Hey hey hey, it's time for chapter five! Last chapter, Owen caught a Caterpie and helped a group of Pokemon back to their home in Santalune Forest while defeating a poacher on the way. Now, Owen will look to challenge Viola (it obviously won't happen) this chapter, but this apparent "Pikachu Crew" might throw a wrench in his plans.

Pokebat: That's what I was aiming for. I love Kanto!

midnightrebellion86: Thanks! She's going to be a beast for a while

tepigsfire758: Yeah, I kind of forgot to explain that :/ But I'm glad you like the foreshadowing

Jaylon101: Lol

Monfernofreak: I think it was a glitch last night. And you're a view thief ;)

NodokaLover: I hate them! Just kidding, but you only got 1.5 of them right

WildFang14: Thanks. I'm aiming for a mix between classic and new Pokemon for Owen's team

Owen's team

Froakie, (m), level 5, Pound, Leer, Bubble

Charizard, (m), level 69, Flamethrower, Dragon Claw, Seismic Toss, Blast Burn, ?*, ?*

Caterpie, (f), level 4, Tackle, String Shot

"Wow, I can't believe you took care of that so quickly," the unnamed woman with bright blonde hair told Owen. The teen had arrived only an hour or so after delivering the Pokemon back to the Santalune Forest, and he was ready for his first gym battle.

"So do you know where the gym leader is? I want to win my first badge!" he exclaimed, causing the woman to laugh.

"She's standing right in front of you. I'm Viola, the gym leader of the Santalune City gym." Owen's jaw dropped after Viola introduced herself, and his three Pokemon were shocked about the news. "I only need one more favor from you, and then we can have a gym battle," the young woman informed Owen, causing him to beam at the news. "There's a group of Pikachu attacking trainers passing through Santalune Forest. I'd take care of it, but I have to handle things in the city."

"We can take care of it. Right, guys?" Owen quizzed. All three of his Pokemon cheered in response, prompting Owen to walk out of the destroyed gym while waving to Viola. "These Pikachu are probably really aggressive, but weak because they pick on rookie trainers. Caterpie, I want you to tie them up with String Shot. Froakie, you'll hit 'em with Bubble. Charizard, I want you to step in if there's an emergency, okay?" Owen told the three Pokemon.

"Kie!"

"Pie!"

"Raaawr!"

"Good. Let's go take care of these Pikachu!"

000

A few minutes passed before Owen and his Pokemon reached the outskirts of Santalune Forest, but they looked ready to take care of the vicious group of electric rodents. Just as he was about to step into the forest, a young girl skipped out merrily while a Litleo stood by her side. Owen didn't think much of the girl's presence, and he headed into the forest without saying a word.

"Hey, where are you going?" she asked as Owen, Froakie, Charizard, and Caterpie passed by. "Don't tell me you're going to take on those Pikachu."

"Yeah, we are so I can finally battle Viola for my first badge," Owen replied, hoping to end the conversation. He didn't, however, as the girl and her Litleo followed him and his Pokemon.

"Really? If you don't have a badge, then how the heck do you have a Charizard?" the brunette asked as she poked Charizard. The fire type turned and glared at her, but she didn't notice the nasty look and continued poking the winged lizard.

"I've competed in other leagues before. Charizard's my first Pokemon," Owen replied while looking around at the trees. Froakie began climbing up the trees and hopping from branch to branch while Caterpie used her String Shot to swing around the forest. Charizard, meanwhile, was staying close to Owen while keeping an eye on the two younger Pokemon, just incase they were attacked.

"Well, I'm Cindy. And this is my partner, Litleo," the girl informed Owen while pointing to herself and the small lion. The tiny Pokemon roared cutely, causing Charizard to laugh.

"I'm Owen Plateau. Now would you mind leaving us alone so we can take care of these Pikachu?" The harsh tone behind Owen's question caused Cindy and her Pokemon to flinch. The two quieted down immediately after seeing the intimidating glare Charizard gave them, but they still followed Owen. "Now where are those Pikachu?"

"Fro!" Froakie shouted as a blur knocked him off a tree branch he was sitting on. Caterpie reacted quickly and fired a String Shot that caught Froakie before he could hit the ground, so Froakie waved to his bug type teammate thankfully. Much to Caterpie's dismay, the another blur jumped from a tree and knocked her to the ground. Owen ran over to his two Pokemon that had been attacked, and he started looking around the forest to see what had just attacked.

"Show yourself!" Owen shouted, hoping that the attacker would listen. Unfortunately, that's exactly what happened. At least thirty Pikachu appeared from the leaves on the trees and stood on different branches while staring down at Owen, Cindy, and their Pokemon.

"I think I'll leave now," Cindy stated sheepishly while trying to slink away from the situation. Before she could escape, one of the Pikachu fired a Thundershock that nearly hit her. Taking the hint from the wild Pokemon, Cindy and her Litleo stopped trying to walk away.

"Pika," one of the Pikachu muttered while glaring at Froakie and Caterpie. It then raised its right arm to the sky before pointing at Owen. "Pika!" Suddenly, all of the other Pikachu jumped off the tree branches and prepared to attack Owen. Thankfully for him, Charizard took to the air and began to spin before whacking all of the electric types with a wicked Dragon Claw. Froakie and Caterpie watched in awe as all of the attacking Pokemon were sent flying through the forest and Charizard continued to effortlessly clobber the group of aggressive Pokemon. Once all of the Pikachu were defeated, with the exception of one, Charizard roared mightily before landing on the ground and helping Froakie and Caterpie up.

