Chapter 5 - Disturbing Circumstances! Hypnotised Pokémon?!

"Hey, Alexa! Did you sleep well?" Barlow asked, as Alex and Ryder entered the main reception of the base.
"Yes, thank you," Alexa replied. Ryder leapt up at Alexa and cuddled her from behind. "As did Ryder, I think," she laughed.
"I think he's still happy about the fact that he's your partner Pokémon now," Luana assumed happily.
Both assumptions are accurate, Ryder smiled.
"Anyway, are you up for a mission, Alexa?" Barlow asked. Alexa and Ryder face him, both smiling.
"Yep, we're fired up!" Alexa replied. Ryder hopped down off of her back.
"I want you and Crawford to investigate the Marine Cave," Barlow continued. Alex and Ryder were confused.
"Marine Cave?" Alex queried.
"We couldn't access it before because of the tide," Crawford explained. "It's a cave on Nabiki Beach, close to Breeze Hill."
"We've received reports of a strange noise from inside the cave," Barlow elaborated. "We want you and Crawford to investigate the cause of the noise."
"No problem," Alexa complied. "I just hope whatever the cause is, it isn't anything I'm familiar with," she muttered. She, Ryder and Crawford exited the base.

At Nabiki Beach…

Alexa and Ryder were about to walk down the steps. Crawford, however, intercepts and held them back.
"Whoa, hold up!" he exclaimed abruptly. "See that Shellos over there?" he asked, pointing to the pink sea slug from the one-day internship. Wherever it slithers, it leaves sticky residue. "The slime Shellos leave behind is dangerous; step in it and you could get hurt."
"Ew. Thanks for the heads up, Crawford," Alexa thanked. Ryder nodded in agreement.
That would've been frightfully messy, he teased.
"There're other things that can hurt a Ranger too," Crawford continued. "So you'd best be careful."
"I'll do my best," Alexa responded. The trio then resumed walking down the steps and towards the cave on the other side of the beach.
When they got close to the steps leading to Breeze Hill, Ryder suddenly stopped Alexa and Crawford in their tracks.
Get your styler ready, Alex, he advised. Alexa readied her styler, though in confusion.
"NYEAAOW!" A Glameow leapt towards Crawford.
"Capture on," Alexa sighed as she instantly released the capture disc. The disc circled around Glameow and ensnared it with a white ring. The Glameow fell flat onto its feet. "Capture complete. Thanks for the heads up, Ryder." Ryder squinted back at her with a smile and nodded once.
"Thanks, Alex," Crawford thanked with relief. "Glameow almost turned my hair into a yarn ball."
"It's not far off," Alexa teased. "Come on, let's go into the cave." She, Ryder, Crawford and the befriended Glameow walked into the cave.

NIRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

"Urgh!" Alexa complained, covering her ears from the irritating whirring noise. Ryder did the same thing. "The echoing doesn't help anything! What the hell is that noise?!"
"Alex, look out!" Crawford yelled. A Zubat headed her way. Alex moved her hands from her ears and released her capture disc from her styler.
"Capture on!" she exclaimed. Her capture disc circles the bat and the emitted light ring was absorbed into the bat. "Capture com-huh?" Alexa noticed something on her styler; the Zubat had not been befriended. The Zubat flew off.
"That's odd. You captured that Zubat properly, didn't you?" Crawford asked. "How come it wasn't befriended like Glameow was?"
"Why do I get a bad feeling that this monstrosity of a noise has something to do with it?" Alexa asked rhetorically. Ryder tapped Alexa's arm and he pointed to his right. Alexa and Crawford looked at what Ryder was pointing at; a large red machine was in operation, and the horrible noise was loudest around it. Crawford and Alex approached it.
"And I think this machine has something to do with it," Crawford added. "Maybe if we can destroy it, we can stop the noise."
"That would make sense, but how would we destroy something like that?" Alexa pondered. "Ryder, can you investigate it?"
Ryder nodded as he walked over to the machine. He carefully placed his left paw on the machine, but an electrical shock pushed him back, causing him to crash into the wall behind him. Alexa ran over to him.
"Ryder! You okay?!" she asked, helping him onto his feet. Ryder used his right paw to rub the back of his head.
Well that was bloody painful, he complained. Maybe a trajectory attack would work better.
"A trajectory attack? You mean like a water attack?" Alexa asked. Ryder nodded in confirmation.
"There's a Gastrodon somewhere in this cave," Crawford began. "Maybe we can get it to destroy the machine," he suggested.
"It's worth a try," Alexa agreed. She, Crawford, Ryder and Glameow followed the cave path until they found a fence blocking the way. Glameow performed a target clear by slashing the fencing away. Glameow was then released and it left the cave. This allowed Crawford, Alexa and Ryder to enter the next area of the cave.

