said. "You two must be really close to be that in sync."
Krisa and Gold just exchanged smiles before Krisa said, "Thank you very much for the fishing stuff and the battle. We enjoyed it."
"Aw," the second fisherman said, "what a polite, young girl. It was our pleasure, miss."
"Welp, we should head off for Azalea now, but this was some much needed stress relief," Gold joked. "See ya, fisher guys!"
He grabbed Krisa's arm and started dashing for the cave, their Pokémon following close behind them. Once they reached the cave, the sun was already setting. They decided it would be best to set up camp near the cave and get a fresh start the next day. Besides, their Pokémon were tired from the recent training and battle. Waiting one more day wouldn't make a difference, and Krisa was finally starting to realize that. She knew she had to stop rushing into things unprepared.
Ariana sighed when she came across Proton explaining to the new grunts what they would be doing at the Slowpoke Well. "We need the funds to keep Team Rocket going," he explained to them. "If you have anything against cutting their tails, tough. We can't always do what we want; this is necessity. You are all dismissed."
The grunts looked to each other, not wanting to question their supervisor, and walked out of the room. "Very nice," Ariana muttered. "You're not supposed to scare the new members away."
"They're fine, Ariana," Proton chuckled. Then he noted her serious expression. "What?"
She hesitated before she answered. Her promise to Petrel was nagging in the back of her mind, but this was for the good of the team. A warning needed to be given. "There is rumor of a young girl who wants to interfere with the team," she lied. "Just be wary. We wouldn't want anything to go awry at the well."
"A little girl?" Proton asked before he started laughing in amusement. "Ariana, you worry about the strangest things. If anyone goes against us, let's just say I won't be too nice about it. Nothing to worry about." Ariana watched as he started to leave the room. "A little girl," he jeered. "Ridiculous."
Ariana shook her head, knowing she had broken her promise, but at least she knew nothing would interfere with their mission. Still, she was a little concerned when Proton made his threat. The girl meant nothing to her. If that was the case, then why did her heart skip a beat the moment Proton threatened her life?
Krisa and Gold made it through the cave in record time, and Krisa had captured a new Pokémon, a Sandshrew that she named Famon. She planned to send Feisty to New Bark Town so that she could train Famon some more. The two children had planned to stop for lunch once they got out of the cave, but were shocked to find it pouring in the area.
"Let's run to the Pokémon center!" Gold called over the heavy sound of rain beating down on the pavement with Chica in his arms and his Aipom, Aibo, on his shoulder.
"Right!" Krisa answered recalling Flare, now a Quilava, back into its Pokéball and being followed by Flappy.
Neither of them noticed that they were being followed by a man dressed in black. The Team Rocket agent was told to scare off any travelers that went anywhere near Azalea, and now it was time to prove himself.
Silver was wrapped in a black cloak, his Sneasel walking next to him, as the two calmly made their way to the Pokémon center. The rain never really bothered Silver. It was just a nuisance, but he was learning to deal with those. Team Rocket itself was the biggest nuisance.
The sound of people talking stopped Silver in his stride. For some reason, it took hold of his attention and he couldn't ignore it. He and Sneasel exchanged knowing glances before heading to the sound of the voices. They were led to the Slowpoke Well, and the voices were coming from a middle-aged, male citizen of Azalea Town and a Team Rocket grunt.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?" the citizen asked.
The grunt glared at the man and growled. "I don't have to answer to you! You should go back to your precious town before someone gets hurt."
"Y-you look like you're a part of that gang, Team Rocket, that caused problems in Kanto three years ago," the man said hesitantly. "A-are you or are you not a part of that?"
The grunt's face became one of indifference as he stood up straight with his arms crossed, his posture completely exuding confidence. "Yeah, that's right," he retorted arrogantly. "Team Rocket did disband years ago, but we're making our comeback now, and the likes of you better not stand in our way. You'll regret it if you do. Just a…helpful suggestion."
Silver clenched his fists, determined to stay hidden from the grunt but wanting to help the Azalea citizen. The man, though, ran away scared, heading back to the town as the grunt laughed and returned to the well. Silver did not like the fact that he seemed so confident. He was wondering if whoever was skulking the well were as weak as the agents from Violet City.
Krisa and Gold were in the Pokémon center with many other people trying to avoid the rain. They had been given towels to dry off and worked on drying their Pokémon off too, while Krisa was having Flare checked out for being out in the rain even for a short time. The nurse came over to her handing her the Pokéball, assuring the girl that her Pokémon was fine. Krisa decided Flare should stay inside the Pokéball until they got a room and changed into dry clothes.