"Now stop attacking all of the trainers and their Pokemon!" Owen shouted at the lone Pikachu. The yellow rodent crossed its arms over its chest before shaking its head with a smug look on its face. "That's it! Charizard, use-"

"Froakie!" the water frog yelled as he pointed at the Pikachu. Then, he motioned for Owen, Charizard, and Caterpie to step back. The three looked at each other before obliging, and the Pikachu hopped off its branch and landed a few feet away from Froakie.

"Owen, be careful. This is probably the leader of the group," Cindy informed the older teen. Owen nodded at the younger girl before turning to face the wild Pikachu. Before the battle started, all of the other Pikachu that had been attacked by Charizard appeared in the trees and began cheering for their leader.

"Froakie, use Pound!" Owen commanded. Froakie ran forwards while his fist was glowing white, and he hopped in the air before spinning. As he threw his arm towards his opponent, Froakie gasped when the Pikachu ducked under the attack and countered with a powerful smack of its tail. The water type flew back towards Owen, but he landed on his feet before charging towards the Pikachu again.

"Now use Bubble!" Froakie jumped as high as he could before firing a group of bubbles towards his opponent, who smirked at the water type attack. Suddenly, Pikachu was enveloped in electricity, and it fired a wicked bolt of lightning at Froakie. The attack landed, and Froakie cried out in pain before collapsing on the ground face first.

"Froakie, are you okay?" Owen inquired as the water type slowly pushed himself back onto his feet. Froakie turned and gave Owen a thumbs up before turning his attention back to his opponent. The Pikachu was looking around at his crew members while motioning for them to become louder, which is exactly what they did. The deafening cheers from the electric types pierced everyone's ears, and Froakie began to look around uncomfortably.

"Don't pay any attention to them, Froakie! Use Pound!" The water starter sprinted over to his opponent and began whacking Pikachu repeatedly. As fast as the electric type was, Froakie was even quicker, so Pikachu wasn't able to evade any of the attacks. "Now use Bubble!" Froakie then fired a flurry of bubbles at Pikachu and all of them hit, which caused Pikachu to skid a few feet back.

"Pika-Pi!" Pikachu shouted before charging towards Froakie. A streak of white light trailed behind the electric rodent's body, and Pikachu's head slammed into Froakie's gut. The blue frog was launched into the air, but Owen's quick thinking allowed Froakie to recover.

"Spin and use Bubble!" Froakie's eyes shot open and he began to spin until he was upright. Then, he reared his head back and shot a wave of bubbles towards Pikachu, who was panting slightly. The electric type was covered in electricity again before firing a bolt of lightning through the Bubble attack, and it zapped Froakie.

"That was a Thunderbolt! Owen, this isn't your typical Pikachu!" Cindy shouted as Froakie pushed himself back to his feet again.

"It doesn't matter, because we're not going to give up! Froakie, use Pound!" Froakie sprinted forward and punched Pikachu in the face as hard as he could, and the electric rodent was sent rolling back into a tree. All of his crew members looked around in shock as their leader was slow to get back up, and he slouched over while panting heavily. "This is it, Froakie! Use Pound!" Froakie bolted towards Pikachu while his hand began glowing white, and he slammed his fist over Pikachu's head.

"Froakie!" the water type exclaimed as he ran over to Charizard and Caterpie excitedly. The three Pokemon cheered happily while all of the Pikachu watching from the trees ran away from Owen and his Pokemon. The leader of the group attempted to get up, but was too tired to do so.

"Let's make sure this group never harms any other trainers," Owen muttered to himself before taking a Pokeball off his belt. "Go, Pokeball!" The thrown device hit Pikachu in the head, and it opened up before sucking the electric type inside.

1...

2...

3...

Ping!

Owen slowly walked over to the Pokeball and picked it up before throwing his arm in the air excitedly. Froakie, Caterpie, and Charizard all ran over to Owen and cheered as their trainer clipped the Pokeball onto his belt. With that, he and his Pokemon walked out of the forest while Cindy and her Litleo stayed back to train.

000

"Pikachu, come on out!" Once the Pokeball opened, Pikachu materialized from the light and appeared alongside Froakie and Caterpie. "Welcome to the team, Pikachu!" Owen exclaimed. Froakie and Caterpie smiled at their new teammate, but Pikachu rolled his eyes and turned his back to the two Pokemon. Then, Charizard walked over and glared at the yellow rodent before releasing a burst of fire from his nose. Pikachu sweat dropped nervously before turning back to Froakie and Caterpie, and he forced a smile.

"Kie," Froakie said to Owen, catching the teen's attention.

"Oh yeah. Pikachu, I'm going to need your help for our gym battle. Are you willing to battle with me?" Owen quizzed. The electric rodent's ears perked up once he heard about the gym battle, and he nodded emphatically. The bipedal rodent released a small bit of electricity from his red cheeks, which brought a smile to Owen's face. "Great! Caterpie, I want you to start the battle. Are you up for it?"

"Pie!" the bug type replied energetically.

"Awesome! Let's go challenge Viola!"

So Owen caught the leader of the Pikachu Crew, and he's going to be a pretty solid addition to the team. Now that he's finally able to battle Viola, Owen is looking to claim his first badge of the Kalos region! Till next time, peace out.

Next Chapter: Rocking the Hive: At long last, Owen finally gets to have his gym battle with Viola. What he expected to be a walk in the park quickly turns into one of the toughest gym battles he's ever had. With such inexperienced Pokemon on his side, will Owen be able to win the Bug Badge?

Remaining Santalune Chapters

Chapter 7: The Beginning of a New Rivalry

Chapter 8: Flashback to the Past

Chapter 9: Metamorphosis

Chapter 10: A Trainer Like No Other