In the second area of the cave, there was no abnormal noise, but there was another cave entrance that had become blocked by a large boulder. Crawford approaches the boulder.
"Gastrodon is behind this rock," he explained. "We may have to do a target clear on this too."
"But we'll need a Pokémon that can crush this rock, right?" Alexa guessed.
"Yep. I think a Nosepass can help us here," Crawford advised. He, Alexa and Ryder moved along, going further into the cave. They went passed a timid looking Squirtle and found a lax Nosepass. Alexa released her capture disc and it circled the relaxed Nosepass. The white ring soon ensnared and caused the Nosepass to become befriended.
"Capture complete. Now we can break that rock," Alexa commented. "Let's go, Nosepass."
"Nose." Alexa, Crawford, Ryder and the Nosepass ran back to the large boulder. Nosepass tackled into the rock, crushing it and leaving tiny pebbles. Nosepass was then released and it left. Alexa, Crawford and Ryder entered the cave and find the pink/magenta/brown Gastrodon slithering around, leaving a similar residue to that of a Shellos. Alexa used her styler and her capture disc to capture and befriend the Gastrodon. The four of them left and returned to the first area of the cave.

NIRRRRRRRRRR!

"God, this noise is getting on my nerves!" Alexa complained. "The sooner we destroy that thing the better!"
"I feel like complaining to the neighbours about the noise," Crawford teased. He, Alexa, Ryder and the Gastrodon approached the red machine. Gastrodon fired a ball of water at the machine, which caused a small explosion, thus destroying it. Gastrodon then left. The Pokémon in the area appeared to have returned to their senses and they scattered.
"Huh; I guess this thing was responsible for this disturbance after all," Alexa assumed. Crawford prepared to lift the broken machine off from the ground.
"I suppose we'll take this back to the base then," he suggested. He got a good grip on the machine and tried to lift it up. After a few attempts, Crawford gave up. "No good," he sighed. "That thing's heavy! I don't think the two of us will get it out of here."
"Then what can we do?" Alexa asked.
"I'll get a hold of Almia's strongest person," Crawford began. "The only one that has defeated Barlow at arm wrestling. You and Ryder go on ahead and I'll wait for Almia's strongest person."
"If you say so, Crawford. See you later." Alexa and Ryder left the cave. They walked along the beach.
Randomly placed machines screwing with the wild Pokémon? Doesn't seem the most logical thing for anyone to do, Ryder sighed.
"I know, it's weird," Alexa began. "Why put a random machine there that makes Pokémon go loopy?" The woman from the farmhouse intercepted Alexa and Ryder.
"Howdy again," she greeted.
"Hey, you're from the farmhouse, aren't you?" Alexa inquired.
"Sure am; they call me Big Bertha," the woman replied. "For some reason, your Crawford called me for some help." Bertha's words startled Alexa and Ryder, causing them to become nervous. "I told my Little Tim, and he got jealous," Bertha laughed, walking passed the uneasy pair.
"Um…I don't think I want to get on her bad side then," Alexa said tensely. Ryder shakes his head, agreeing with her. The two continued their way towards Vientown. They eventually entered the base.

