Chapter 21
Bulbasaur and the hidden village (part 1)
later that day, in a glade next to a freshwater spring,
the trio were enjoying a nice stew prepared curtesy of brock," man brock, that stew was nothing like what we always have back home. it was amazing!" Lincoln complimented, setting, his bowl down.
"I'm glad you like it. it's my own unique recipe," brock replied, by the way if I meet your dad in person would we have a cook off?
"Maybe, though if you did it'll probably be a tie," Lincoln replied.
"So, Lincoln, do think you can give each of us a name?" steenee asked, as she approached her trainer.
"a name? but don't you guys already have names?" Lincoln asked.
"steenee is referring to nicknames us. we'd like it if you were to call us something other than our species name," goomy clarified.
"Huh, I guess I can give it a try. let's see what kind of Pokémon you guys evolve into," Lincoln said, as he took out his pokedex, and began looking up each of his new Pokémon's evolutions.
"gallade, the blade Pokémon, a psychic and fighting type, and the fully evolved form of a male ralts. gallade is sharply attuned to others' wishes for help, this Pokémon seeks out those in need and aids them in battle, to obtain this form is to have a dawn stone.
"lycanroc, the wolf Pokémon, a rock type, it has two forms the midnight form and the midday form, the midnight form can be obtained during the night, its invigorated by powerful opponents-the stronger the better. a full force headbutt from one of these lycanroc can shatter giant boulders. its midday form can be obtained during the day, it also has swift movements, this Pokémon gradually backs its prey into a corner. lycanroc's fangs are always aimed toward opponents' weak spots.
"tsareena, the fruit Pokémon, a grass type, and the evolved form of steenee. although beautiful, this grass type Pokémon is highly aggressive, and will trample its opponents after beating them. its kicks will leave a mark on both the body and soul that can never heal.
"sandslash, the mouse Pokémon, a ground type, and the evolved form of sandshrew. the drier the area a sandslash lives in, the harder and smoother the spikes on its back feels. this Pokémon uses its sharp claws to climb up trees to retrieve fruit, sending them down below to waiting sandshrew.
"goodra, the dragon Pokémon, a dragon type, and the evolved form of goomy. goodra are very friendly Pokémon, that'll happily hug its trainer, leaving them covered in a sticky slime. however, goodra will use its retractable horns to deliver a punch quivalent to that of 100 pro boxers.
"Hmm, ok, after hearing these entries, I think I have a good idea for at least sandshrew and steenee. can i get back to the two of you later in time, ralts and goomy?" Lincoln asked.
"No problem," goomy replied.
"i-i can't wait,"ralts replied.
"Ok. now then, first up will be steenee, how do you feel about queeny'?" Lincoln asked.
"Not the most creative name, but I like it," steenee replied.
"Ok. now then, I'll give sandshrew the nickname magnitude, because it's one of her moves," Lincoln replied.
"you're nicknaming me based on my moves?" sandshrew asked.
"Yup, by calling you Andrea" Lincoln replied.
"Ok, but what does that have to do with my nickname?" sandshrew asked.
"You see, there's a fault line that runs through one of states back in my home country. it's called 'San Andea's' fault, which is known for having earthquakes every now and then," Lincoln explained.
"Huh, that actually makes sense in hindsight. ok, Andrea it is then," sandshrew replied.
"How about you Pikachu? you want a nickname too?" Lincoln offered.
"No thanks, I'll pass on that. I'll stick with my regular name," Pikachu replied.
"Fair enough," Lincoln replied, before noticing something over by the spring," hey what's that?" he was referring to a small, blue Pokémon with five green leaves on its head. it was drinking some water from the spring.
"That looks like an oddish," brock replied.
"An oddish?" Lincoln parroted, as he pointed his pokedex at it.
"Oddish, the weed Pokémon, a grass and poison type. oddish searches for fertile, nutrient-rich soil, then plants itself. during the daytime, while its planted, this Pokémon's feet are thought to change shape and become similar to the roots of trees. this oddish knows the moves absorb, growth, sweet sent, and acid," the pokedex explained.
"Hmm, guess it can't hurt to have another grass type on my team," Lincoln said, as he was getting ready to catch it.
"Hold on Lincoln, I want to catch it. after all, we found it near the water, and that happens to be my specialty," misty replied, stopping Lincoln's advance.
"Right, because that's totally not a farfetched reason," Lincoln commented dryly.
