Chapter 24
meeting Charmander
meanwhile, somewhere between routes 24 and 25,
with the newest addition of Bulbasaur being added to the team, Lincoln and friends continued on their journey," man, you weren't kidding about these routs being long, misty," Lincoln commented.
"Yeah, it always felt shorter probably due to the fact that we always drove out to cerulean cape instead of walking," misty replied, before looking up at the night sky," there should be a Pokémon center further up the way. we can stop there for the night. then cerulean cape shouldn't be more than another day and a half's walk away," she then suggested.
"Sounds like a plan," brock replied, before he noticed something on top of a large boulder," huh? is that a Charmander?"
"What?! a Charmander?!" Lincoln excitedly exclaimed, looking up onto the large boulder, spotting the orange lizard Pokémon, causing his grin wider," awesome! I've been wanting to catch one since I saw one at professor oaks lab! in fact, if there were four starters instead of three, I would've chosen Charmander myself," he stated, before scratching Pikachu's ears," but things still worked out pretty good that day, since i still managed to catch Pikachu."
"don't you know it?" Pikachu replied.
"I'm guessing you still want to catch one?" misty asked.
"of course! I don't have a fire type on my team yet, so adding Charmander is a must!" Lincoln replied, pointing his pokedex at the Pokémon.
"Charmander, the lizard Pokémon, a fire type. at the time of birth, a flame is continually burning at the tip of its tail. it's said that a Charmander's life will end should the flame ever go out," the pokedex explained, causing Lincoln to frown in disappointment.
"Aw dang it! this Charmander already has a trainer," Lincoln groaned.
"But if that's true, then why isn't it with its trainer?" misty wondered.
"Huh, that is strange," Lincoln replied.
"It could be possible that this Charmander was abandoned. you should talk to it," brock advise.
"Good call," Lincoln said, as he and Pikachu approached the lone Charmander, who eyed the two of them cautiously.
"What do you two want? if you want to catch me, then forget it. I already have a trainer," Charmander said. based on its voice, Lincoln could easily tell it was a boy.
"don't worry. we're not here for anything like that. we just want to talk with you," Lincoln replied. Charmander then had a look of intrigue, while still eyeing them carefully.
"Just talk to with me? alright, what do you want to talk about?" Charmander asked.
"We want to know why you're sitting out here all alone," Pikachu said.
"Pikachu's right. shouldn't your trainer be with you right now?" Lincoln asked, only for a reluctant look to work its way onto Charmander's face," hey, you don't need to worry. we won't judge you. we just want to know."
"Well, my trainer told me to wait her, and that he would be back, because he said he was meeting a friend," Charmander explained.
"Really? your trainer told you to wait here until he comes back?" Lincoln asked incredulously.
"He did, and I'm getting really worried. he's usually not this late coming back," Charmander replied sadly.
"I don't know... that sounds like something someone would say before ditching their Pokémon," Pikachu commented. Charmander glared angrily at Pikachu, the flame on his tail flaring up.
"don't you EVER badmouth Damian like that! he's not that kind of trainer!" she snapped.
"we're not badmouthing anyone," Lincoln replied, trying to defuse the situation, only to be met with a fireball fired at his feet.
"Get out of my sight! I don't want to talk anymore!" Charmander demanded.
"But we..." Lincoln cut himself off when he saw another fireball forming in the lizard Pokémon's mouth," ok, ok, we're going!" he said, as he and Pikachu left Charmander alone," think you could've phrased the whole 'your trainer might've abandoned you' a little bit more gingerly?"
"Look, I was going by instinct, and that was the first thing to pop into my head!" Pikachu said defensively," besides, someone had to break the possible news to his, right?"
"Yeah, but we don't really know anything about his trainer, other than his name Damian," Lincoln replied, as they rejoined brock and misty.
"So, how'd it go?" misty asked.
"We think that it may have been possible that Charmander was abandoned, but we're going to need more info before jumping to the same conclusion," Lincoln replied.
"You know, maybe if ask around the Pokémon center, we may be able to find out more about Charmander's trainer. by the way, what was their name?" brock asked, as they continued walking.
"He said his trainer's name is Damian," Lincoln replied.
"Well, it ain't much, but it's all we got so far," misty commented, crossing her arms.