As the two children started discussing dinner plans, Silver, unbeknownst to them, entered the Pokémon center. Silver didn't even see Krisa before the three Pokédex began to beep simultaneously. Krisa and Gold took out theirs as Silver did the same. None of them knew what was happening until Flappy began to chirp and point, Sneasel nudging his trainer for the same reason.
Time seemed to stop as Krisa and Silver saw each other. Gold seemed very confused about the interaction and clicked a button to stop the Pokédex from beeping. Krisa and Silver continued to stare before the man who had confronted the Team Rocket agent ran into the center with an officer.
"They're back!" he exclaimed in alarm. "Team Rocket is coming back. I ran into an agent somewhere by the well."
The Pokémon center was full of people asking questions like "what do we do?" and "how are we going to stop them?" Both the blue-haired girl and red-headed boy tensed up when they heard not only the mention of Team Rocket, but townspeople trying to suggest plans of attack to the officer. Gold noticed both of them freeze up and pulled Krisa from the table dragging her over to the boy.
"Okay, I don't know who you are," Gold said to Silver, "but your reaction to that man's statement was fishy. No offense, Krisa, but yours was too. What gives?"
"It's none of your business," Silver snapped, glaring at the dark-haired stranger.
"I-It's my brother," Krisa replied with a stutter. It gained both Silver's and Gold's attention as they both looked to her, Gold looking at her with concern while Silver held an emotionless gaze. "A few days ago, I heard him on the phone with someone, and I heard him say he was a part of Team Rocket and that everything was starting in Violet City. It was the same day Professor Elm suggested the Pokémon League Challenge so I used that as an excuse to leave. I…I was hoping it was just an empty plan and that he really wasn't helping to bring Team Rocket back. I was hoping to talk to him and get him to quit when I found him."
"That's a lot to take on," Gold told her, hoping to comfort her. "Hey, why don't the three of us team up and stop them ourselves. If we confront them, maybe you'll run into your brother and can reason with him then. What do you say, Krisa? Flame-boy?"
Silver scoffed at the nickname and crossed his arms that were slightly covered by his cloak. "Like I would team up with weaklings like you," he rebuked. "I'm not looking to reason with these people. My reasons are my own, just like I can handle them one my own. Just stay out of my way."
Gold glared at the guy's retreating form and waved his arm as if he was disgusted. "Eh, we don't need whatever that guy's name is. We'll be okay if we work together. Hey, Krisa, the two of you looked like you knew each other. What's the story?"
Krisa had already revealed her brother's secret. She didn't plan on revealing Silver's anytime soon. Instead she said, "His name is Silver. He's a trainer like us."
Silver couldn't get Krisa's confession out of his head. It made sense, now, why she helped him out. She was a naïve child who probably saw good in everyone and thought she could change the world. She must have assumed he had a good reason and wanted to assist him. Maybe that's why she had been so desperate to find him, to get those answers.
If her brother really was a part of Team Rocket, it was going to take more than talking to him to get him out. Silver knew that from experience. It was like the mafia: once in, you can never get out, at least not until the whole organization was brought down. That was his plan. He wanted to bring Team Rocket's entire unit down. To do that, he needed strong Pokémon.
And that need was what brought him to Kurt's house.
Kurt was the master of creating Pokéballs from apricorns. He entered the workshop without as much as a word, placing a black apricorn down in front of Kurt. Kurt was an older gentleman with white, shoulder cut hair. His expression was serious and stern and it matched the look Silver was giving him. The Pokéball maker did not utter a sound as he took the apricorn from Silver and began making his Pokéball.
It took about an hour, but Silver's patience was rewarded with a heavy ball. He headed back to the cave in the mountain and started climbing the cliff with Sneasel by his side. He was determined to find a strong Pokémon that could help him take on Team Rocket by himself. He didn't think Krisa or Gold would be able to hold their own against the cruel and heartless agents. They were too innocent.
Krisa and Gold braved the rain once again as they headed to the Slowpoke Well. The two trainers climbed down into the deep hole, Gold going in first in case Krisa slipped and needed to be caught. Once inside, they realized how dark the tunnel was. Flare was released from his Pokéball and lit up to guide the two children through the darkness. Gold had all of his Pokémon out ready for battle. He had introduced Krisa to his team of four back at the center. He had Aibo and Chica and his Marill, Aqua, and a Poliwag named Polibo. Krisa kept her full team safe in their Pokéballs, though Flare was their guide and Flappy was remaining by her side, concerned for his trainer.
The travelled deeper into the well, not noticing Polibo picking up a crown-shaped rock. The children didn't noticed, concentrating more on finding the agents and stopping them in whatever they were doing.
