I did it this time by being lazy. I tried to get to work on it every day this week. Oh, well. Once again, I hope I can set a precedent with how towns work from now on. This one might be a bit rocky, but the next one should be solid (Hopefully). Also, thanks to one of my other stories slowing down, this one will be speeding up its pace of updates. So that's a thing.
Vermillion City was a dramatic change from what Red and his friends were used to. Viridian, Pewter, and Cerulean, were all big cities for the small town trio, but this was a real big city. The ever bustling sea port was alive with activity. And the city was ever expanding. People and Pokémon worked together to construct new buildings and expand the port.
The party arrived late at the Pokémon center, so they stayed the night after resting their Pokémon. The next morning the group set out into the city. There were plenty of things to do in the city. Green wanted to look around and see the sights. Aside from all the shops and businesses, there was a Pokémon fan club in town, as well as the S. S. Anne that they had the tickets for from Bill. Blue wanted to head straight to the Pokémon Gym first. Red wanted to check out the nearby area for new Pokémon.
Rather than dragging most of the party somewhere they didn't want to go, the group decided to split up and meet up later once they all had their badges and were ready to leave at the Pokémon Center. Red headed out toward Route 11. He skulked around in the tall grass for a while, finding a few wild Pokémon, but nothing to write home about. He did, however, collect a Spearow, and a Rattata, though those he would drop off at the Pokémon Center later. Unfortunately, Red could only adventure so far. The winding dirt road tapered off toward the sea, but was eventually blocked by a massive sleeping Pokémon. Red tried to wake it up, and failing that, move it, but nothing he tried worked. So much for Route 11. But there was something interesting near the beginning of the path.
On the way into Vermillion City, Red had heard about a place called Diglett's Cave that apparently had some hard to find Pokémon inside. Red found the entrance, a small, rocky hill tucked in among some trees. The entrance seemed just barely big enough for an adult to get through. Red could get through rather comfortably. There was light filtering through small holes of the chamber about an inch or two wide scattered around the hollow dome. In the center of the floor was a hole about the same size as the entrance. There was a sign warning of it next to it, as well as a ladder that humans could use to climb down into the depths.
Red made his way quickly down the ladder and entered a long, curved tunnel. It was much darker here and it took Red a few seconds for his eyes to adjust. Even after he could see enough to move around, it was still slow going down the path. Path was generous since it was clear that the ground was not made to be walked on. And even with his eyes adjusted, Red could only see so far. There could be a Pokémon at the other end of the cave and he wouldn't have known any better.
Just as he was contemplating that, when he heard a slight rumble. His sure foot slipped out from under him a second later and he slammed hard into the ground. Groaning and looking around he noticed several brown creatures with beady eyes and red noses. The looked like living wack-a-moles. One of the creatures popped up in front of Red's nose, clearly snickering at the trainer's fall. Red, still lying eye-to-eye with the tiny Pokémon reached into his jacket for his Pokédex. When he moved, all the Pokémon vanished into the cave walls. The only one left by the time Red had retrieved his Pokédex was the one laughing at him. It stopped when Red scanned it with the Pokédex and he started to read to himself. "Diglett… A mole Pokémon… Lives underground because it doesn't like bright sunlight." Red looked past his Pokédex and at the curious Diglett. "You tripped me didn't you?" The Diglett started giggling again. "That's not very nice. I'll have to teach you a lesson, you know…" Red reached for his belt to draw a Pokéball, but Diglett vanished into the ground. It reappeared under Red's Pokédex, knocking it out of his hand. To Red it looked like the Diglett was teleporting since he blinked. The Pokédex went flying and was caught on Diglett's head, the Pokémon still giggling like a fool. Red grabbed at his Pokédex as he got up, but Diglett moved through the earth and sidestepped. "Give that back, you little…" Red threw his Pokéball and unleashed Charmeleon.