"Well, we can ask around when we get there. it's getting late, and I'm pretty tired," Lincoln replied, as they continued along the path. as they left, Charmander muttered something under his breath, before curling up going to sleep.
later, at the Pokémon center,
sitting down to a nice dinner of hot soup, Lincoln was conversing with brock and misty," so, were you guys able to find out anything?"
"Afraid not. all I was able to find out about anyone by the name of Damian, is that one guys by that name passed by here about three days ago, and hasn't been seen," brock replied.
"I came up empty handed too. how about you?" misty asked Lincoln.
"I wasn't able to find anything out myself either. kind of why I asked you guys first," Lincoln replied.
"Great! so now we're back to square one!" misty groaned irritably. it was then that Pikachu got an idea.
"You know, we could always ask Charmander where Damian said he was going. if anyone knows the guy best, it'd be him."
"Hmm, it's a good idea, but that'll be considering Charmander will want to talk again," Lincoln replied.
"Well, we could always send in someone as a diplomat to try to coerce her into talking again," Pikachu pointed out.
"Well, I can't argue with that. then I guess it's a plan," Lincoln replied, turning to his two friends," Pikachu and I are going to try talking to Charmander again and see if she can tell us where Damian said he was going."
"Sounds like a good enough plan. what should we do in the meantime?" brock asked.
"Keep asking around. there's bound to be someone who knows something about the guy," Lincoln replied.
"Alright, we'll keep an ear out any info," misty replied.
"Great! we'll head out first thing in the morning," Lincoln said, as they continued their dinner.
the next morning,
Lincoln and company were standing outside of the Pokémon center," alright, I'm heading out now. I'll try to message you guys once i find a lead," Lincoln said.
"we'll do the same," misty said, as they split up to take care of their individual task.
"So, how should we go about talking to Charmander?" Lincoln asked Pikachu.
"We need someone who knows how it feels to be abandoned by their trainer. perhaps Bulbasaur?" Pikachu suggested.
"Hey, now that's an idea!" Lincoln said, as he then released Bulbasaur from his pokeball.
"Yes? what do you guys want?" Bulbasaur asked with a yawn.
"Bulbasaur, we need your help. do you have experience talking to Pokémon that have been abandoned by their trainers? preferably to those that are in denial of the whole ordeal?" Lincoln asked.
"Yes, I do have some experience in that field. what of it?" Lincoln and Pikachu then explained the situation to Bulbasaur," so, there's a Charmander that you and the others feel was abandoned by its trainer, right?" both of them nodded," and rather than avoiding such a topic, you just bluntly stated the possibility that he was abandoned, correct?" Pikachu sheepishly nodded," oh for arceus' sake no wonder he's mad at you guys!"
"It was a spur of the moment type thing, I swear!" Pikachu said defensively.
"So, can you help us out with talking to him?" Lincoln asked.
"I can, but I would strongly suggest you two stay back while I smooth things out with him," Bulbasaur replied.
"Sounds fair. and while you're talking, could you try to ask where his trainer was headed before leaving him there?" Lincoln asked.
"I'll try," Bulbasaur replied, as they continued towards Charmander's rock.
later at Charmander's rock,
"Alright, there he is," Lincoln said, as the three of them arrived at Charmander's rock," your turn now, Bulbasaur. do you stuff."
"Roger that," Bulbasaur replied, as he approached Charmander.
"While he's talking things out with Charmander, could you explain something, Pikachu? Lincoln asked.
"Depends on what you want explained," Pikachu replied.
"Lately I've been hearing you guys say 'arceus' even though I felt like I heard it before. what is it?" Lincoln asked.
"Make sense that you don't know. after all you've been in kanto for a few weeks. well, to put it simply, arcues is the god of all Pokémon. without him, we would've never existed," Pikachu replied." wait, you've heard of arceus?"
"I see. so, he would essentially be the ancestor of Pokémon?" Lincoln asked." also kind of but it's a little blurry."
"Oh, a mystery, and not quite. all I said is that he's the creator of Pokémon. if you want to talk the ancestor of all Pokémon, that privilege goes to a mythical Pokémon known simply as 'mew'," Pikachu replied.
"Mew, huh? sounds like it must've been some Pokémon," Lincoln commented.
"Actually, I've heard through the grapevine that mew has been sighted even in modern times, though its only seen as a mirage," Pikachu replied.