At the base…

"Here's the basic synopsis," Alexa began. "We saw a red machine emitting a terrifyingly ear-piercing noise inside the cave, which made Pokémon go crazy. But the weirdest thing is the Pokémon couldn't be befriended with my styler."
"That's certainly strange," Barlow commented. Alexa took and looked at her styler.
"I know the styler's not defective," Alexa continued. "It managed to capture a Glameow, Nosepass and a Gastrodon today."
"Then the machine's to blame then," Barlow deducted. "Even so, it's mission clear, Alexa. You did well."
"Thanks, Barlow," Alexa thanked, putting her styler away.
"And I'm not wasting time. Alexa, I'm promoting you to Ranger Rank 1," Barlow added.
I'll have to give myself a PRRRROMOTION! Ryder smiled comically as he swung his left arm across him. He eventually pointed up. Alexa buried her face in her right hand.
"Not that again, Ryder…!" she sighed. Ryder looked up at her and sniggered.
"What did he do?" Barlow asked.
"It's something he's seen on YouTube. One time too many." Barlow laughed.
"I love that joke," he commented. Ryder sniggered to himself again. Little Tim entered the base, looking panicky.
"Um…I was wondering if someone would help me," he said nervously. Alexa and Ryder faced him.
"Sure, we can help. What seems to be the problem?" Alexa asked. Little Tim faced her.
"Well, see, it's our Miltank," he began. "The missus had to go out on an errand, so she asked me to look after the Miltank. I'm deathly afraid of Pokémon, and the Miltank is agitated, so…"
"Say no more, Alexa has it under control," Barlow began. Alexa and Ryder faced him. "Alexa, these sorts of missions – where citizens ask us Rangers for help – is what is known as a Quest," he continued. "It's not really something we take on as a proper mission."
"Got it, thanks for the info," Alexa thanked gratifyingly. She and Ryder faced Little Tim again. "Can you show us where your Miltank is?"
"Ayup, I knew I could count on you," Little Tim said with relief. "She's over on the farm." He escorted Alexa and Ryder out of the base.

Outside the farmyard, Little Tim, Alexa and Ryder approached a fence and observed the angry Miltank.
"What's gotten her so worked up?" Alexa asked.
"Well, Big Bertha's asked me to milk her, but she won't calm down," Little Tim answered nervously. "And you know I'm deathly afraid of Pokémon…"
"I think it's time she got acquainted with my styler and its capture disc," Alexa smiled, hopping over the fence. Ryder followed her.
"MIL MIIIIIIL!" Miltank rolled up into a ball and charged towards Alexa. She cartwheeled away in one direction whilst Ryder leapt away in the opposite direction.
"That's a fast Rollout attack," Alexa commented. "She really IS agitated!" She stood up and readied her styler "Capture-"

BUMP!

"Aaaaagh!" Miltank crashed into Alexa with another Rollout attack. She crashed into the silo's ladder. Ryder looked towards the silo after he stood up.
Alex! Are you okay?! He asked in horror.
"Miltank, calm down!" Little Tim shouted nervously. Alexa strained onto her feet, but she soon flinched. She instantly placed her right hand on her left shoulder, which was what hit the silo first. She also appeared to be limping, as her right knee appeared to be bruised.
"Okay…no more Miss Nice Ranger…!" she hissed. "Capture on!" she fumed. She released the capture disc from her styler and it circled the angry Miltank. Miltank stopped in its tracks and looked around in a panicky fashion. The white ring soon took effect and Miltank calmed down as soon as the ring embodied her. Alexa relaxed and leant against the silo, holding her left shoulder whilst keeping her right knee limp. Ryder ran over to her with concern.
"You alright, Alexa?!" Little Tim asked. Alexa faced him.
"I've had worse, but I'm fine!" she called back. Alexa slowly made her way over to the fence. She slowly climbed over it, being careful not to further damage her knee. Ryder hopped over the fence as well.
"Thank you, Alexa. I'm mighty sorry our Miltank attacked you like that," Little Tim apologised.
"Still, it's better than falling down the stairs in my opinion," Alexa said politely. "But, yeah; Miltank will be just fine now, sweet as a nut."