"I hope we don't have too much trouble," Gold stated. "I've heard too many horror stories about Team Rocket, and I would hate for any of them to be true." His serious demeanor changed to a confident smile. "Let's take them out, Krisa. Let's prove those stories wrong."
Krisa returned his confidence flashing him a smile of her own. "Right!" she answered. "We can stop them. I know we can."
"Oh really?" a male voice questioned. "You know you can? Two little twerps like you couldn't stand up to us."
Flare's flames illuminated the corridor of the well and revealed two males and a female grunt. It was hard to distinguish between the three, all having short, dark hair covered up by black hats. They were standing smugly with their Pokémon behind them. One of the guys had two Rattata while the other had a Rattata and two Zubat surrounding him. The girl grunt had a Zubat and an Ekans.
"Why are you doing this?" Gold asked. "I can only assume the Slowpoke Tail salesman we ran into was one of your goons?"
"You assume correctly," the girl cackled. "We need the money, and it's not like the tails are permanently lost. These stupid Slowpoke probably don't even realize what's going on."
"Hey, that's not nice!" Krisa exclaimed. "Slowpoke are very smart Pokémon."
"Whatever," one of the guys said. "I hope you two are ready for a battle, because neither of you are leaving here. You know too much."
Gold glanced at their line of Pokémon. "Most of those are poison-types," he whispered to Krisa. "That means psychic moves, and even ground moves, are our best bet."
"Only Flit has a psychic-type move," Krisa explained.
Gold nodded but still seemed pretty calm. "Well, then it's a good thing type isn't the only thing that matters in battles. Polibo, Aqua, water gun!"
The two water-types fired their liquid guns while Krisa sent out Flit and ordered the Butterfree to use confusion. Flit's attack was able to knock out all of the Zubat, but the Ekans managed to wrap itself around the Butterfree bringing the bug-type to the solid ground. Flare managed to dodge the attacking Rattata, all three of them, while Flappy and Aibo tackled a couple. Flit managed to get free from Ekans' wrap, but before Krisa could declare an attack, Chica was ordered to tackle the Ekans away.
"Krisa, go deeper into the well! I'll hold these guys off! Send out your Pokémon in case you get ambushed!"
Krisa didn't respond. Instead she took off in a run with Flare guiding her path. She released Friendship, Frighty, and her new Sandshrew, Famon, out in case they ran into trouble. The young girl was expecting to find many more trainers like the three she and Gold had just faced. She was not expecting to find only one man cutting off the tails of the seemingly unresponsive Slowpoke.
She observed the man. He looked older than the grunts they had seen, and had a much different uniform than they did. Where theirs were solid black, his was black with yellow trimmings. Instead of a simple, black hat that covered up his short, teal hair, he was wearing a beret. The other noticeable difference was that he wore white boots and gloves with a red strip on each, contrasting with the jet black his subordinates wore.
When he turned to face her, Krisa was taken aback. He looked completely amused with a wicked glint in his green eyes. "You must be the girl I was warned about," Proton stated causing Krisa to jump. She hadn't come across any agents yet, so she didn't know how this one knew of her. "It doesn't matter, though," he continued, "whether or not you came to stop us I mean. The result will be the same." His wicked glint was accompanied by a vicious smirk. "I'm known as the cruelest guy on the team, so I suggest you forget you saw us since I'm feeling unusually merciful. If you refuse, well, you won't be making it out of here alive."
"I…I can't go," Krisa stuttered feeling fear of the man in front of her but not wanting to give up.
Proton chuckled at the girl's anxiety. Toying with his victim's minds was something he was known for, which is why Archer had made him second in command. He could get the job done. He just needed to push the child a little harder.
"Zubat, go!" he shouted as he released his Pokémon.
Zubat flew at Krisa and her Pokémon, using a supersonic sound that reached all but Flare's ears and didn't affect Fighty at all. Krisa knew of the supersonic attack and how it could confuse other Pokémon. She recalled the four Pokémon that had been taken by the sound and then looked to Flare who instantly understood his trainer's thoughts.
Proton grinned slightly, strangely pleased that girl wasn't giving up. He had to admit she had guts taking him on all by herself despite being frightened, but he was not going to go easy on her. "Supersonic," he dictated slowly to his Zubat.
"Flare, use your ember," Krisa suggested.
The supersonic waves and flames met in between the two Pokémon and caused a small explosion that caused a small wind to blow from the force. Krisa cringed from the heat, stepping back a little as her hair was tousled around from the gust. Proton stood firmly, his hair blowing slightly. His arms remained crossed as mirth danced in his eyes. He didn't expect a child to exhibit fearlessness in battle with a Team Rocket grunt let alone an executive like him. That could only mean one thing.