"Whoa, that's heavy! is there any way to actually meet mew?" Lincoln asked.
"Hard to say. mew is as fickle as they come. I've heard that it has the power to turn invisible at will, and can use all known Pokémon moves," Pikachu replied.
"Hmm, I guess it would be asking too much of my newfound good luck to have a chance encounter with mew," Lincoln replied.
"Well, it's still possible," Pikachu replied. Lincoln looked at the mouse Pokémon curiously.
"What do you mean?"
"it's said that mew will only appear before those of pure heart, and with a powerful desire to meet it. many who know of mew have the desire part down pat, but it's the pure heart that seems to be lacking," Pikachu explained. just then, Bulbasaur returned, along with Charmander.
"Alright, I've managed to talk things over with the guy," Bulbasaur said.
"Thanks, Bulbasaur," Lincoln replied, turning his attention to Charmander," hello again, Charmander. sorry about what happened yesterday."
"Think nothing of it. so, your Bulbasaur here says that you're willing to go look for Damian?"
"Yes, we are, but we're going to need your help with that," Lincoln replied.
"Ok, what do you need?" Charmander asked curiously, eying the young man.
"If we want to find Damian, we need to know exactly where he was going. did he say where he was going?" Lincoln asked.
"Now that I think about it, he said was heading for that mountain over there to meet up with a friend," Charmander replied, pointing towards a nearby mountain over there," he was told about something that could help increase the power of a Pokémon."
"Ok, but why did he leave you behind instead of taking you with him?" Pikachu asked.
"Well, there are a lot of strong Pokémon that make the mountain their territory. i guess he didn't want me to get hurt, so he had me wait here," Charmander replied.
"Hmm, so Damian told Charmander to wait as a means of protecting him? but if that's the case, then why hasn't he come back yet?" Lincoln wondered.
"So, what's up there that's up there that's so important to leave you here for your safety?" Bulbasaur asked.
"I didn't get much details, but according to him, his friend told him there's some kind of stone that can help increase my power once I've fully evolved into a Charizard. but right now, that's the least of me concerns. please, can you make sure that Damian comes back safe and found?" Charmander pleaded to Lincoln.
"Hey, don't worry, I'll find him and bring him back," Lincoln replied, as he then took out his pokedex," but before i head up there, I'll let brock and misty know about this lead. pokedex, is there a way to contact them from here?"
"I do possess a cellphone function, but the signal's far too weak for me to send out a call. but if you want, I can always email the Pokémon center and have nurse joy relay the message to your friends," the pokedex said.
"that'll do fine," Lincoln commented, before realizing something," you sounded a lot like you're A.I. was sentient."
"that's because I am a sentient A.I." the pokedex replied.
"How come I never knew about that?" Lincoln asked.
"You never asked."
"Ok, I'll give that one to you. so, do you have a name or something?" Lincoln asked.
"You can call me 'dexter'," the pokedex said, giving its name.
"Ok, dexter, could you open the email function?" Lincoln asked.
"Certainly. one moment," dexter replied, as a holographic display emerged from the screen.
"That could come in handy," Lincoln commented, as he typed out his message.
'Brock, misty,
"Pikachu and I found a lead. we're heading up a nearby mountain to find Damian. we hope to find him and bring him back before dark,
Lincoln'
"Ok, go ahead and send it Dex, its ok that I call you Dex right," Lincoln said.
"of course, I like it, and sending message at once," dexter said, as he sent the message.
"In the meantime, we'd better get going," Lincoln said to his two Pokémon.
"And when you find Damian, could you let him know that I'm still waiting?" Charmander asked.
"Consider it done," Lincoln replied, as he and his Pokémon ventured towards the mountain.
back at the Pokémon center,
"Ugh! we've been at this for two and a half hours, and still nothing on Damian!" misty groaned, as she slumped down on one of the couches.
"All we can do is hope that Lincoln found some kind of lead on where this Damian guy could be," brock replied, as he too was tired from asking around.
"Yeah, you're right. I wonder how he's doing right now?" misty wondered.
"Lincoln's a smart kid. I'm sure he's fine," brock said. it was then that nurse joy approached them.
"Excuse me, but your names brock and misty by any chance?"
"that's us," misty replied.