A slow trek later…

Ryder entered the base, as did Alexa, who limped her way into the reception area. Crawford had now returned, with the strange machine dumped on the floor.
"Alexa, what happened?!" Luana asked out of shock. "Are you alright?!"
"I will be, yeah," Alexa replied. "Whoa!" Alex's left ankle gave way, causing her to fall. Barlow managed to catch her and he sat her down on the nearby chair.
"That Miltank was troublesome, wasn't it?" he asked.
"Rollout," Alexa answered simply. "Aagh!"
"Sorry, sorry…! I'm just looking at your knee," Barlow said in defence.
"Miltank did that?" Elaine asked in confusion. "She must've been agitated!"
"No joke, given her power," Alexa replied. "Why do I get the feeling my knee's dislocated?"
"Probably is, I think," Barlow assumed. "But only slightly; it looks different compared to your left."
"If that's the case, it needs to be popped back into place," Crawford suggested. Barlow stood up and faced him. Ryder moved into where Barlow once was.
"And just who do you suggest would be able to-"

"AAAAAOOW!" Alexa shrieked in agony. Everyone else faced Ryder; he relocated Alexa's knee himself.
"Need I say more?" Crawford asked playfully. Alexa recovered from the pain and bent her right leg slowly.
"Doesn't hurt so much anymore," she commented. "The only thing about it that hurts is the actual bruise itself. Thanks, Ryder!" Ryder smiled.

The next day…

Alexa – now fully recovered from yesterday's uncalled for assault – and Ryder entered the main reception area.
"Save the good morning stuff!" Barlow exclaimed suddenly. The exclamation startled Alexa and Ryder. "The Vien Forest is on fire!"
"What?! How did that happen?!" Alexa asked in horror.
"We don't know, but that's what Crawford is trying to find out," Barlow began on a slightly calmer tone. "Where's Luana?" Luana enters the reception area.
"Morning! Hey, who's burnt their toast?" she asked innocently.
"Not the time or place, Luana," Alexa sighed.
"Nobody's burnt their toast, the Vien Forest is on fire," Barlow replied.
"Oh no! We need to do something!" Luana exclaimed.
"Alexa, I want you and Luana to help Crawford out in the forest," Barlow instructed. "Remember, your safety comes first; if you do anything dangerous, you'll have to answer to me."
"Got it. Let's go, Alexa!" Luana ran out of the base. Alexa and Ryder were startled.
"Hey, wait for us!" Alexa shouted, giving chase. Ryder followed her.

In the forest…

"Gosh, this is terrible!" Luana exclaimed in horror.
"I feel sorry for the Pokémon here," Alexa began. "Where's Crawford?" she asked.
"He must be further on," Luana guessed. "Let's hurry!" She, Alexa and Ryder ran towards a deeper part of the forest.
In the second area of the forest, the flames were more intense and the temperature was almost unbearable. Alexa started coughing.
"There's too much fire here, it's getting dangerous!" Luana exclaimed. Alexa, with her hands over her nose and mouth, squinted at her.
"Then this must be where the source is!" she replied. "The fire has yet to spread further, so let's make sure it doesn't!" she coughed.
"I think Crawford's not too far from here, let's go!" Luana encouraged. Alexa removed her hands from her face and she and Ryder followed Luana. Eventually, they met up with Crawford.
"Alex, Luana! I'm glad you're here," he began. "My styler's going out of control in this heat! I need you two to capture a Blastoise for its Rain Dance."
"Say no more, we understand," Alexa complied. "Luana, let's hurry!"
"But we don't know where we can find a Blastoise!" Luana protested.
"Try the waterfront," Alexa sighed. "Let's just go!" she exclaimed, running towards the west, with Ryder following closely. Luana gave chase.

At the waterfront…

Alexa and Luana managed to find a lone Blastoise wandering around by the river's edge.
"How do we go about capturing it?" Luana asked.
"Easy; I'll get it's attention and you capture it from here," Alexa answered. "Just stay here until I say so." She snuck out of the bushes and snuck towards the Blastoise. She tried to knock on its shell, but the Blastoise – being in a foul mood – whacked Alexa away before she could get close.
"AAAAGH!" Alexa crashed into the ground beneath her. The Blastoise turned away from her and minded its own business again.
"Should I catch it now?" Luana asked. Ryder ran out of the bushes and helped Alexa onto her feet.
"Yeah, sure…whatever," Alexa sighed. Luana used her styler to release her capture disc. The disc circled the Blastoise and eventually captured it. Alexa rubbed her right cheek.
"I don't think Blastoise did too much damage," she began. "It felt more like a faint slap if anything, but hitting the ground was painful."
Whew, that's good to hear, Ryder sighed with relief.
"Okay, let's go back to Crawford!" Luana said enthusiastically. Alexa, Ryder, Luana and Blastoise made their way out of the waterfront.