"oh, be a team player," misty said, casting an annoyed look at him, before she went to face oddish," go buizel!" misty exclaimed, sending out her buizel," use water pulse, knocking the unsuspecting oddish in the water," alright, now go into the water and use aqua jet!" buizel was dashing over to the water, intent on chasing oddish, when a pair of vines shot out from the bushes and smacked buizel away," ack! buizel, are you alright?!" misty immediately went to the see weasel Pokémon's aid. as she did, the source of the vines emerged from the bushes. it was a Pokémon that Lincoln only saw at professor oak's lab.
"Wow, a Bulbasaur!"
the grass Pokémon was glaring threateningly at the trio, "what's with that Bulbasaur? it's got an attitude problem," misty commented. Lincoln then pointed his pokedex at the Bulbasaur.
"Bulbasaur, the seed Pokémon, a grass and poison type. Bulbasaur can be seen napping in strong sunlight. it has a seed on its back that grows with this Pokémon. the seed grow progressively larger by taking in large amounts of sunlight. this Bulbasaur knows the moves vine whip, sleep powder, poison powder, razor leaf and take down," the pokedex explained.
"Humans, leave this forest now! this is a place of healing for injured Pokémon like this oddish! your kind is not welcome here!" Bulbasaur demanded, as it left with oddish by its side.
"What was that thing?" misty questioned.
"Bulbasaur said something about the forest being a place of healing Pokémon like oddish," Lincoln replied. both misty and brock looked surprised.
"I see, so it's just protecting his friends," misty replied, as she recalled buizel.
"I thought Bulbasaur could only be obtained from people like professor oak?" Lincoln questioned.
"Well, it's rare to see a wild starter Pokémon like Bulbasaur, so if I had to take a guess, more than likely it was abandoned by its trainer," brock theorized. Lincoln was horrified.
"There are really trainers that would abandon their precious Pokémon?" Lincoln asked.
"Yup, and to make matters worse, they don't feel the slightest bit of remorse for it. they normally only do it when training the Pokémon doesn't work out the way they want," brock replied.
"that's awful! it's just like with my sister Lynn with her pride, unlike her I would always try different methods as I can instead of being heartless like that," Lincoln said sadly.
"that's what separates the good trainers from the bad ones. good trainers would always work hard instead of abandoning them. there are scumbag trainers who don't think about their Pokémon's feelings, they also have too much pride and can't accept their lost and blame there Pokémon instead and abandon them," misty replied.
"I'll never stoop that low," Lincoln declared.
"that's good to hear. now then I assume you want to catch Bulbasaur?" misty asked.
"Naturally. I mean, how many chances does a trainer get to catch a Bulbasaur in the wild?" Lincoln replied.
"Well, you should be careful. that Bulbasaur seemed really angry," brock observed.
"True. maybe there's a way to convince it that we're its friends," Lincoln replied, as he recalled his Pokémon, and they set out through the forest.
a little later,
"You sure about this linky?" misty asked warily, as they arrived at a rickety looking bridge.
"I don't see any other way across, not unless we cut down a tree, oh and misty don't call me linky only my sisters can call me that," Lincoln replied, looking around for any other way across.
"Sorry, I thought it was ok to call you that," misty said," why did I call him that," she thought.
"I can't seem to find any other way across. in fact, I can't even find this bridge on the map," brock commented, looking at the map, then looking at the bridge," not to mention those ropes look like they could snap at any moment."
"Well, if we can't find any other way across, then we're just going to move fast," Lincoln suggested, as they began to carefully make their way across. the bridge creaked and groaned as they walked further on.
"Uh, guys? I don't think this was such a good idea," misty commented, and much to her chagrin, she was right, as one of the ropes snapped, causing the trio to lose their balance, as the bridge began to sag, almost leading them into the river.
"Why did I think this was a good idea?!" Lincoln exclaimed. it was then that brock lost his grip on the rope he was holding onto, and plummeted into the river," brock, no!" Lincoln cried, as brock was carried away by the river.
"we'll have to regroup with him downstream. for now, let's try to get back onto solid ground," misty suggested, as she climbed back up onto the sides of the bridge planks.
"Right," Lincoln said, as misty helped him up. they then proceeded to shimmy across to the other side. after a few brief minutes of shimming, they finally reached the other side.
"lets agree... to never... cross another... bridge like... that again...," misty said in between gasps.
"Agreed. but for now, lets find brock," Lincoln said, as they followed the river downstream.
high in the skies,
"Heh, if they were a few seconds later, they would've joined their friend," meowth commented, as he and his cohorts were watching the young trainers from their balloon.
"Pity that they made it across," jessie sighed dejectedly.
"Geez, jess, that's a little harsh, don't you think? I mean, wanting revenge on them is one thing, but wanting them dead is taking it a bit too far," meowth replied.