"I received a message from someone by the name of Lincoln loud. I took the liberty of printing it off for you," nurse joy replied, as she handed brock a piece of paper.
"Thanks nurse joy," misty said, as the nurse walked off. brock then read over the message," well, it looks like we were right. Lincoln's the one to have gotten a lead."
"Did he say where Damian might be?" misty asked.
"By the looks of it, he has. apparently, Damian was last seen heading up a mountain to meet up with someone up a mountain a few miles away," brock replied.
"Great. here's hoping that he'll be able to find the guy," misty replied, as she slumped down on the couch along with brock.
meanwhile, up on a mountain,
"Alright ralts, use disarming voice!" Lincoln instructed, as he and his Pokémon were fending off a horde of wild Pokémon that didn't take too kindly to a human and his Pokémon walking through their turf.
"r-right!" ralts replied, as he fired off disarming voice at some attacking Pokémon. there were sandshrew, female nidoran, geodude and graveler, four Pokémon he did recognize, while the others he didn't recognize. some looks like monkeys with pig noses, others looked like small, grayish blue humanoids, while others looked the female nidoran, but were pink, and had a large horn on their heads.
"Mankey, the pig monkey Pokémon, a fighting type. Mankey primarily live in treetop colonies. when one Mankey becomes angry, the rest of the colony becomes enraged as well. it's very dangerous to approach Mankey when they're mad, because they can't distinguish friend from foe.
"nidoran male, the poison pin Pokémon, a poison type. male nidoran have large horns than females, and these horns contain a powerful poison. nidoran male are very cautious Pokémon, and use their hearing to sense oncoming danger.
"machop, the superpower Pokémon, a fighting type. while it's the size of a human child, it has the power to hurl 100 grown-ups. its muscles never cramp up, no matter how much they train. they practice all forms of martial arts," dexter explained, as the wild Pokémon were hurled up onto a single pile, completely spent from trying in vain to chase off Lincoln and his team.
"Nicely done everyone!" Lincoln proclaimed.
"That was some workout!" Pikachu commented.
"I got a lot of experience from that battle!" goomy added.
"that's only because these Pokémon thought we came here to cause trouble," Bulbasaur said to the soft tissue Pokémon.
"Well, it's really the end result that matters, Lincoln commented.
"ain't that the truth?' ralts asked. it was then that a bright light erupted from ralt's body.
"Wait, could this be...?!" Lincoln excitedly exclaimed, as ralts began to change shape, and became a little taller, and resembled a ballerina, his orange eyes now exposed, and his two horns now on either side of his head," whoa, you've evolved!" he exclaimed, pointing dexter at his newly evolved Pokémon.
"Kirila, the emotion Pokémon, a psychic and fairy type. Kirila is highly perceptive of its trainer's feelings. if the trainer is happy, then Kirila will dance joyously," dexter explained, as Kirila twirled around a little bit.
"I feel stronger now!" Kirila commented happily. however, her joyous mood was interrupted upon sensing something out of the ordinary," Lincoln, I sense someone nearby!"
"Could it be another Pokémon?" Pikachu asked. Kirila merely shook his head.
"No, I'm sensing a human."
"a human? do you think it could be Damian?" riolu asked.
"Only one way to find out. lead the way, Kirila," Lincoln requested. Kirila then levitated with his psychic powers, and led the group to a nearby cave. upon reaching it, all of the Pokémon covered their noses.
"Oh man, what's that smell!?" riolu exclaimed.
"It kind of smells coppery, just like..." a chill went down Pikachu's back as he said those words," l-like blood." the other Pokémon looked at their leader with shocked expressions, as Lincoln knelt down to eye level with Pikachu.
"Pikachu, I need you to be honest with me. do you really smell something like that there?"
"it's either blood or a rich vein of copper. it's kind of hard to tell from here," Pikachu replied.
"Well, there's only one way to find out," Lincoln replied, as they entered the cave, fighting back the queasy feeling the stench alone was giving him, followed closely by his Pokémon. they didn't have to go very far into the cave to find something that truly horrified them. one the cave floor, was a badly injured, blue-haired man. he appeared to be under some big rocks, sitting in a pool of dry blood, and judging by the stench, he's been here for days," oh god, I think I'm going to be sick!" Lincoln then quickly rushed out of the cave; his retching could be heard from where his Pokémon were at.