In the forest…

"Hey, you caught a Blastoise!" Crawford observed, having noticed Alexa, Luana, Ryder and the Blastoise making their way over to him. "Okay, now we need to have it use Rain Dance."
"Got it. Blastoise, use Rain Dance," Luana instructed. Blastoise fired two balls of water from its cannons into the sky. The clouds gathered and darkened, and rain soon fell over the flaming forest. As the rain stopped, so had the forest fire. Blastoise then made its way back to the waterfront.
"Okay, I think that's mission clear," Crawford began. "Let's go back to base." He, Luana, Alexa and Ryder prepared to leave, but Crawford and Luana heard something odd; they turned around and found a red-haired young man in a blue and white striped t-shirt and blue trousers.
"Aah!" the man yelped as he fled from the scene. Luana and Crawford gave chase, much to Alexa's confusion. She and Ryder followed the other two and found them surrounding the scared man.
"Um, what're you two doing?" Alexa asked.
"He reeks of oil," Crawford answered. "He may know something, so we'll take him back to base."
"If you say so, Crawford," Alexa sighed. Luana and Crawford walked passed Alexa and Ryder with the oil-stained man in tow. "That man may know something, but I doubt he'll know what the machines are," Alexa said, after Crawford and Luana are gone. "If he knew how to set the machine up properly, the Vien Forest wouldn't have been on fire. Anyway, let's head back to base." She and Ryder then left the forest slowly.

Later…

Alexa and Ryder entered the base. They find the oil-stained man standing in the corner.
"Haven't you done talking to him yet?" Alexa asked.
"He won't say a word," Crawford sighed. "So we're keeping him here until he talks." Alexa faced him.
"Isn't that a little harsh?" she asked. "He doesn't look like a criminal."
"Don't be deceived, Alexa," Barlow warned. "He had burns – which Elaine treated – and is still smells of oil. He knows something we don't."
"But even so, he- oh I give up," Alexa sighed. "I don't have the energy to debate today."
"That doesn't matter now," Barlow began. "I'm promoting you to Ranger Rank 2; the forest fire must've been unbearable."
"I'm just glad the whole thing's over. Thanks, Barlow," Alexa said gratefully. She squinted at Ryder. "Don't even think about it…" Ryder sniggered.

The next day…

Alexa and Ryder were en route to Vien Forest, but a familiar-looking man with a walking stick and a white lab coat intercepted them.
"Oh, it's you from the one-day internship," the man commented, having just recognised Alexa.
"You must be Professor Hastings, am I right?" she guessed.
"Yes, that's me," he confirmed. "What a joke; they put up a barricade over on Lookout Ridge! That was nothing a swift kick couldn't handle."
"Kicking things can be fun," Alexa said quietly.
"Anyway, let us make way to the Ranger base, post haste," Professor Hastings suggested. He, Alexa and Ryder made their way to the base.

Inside…

"So this is the strange machine you called about, eh?" Professor Hastings assumed, making his way to the dismantled machine. "Eh? I've seen something like this on my way here…where was that now? Oh, yes! In Pueltown!" he exclaimed. "I mistook them for mailboxes, but obviously I was wrong."
"So they're in Pueltown too?" Barlow asked.
"That can't be good then," Alexa began. "If they caused problems in the Marine Cave, I'd hate to think of the trouble they'd cause in Pueltown."
"Exactly. Alexa, Luana, I want you two to go to Pueltown and investigate these strange machines," Barlow instructed.
"Roger!" Alexa and Luana complied as they and Ryder ran out of the base.

To be continued…