"Charmeleon, Slash!" Charmeleon dashed at the Diglett, sliding before attacking so his claws would miss the Pokédex and hit the target. Diglett disappeared into the ground and Charmeleon caught the Pokédex before it hit the ground. He stepped away from the battle for a second to hand the Pokédex back to Red. "Good job, budd-!" Red's praise was cut short when the ground underneath them shifted and burst a little. Both Red and Charmeleon were thrown off their feet. "I don't know about you, but this Diglett is getting on my nerves…" Charmeleon grunted in agreement.
Charmeleon got back up and charged after Diglett with his claws brandished. As fast as Charmeleon was, impossible to hit the tiny and swift Diglett in its natural habitat. It even counterattacked now and then with invisibly fast Scratches that only left a little hole in the ground and a mark on Charmeleon. The Diglett could do little to Charmeleon and one mistake would end the fight in a second. The cocky Diglett almost made it, waiting a second too long before darting back into the hole. Charmeleon's claws slammed into the hole Diglett was hiding in, missing by a hair's breadth.
The hole actually gave me an idea, "Charmeleon, use Smokescreen like you did against Brock's Onix." Charmeleon grinned and complied, filling the hole Diglett had made. Unfortunately, instead of flushing out the pesky mole, the complex system of tunnels brought the smoke out elsewhere, right in Red's face.
After coughing and flailing for a few seconds, Red composed himself. Charmeleon was ready for another round, but Red called him back to his side. Diglett reappeared to see what was happening with the battle seemingly over. "You're pretty fast," Red complimented the Diglett, "So why don't I introduce you to the last speedy Pokémon that gave me a hard time?" Red threw another Pokéball, this time sending out Pikachu.
"Pikachu, Quick Attack." Even with how fast Diglett was, Red's Pikachu was faster. Diglett's invisibly fast claws were sensed and dodged by Pikachu handily and the mouse Pokémon slammed into Diglett. Diglett, not being a very hearty Pokémon, was stunned by the hit. Red threw a Pokéball at it and waited. Eventually, Diglett stopped struggling and was caught. Since he had six Pokémon, the Pokéball vanished into thin air, off to Bill's habitat to be cared for. Then again, Red admired the little one's spirit. He decided that he'd make it part of his team when he got back.
With the troublemaker Diglett out of the way, the rest of the path was easy(er) to traverse. Finally, Red made it to the other side, greeted warmly by daylight. Near the exit of Diglett's Cave (which lead back to near Pewter City as it turned out) was a small cabin for tired travelers. Red decided to take a short break inside before heading back to Vermillion. Inside he was almost immediately stopped by a man in thick glasses and a lab coat. "Hello there! I'm one of Oak's aids! I see you have a Pokédex." Red looked down at his pocket and saw it was partially exposed since he hadn't stopped gripping it after getting it back from Diglett. "If you've registered more than ten Pokémon in your Pokédex, the Professor asked me to give you this Hidden Machine, or HM. May I see your Pokédex?"
Red reluctantly handed over the Pokédex. To his relief, the man was on the level. "Eight, nine, ten, eleven. That's great! Here, take this HM for Flash." Red remembered Brock mentioning something about a move called Flash. Red thanked the man before deciding it was time to return.
Diglett's cave was no trouble on the way back. Red had gotten used to the uneven path and made good time without any troublemakers to slow him down. Once he got out, he made his way to the Pokémon Center to switch out some of his Pokémon. He arrived there just as the afternoon started to give way for the evening. Once inside the Pokémon Center, he met up with Green, energetic as ever.
"Hey Red! You know the S.S. Anne tickets we got from Bill?" she asked excitedly.
"Uh huh."
"Well, it turns out there's going to be a big party tonight before the ship's maiden voyage!"
"Uh huh."
"Well, what are you waiting for? Let's go!"
"Uh hu- wait what?" Red barely had the time to grab Diglett's Pokéball before he was dragged briskly out of the Pokémon Center.
Not perfect, but I like it. Writing this has kind of gotten me in a Pokémon mood, so hopefully I can get the next one out soon. I also hope I'm doing a good job of telling the game's story specifically and yet making it entertaining to read. It's kind of hard adapting a video game with a silent protagonist into this format and make it work.