"So, that must be Damian," goomy commented, as she and the others tried very hard not to lose their lunches like Lincoln did. speaking of which, the young trainer came back from emptying out his stomach.
"Ok, that was unpleasant. now let's see about him," Lincoln said, as he checked Damian's pulse. he could feel it, but just barely," well, the good news is that he's alive."
"...o's there...?" the blue haired man asked, causing Lincoln to reel back with a scream," oi, quit screamin', will ya?! I'm 'alf dead as its already with ya makin' me deaf too!" he said, before going into a coughing fit.
"Sorry, sorry, I wasn't expecting you to regain consciousness that fast," Lincoln replied.
"Eh, I can sympathize with dat. so, uh, any chance I can ask ya ta 'elp me out of this cave?" the man asked.
"Sure thing. guys, return for now," Lincoln said, as he recalled his team except for Kirila," Kirila, use confusion and get the rocks off and help carry Damian here back to the Pokémon center," Lincoln said, as he took off his backpack, and unzipped the main pouch, allowing Kirila to climb inside.
"No problem, Lincoln," Kirila replied, as he then used confusion, moving the rocks and levitating Damian up off the ground, not noticing that Damian saw Lincoln's rainbow wing around his neck as he passed out.
at the Pokémon center,
Damian wakes up in the emergency room with Lincoln and Charmander next to his bed." where, where am I?" Damian asked.
"you're in the Pokémon center, we found you in the cave under some rocks, but we got you out, but you were injured really bad," Lincoln replied.
"Damian, you're ok, I'm so happy," Charmander said hugging Damian.
"Thanks, mate I really appreciate this," Damian replied.
"No problem, Charmander was waiting for you to come back," Lincoln said.
"Me Charmander? "Well, dat's good ta 'ear. I never meant to worry him. it feels good seeing him again," Damian said.
"I say he felt the same way. so, what exactly did you come up there for?" Lincoln asked.
"I came up 'ere to meet up with my friend cross to find a special stone that'll help increase the power of Charizard. I figured that if we both got them I could power up our Pokémon when they evolved. but all we found was this bloody thing!" Damian said, as he dug out, to Lincoln's surprise, was a mega stone, but it was blue, with a black flame in the center," all o' this trouble, and for what? just some marble!"
"Well, maybe that's the stone you've heard about, the one that can power up Charizard?" Lincoln asked.
"Could be, but with 'ow I am now thanks to cross, it's pretty useless to me. you can have it if you want," Damian offered.
"Really, thanks a lot, wait what do you mean thanks to cross?" Lincoln asked.
"Cross was my friend or so I thought, cross is a heartless trainer who sees weak people and Pokémon as trash to him only strong trainers should exist, and I think he's after you, because he heard that I was planning on facing you in battle, he showed me up the mountain then trapped me there on purpose," Damian explained.
"What, why is he after me?" Lincoln asked.
"Rumors spread about a young outsider with white hair was given a rainbow wing by ho-oh, and it pissed him off even though he met ho-oh before he was never given one," Damian replied.
"that's a dumb reason," Lincoln said. until nurse joy came in with news.
"Hello nurse joy, will Damian be, ok?" Lincoln asked.
"Well, I've got good news, bad news, and more good news," nurse joy replied.
"Ok, let's hear it," Lincoln, said feeling uneasy along with Charmander.
"Well, the good news is that Damian will pull through. if you hadn't found him a day later, then he wouldn't have survived," she explained. Lincoln and Charmander sign of relief, as did Damian.
"that's good to hear. but, what of the bad news?" Lincoln asked.
"Well, the injuries he sustained were far more severe that we originally anticipated. we did everything we possibly could, but... his days of traveling the Pokémon region are pretty much shot," nurse joy replied.
"What, that's terrible! and he and Charmander reunited too," Lincoln said sadly.
"Wait, you said there's more good news, yes?" Damian asked.
"Yes. you see, there's a medical practice that was first discovered in the unova region that utilizes the Pokémon move heal pulse," nurse joy explained.
"Heal pulse?" Lincoln asked.
"Heal pulse, a psychic move that allows the user to heal itself or another target in battle," dexter explained.
"Well, that's good to hear. at least there's some hope for the future," Lincoln commented as Damian was looking down sad.