This girl had no idea who she was or what she was getting into.
"Zubat, tackle," Proton demanded, holding his hand out in the direction he wanted the bat to go.
The little bat flew up into the air and dove at Krisa's Quilava. But Flare dodged and countered with quick attack and, because the attack was head on, Zubat took the full force and was knocked out.
Proton's mouth dropped opened slightly, and his amusement disappeared; his expression darkened. He took out his second Pokémon and threw the ball to release it. A Koffing appeared in the cave and it looked ready to battle. Flare got ready to defend its trainer if necessary.
"Leer," Krisa said hoping to lower Koffing's defense. If its defense could be lowered, then quick attack would be able to take it out with one hit like it had Zubat.
Proton already determined her strategy and smirked as black smog from Koffing began to fill the well. Krisa could hear him chuckling as her vision became clouded. Flare was looking around trying to find where Koffing went.
Krisa, not wanting Flare to stay a sitting duck, told it to use quick attack anyway, but Koffing dodged in the smog and caused the attack to miss. Just then, a purple gas mixed with the black smog and caused Flare to cough and cringe from the poison. Flare attempted to use ember trying to break through the smog, but the attack still missed Koffing and only managed to stir a little bit of the smog away.
If Flare couldn't land an attack, especially when poisoned, Krisa knew that the battle would be over and Flare would be extremely hurt. Instead of prolonging this game of hit or miss, she recalled Flare to his Pokéball and tucked it safely in her bag. Since Frighty was already out and wasn't bothered by the Zubat's supersonic, she sent him out to battle.
Koffing continued to release black smog and purple gases to create smog, but being a poison-type as well as a ghost-type, Frighty wasn't affected by it as much as Flare had been. The Gastly was able to burst through the blanket of gas and began to rapidly lick the Koffing repeatedly until it fell to the ground from paralysis.
Koffing cried out weakly as Gastly returned to Krisa's side. With the Koffing defeated, Krisa's Pokédex beeped differently than earlier, alerting Krisa that Frighty had learned a new move, night shade.
Proton recalled his Pokémon and glared at the girl. He hadn't expected the timid girl from the beginning of fight to actually beat him. "You," he growled out. "Do you honestly think you can come in here and thwart our plans? You're nothing but a weak child and, even if you have beaten my Pokémon, you will not get away from me."
"You might not want to say that when it's two on one."
Krisa and Proton both looked to archway between corridors and saw Gold standing there looking very smug. "And you should be worried because I just beat your three guys."
Proton looked between the two and glared. Without his Pokémon or his backup, he couldn't take two opponent's on at once even if they were children. "Please, you two aren't even worth my time. You are nothing but small obstacles in Team Rocket's way. You might want to keep in mind what I've said, girl. In the future, I might not be feeling as merciful as I was today."
Throwing down a smoke ball helped Proton to escape. Gold and Krisa couldn't help but cough from the smoke but were fine once it cleared. Due to all of the gaseous attacks, Krisa began to feel lightheaded and fell to the ground.
"Krisa!" Gold called in alarm as he went to help her. "Are you all right?"
Krisa forced a smile on her face, grimacing from pain. "I'm fine, Gold," she said softly. "I think the fumes are starting to get to me. My lungs are burning."
"Yeah," Gold muttered. "Let's get out of here. The fresh air should help."
Gold put one of Krisa's arms over his shoulder and the two of them began to walk out of the darkened well with Frighty following behind them. All either of them could think was how some much changed in just a few hours. It was one of the first times in a while where Gold had been serious or worried. He didn't know what it meant for the future, or how he would be able to hide his attitude change from his grandparents.
Once back in town, Krisa was feeling a little better so she was able to walk on their own. It was already getting dark, though the rain seemed to have calmed down. Still, they knew it was better to stay in the Pokémon center for the night considering that Flare had been injured by Koffing's attacks. If anything was really wrong with Krisa from the attacks, it would have been better to be around nurses as well who understood Pokémon poison.
Meanwhile, Silver had captured a new Pokémon and intended to prevent Team Rocket from fulfilling their plans. He entered the well alone and was surprised to find it empty. He could smell the residue from Koffing's gas attacks, but it seemed to be very faint. Slowpoke were walking around the tunnels as if nothing had ever disturbed them. This calmness among the Pokémon could only be attributed to one thing.
"She did it. Krisa actually did it."
Maybe the girl who had helped him out wasn't as weak or foolish as he thought.