"Those twerps ruined our viridian city heist and caused us to be chased through the viridian forest by those beedrill. I have every right to say something like that!" jessie snapped, before casting a glance over at James, who was looking at a map," by the way, where are we James?"
"I'm not too sure, jessie, but it could have something to do with a briefing I attended a while back," James replied.
"Is it something important?"
"If the rumors are true, then it may be our chance to get back into good graces with the boss," James replied.
"Well, what are ya waiting' for? lay it on us!" meowth demanded.
"You see, supposedly there's a secret place on route 24 where Pokémon go for healing after they get abandoned before they returned to the wild," James explained.
"Is that so? well, why don't we try to find this place and help relocate them to team rocket headquarters?" jessie suggested.
"Sounds like a plan. plus, we can use the new Pokémon we got from our wonder trade back in pewter city," James pointed out.
"As much as I want to get in good graces with the boss, not to mention boot that mangey Persian off his lap, aren't we supposed to be monitoring that brat and everything he does?" meowth asked.
"I'm sure the boss will overlook a few minor details, especially once we present him with our most generous gift," jessie replied.
"Well, alright, if you say so. but where even is this secret place anyhow?" meowth asked.
"I don't know. all I was told is that its somewhere on route 24," James replied.
"In that case, we're just going to have to keep our eyes peeled for it," jessie added, as they changed course, in an attempt to find the "secret place".
back with Lincoln and misty,
"Brock! hey, brock, are you out there?" Lincoln called out.
"If you can hear us, say something!" misty called out, just as the ground beneath her collapsed, and fell in the pit.
"Misty! are you alright?" Lincoln asked, coming to the redhead's aid.
"Apart from falling into a hole, I've been better," misty replied, as Lincoln helped her climb out.
"What could a pit trap be doing all the way out here?" Lincoln wondered.
"Probably someone like that Bulbasaur, who doesn't want any unwanted visitors," misty theorized.
"Well, if there's one trap like this, then there's bound to be more all around the area. we'll need to be careful from here on out," Lincoln replied," (this is like how me and my sisters set traps to protect our leftovers back home he thought)."
"You don't need to worry about that," a familiar voice said. Lincoln and misty turned to the source, and found none other than...
"BROCK!" they exclaimed, rushing over to their friend.
"What happened after you fell from the bridge?" misty asked.
"Well, I was being swept away by the river, and was nearly about to drown, when i was saved by someone, who was able to pull me out of the river and onto dry land," brock explained.
"Someone saved you?"
"Yup. a blue haired angel by the name of 'Melanie'. after we talked for a bit about where we were, i set out to find you," brock replied.
"So, what were you able to find out?" Lincoln asked.
"it'll probably be easier to show you, rather than tell you. come and follow me," brock said, as he led them down a nearby path.
a little later, near a small pond,
the trio eventually arrived at a small clearing next to a small pond, where a log cabin was located. all around the clearing were numerous Pokémon that were just socializing with one another, sleeping, or eating. standing nearby was a blue haired girl, just as brock had described. she was wearing a pair of red overalls. what caught Lincoln's eyes was the same Bulbasaur from before, standing by her, presumably guarding her," oh, brock! and I see that you've brought your friends," the woman said.
"Yup. guys, this Melanie, the girl who saved me. Melanie, this is Lincoln and misty," brock said, introducing the three of them.
"it's very nice to meet both of you. as brock said, my name is Melanie. I act as the guardian of this place and the Pokémon who live here," Melanie said to the two.
"a guardian? so, does that mean that you've raised all these Pokémon yourself?" Lincoln asked, looking around.
"Oh no, not all. I'm just their caretaker until they've recuperated enough to leave and live on their own. a lot of trainers abandoned because they thought they were too weak," Melanie replied.
"Sounds like a lot of work," misty commented, before a wave of soreness shot through her leg," by the way, do you know who made those traps? I want to give the ones responsible a piece of my mind."
"Oh, I'm the one who made all those traps. I wanted to ward off any Pokémon trainers that come to the village trying to catch the Pokémon. all the pit traps, snares, and even the bridge," Melanie admitted. both Lincoln and misty looked at her incredulously.
"Snares? I don't remember running into any snares," Lincoln mused, only to be shoved to the side by misty, who stormed up to Melanie.
"Are you out of your mind?! we could've been killed on that bridge!" she yelled, only to get pushed back by Bulbasaur, glaring threateningly at misty, more than likely as a warning for her to back off," oh, so it's you! I've been itching for a payback for what you did to buizel!" misty said, ready to battle Bulbasaur, only to be stopped by brock.