"Nurse joy, can you give us a minute," Damian asked, as nurse joy nodded and left the room.
"Lincoln, can you do me a favor and take Charmander as one of your Pokémon?" Damian asked. Lincoln and Charmander were shocked to hear this.
"What?! you want me to take your Charmander with me?!" Lincoln asked in disbelief. granted, he did like the thought of having a fire type on his team, but to take him away from his trainer just after they reunited? that seemed like a lot to ask.
"Yeah. I can't do much in the way of raising Charmander with how I am now. besides, if i can't trust the person who saved me, then who can I trust? can you do this for me?" Damian asked. Lincoln still looked unsure, but when faced with possibility of Charmander living on its own in the wild, now officially abandoned, Lincoln steeled his resolve.
"of course, Damian. I'll raise Charmander just as you would do. so, do I have to take his pokeball, or what?" Lincoln asked.
"No need. I already had nurse joy break the pokeball's connection to Charmander. he's a wild Pokémon now, so he's free to catch," Damian replied.
"If it's Damian's wish, then I'll gladly go along with it. I promise to do my best, Mr. Lincoln," Charmander said. Lincoln then got out of his pokeballs, namely a level ball.
"Welcome to the team Charmander," Lincoln said, as he tossed the level ball at Charmander, sucking it into the spherical device. after a few seconds of rocking, the pokeball clicked shut.
"Do you wish to swap Charmander with another Pokémon of your party?" dexter asked.
"Yes. I'll swap out sandshrew," Lincoln replied, as sandshrew's pokeball teleported away, allowing Lincoln to add Charmander to the team. Lincoln then let Charmander out of his new pokeball," alright Charmander, if you want you can spend the night with Damian."
"Thanks, Mr. Lincoln," Charmander exclaimed, as he crawled up onto the bed, and curled up next to his former trainer.
"you're one in a million, Lincoln. thanks for doing this for him," Damian said.
"No problem. I'll see you in the morning before we leave," Lincoln said, as he left them alone for the night. why would someone be this cruel, just you cross I'll make you pay for what you did to Damian.
That's chapter 23, next chapter we'll meet the final starter, by the way sorry about sandshrew's nickname just accidently forgot it. but here's my new challenge we've seen cross with incineroar and lyconroc, so what other four Pokémon should he have at the Pokémon league? oh yeah, I decided to make Charmander a boy in my story.
Lincoln's team
Pikachu (male)
moves: thunderbolt, iron tail, quick attack, electroball.
Fearow (female) oaks lab
moves: drill peck, wing attack, gust, brave bird.
poliwhirl (male) at loud house
moves: hypnosis, water sport, and water gun.
pidgeotto (female)
Moves: gust, whirlwind, sand attack, tackle, brave bird, steel wing, and quick attack.
butterfree (male) at loud house
moves: sleep powder, stun spore, confusion, quick attack, and psybeam.
beedrill (shiny) (male) at loud house
poison sting, string shot, bug bite, harden, pin missile, poison jab, and whirlwind.
riolu (male)
moves: quick attack, endure, counter, metal claw, and egg move vacuum wave
ralts evolved into Kirila (male)
moves: confusion, double team, thunder punch, disarming voice, teleport, and egg move misty terrain.
Flapple (male) oaks lab
moves: dragon rage, grassnot, razor leaf, and whirlwind.
Appletun (female) oaks lab
moves: dragon rage, grassnot, razor leaf, and energyball.
zubat (male) at the louds
moves: absorb, supersonic, bite, wing attack, astonish, and giga drain.
paras (male) at the louds
moves: scratch, stun spore, poison powder, absorb, and fell stinger.
sandshrew (female)
moves: poison sting, defence curl, rapid spin, fury cutter, magnitude, and metal claw
clefable (male) oaks lab
moves: metronome, minimize, double slap, disarming voice, sing, and wake up slap.
steenee (female) oak's lab
moves: sweet scent, razor leaf, rapid spin, splash, play nice, and grass whistle.
rockruff (male) at the louds
moves: rock throw, crunch, sand attack, roar, dig, stone edge, and counter.
goomy (female)
moves: tackle, bubble, absorb, bide, protect, and poison tail.
bulbasaur (male)
moves: vine whip, tackle, sleep powder, and razor leaf.