"Now misty, that's quite enough. Melanie only set up those traps to keep trainers from coming and catching the Pokémon here before they're ready to leave. she never thought of having guest like us here, so we should try to respect her wishes and leave the Pokémon here alone," brock explained.
"Oh, alright, though I bet you're just doing to this to try to score with her," misty huffed, only to get a smack to the back of the head," ow! the hell was that for?!"
"Will you shut up about that?!" brock hissed.
"Oh, I get it now, you must have a..." misty got another smack in the head," ow! brock, I swear to arceus, if you hit me one more time, I'll tell me sisters!"
"Please you two, no fighting! this place is for healing!" Melanie pleaded.
"Alright, but my warning still stands," misty warned.
"So, this place is like an outdoors spa for Pokémon?" Lincoln asked.
"Pretty much. it's a lot of work to keep things running smoothly, but I don't really mind," Melanie replied, before her expression turned serious," that being said, I would very much appreciate it if none of you were to try catching the Pokémon here.
"No worries, Melanie, we understand. though it's a shame. I was looking forward to adding Bulbasaur to my team," Lincoln replied.
"Well, that's not happening. I've already been betrayed and abandoned by my old trainer, and I'm not about to run the risk of having another one," Bulbasaur replied.
"Sorry, but Bulbasaur here isn't too fond of trainers since his old one abandoned him years ago," Melanie replied, looking down at Bulbasaur with a saddened expression," Bulbasaur, these people are our guest, so could you please try to show a little hospitality? I promise they won't cause any trouble."
"As much as I want to share your sentiments Melanie, how can we be sure these guys can be trusted?" Bulbasaur asked, still glaring distrustfully at them.
"I guess what Lori said about actions speaking louder than words was true. hmm, maybe that'll work!" Lincoln thought, as he dug through his bag," Melanie, could ask you to hold onto these until we leave?' he asked, handing the blue haired girl all of his empty pokeballs.
"of course. I'll look after them until you leave from here," Melanie replied, turning her attention to brock and misty," would the two of you like to give your pokeballs too?"
"If it'll keep Bulbasaur from feeling suspicious, then alright," brock said, as he handed over his pokeballs.
"Oh alright. if you guys insist," misty grumbled, handing over her pokeballs as well. as Melanie went to put the pokeballs away in the cabin, Bulbasaur's untrusting expression appeared to ease up a little.
"Alright, I'll allow you three to stay as Melanie's guests. but mark my words, I'll deal with you personally if you dare to go back on your word."
"Sounds good, seeing as how we can't and won't go back on our word," Lincoln retorted. both he and the seed Pokémon stared at one another, before the latter walked off. Melanie soon returned.
"I can't thank the three of you enough for doing that to help ease Bulbasaur's mind. I really appreciate it."
"Not a problem, Melanie. so, any chance you can show us around? we'd like to see how things work around here," Lincoln asked.
"Certainly. just follow me, and I'll show you around our humble home."
meanwhile, back in the forest,
"Stop laughing and get us out of here already, meowth!" jessie barked at a laughing meowth, as she was dangling from a snare that she got caught in. deciding to tackle the forest on foot, team rocket found themselves facing some "difficulties", mostly in the form of traps set up by Melanie. so far, they had set off sixteen traps- eight between the two of them.
"Oh arceus, this just too rich! I haven't laughed this hard in a long time!" meowth crackled, before pointing at the furious redhead," today just ain't your day, eh jess?"
"meowth, if you know what's good for you, then you'll get me down from here, NOW!" jessie said icily. meowth quit laughing at the tone that jessie had used. he knew that when she used that tone, she was deadly serious.
"Oh, alright. spoil sport," meowth muttered under his breath, before cutting the rope holding up jessie, causing her to fall to the ground with a thud.
"Oof, you could've let me down a bit more gently," she stated.
"Well, maybe I would've if you had been more specific. now come help me get James out of this hole so we can get back to finding that secret place!" meowth snapped, as they went over to help James out of the hole.
"Alright, so where do we go now? I want to find this secret place of yours before nighttime, James," jessie grumbled.
"Well, I think I may have found what we're looking for," James said, looking through some binoculars. he then handed them over to jessie, who peered through them, seeing the hidden village.
jessie gave an evil look gazing down at the village," well boys, let's get to work," jessie said.
That's chapter 21, next chapter will be the second part of the village will team rocket have their revenge just what and see. just a heads-up Lincoln will switch his Pokémon around on his journey.
Lincoln's team
Pikachu (male)
moves: thunderbolt, iron tail, quick attack, electroball.
Fearow (female) oaks lab
moves: drill peck, wing attack, gust, brave bird.
poliwag (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 (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.
bounsweet evolved to steenee (female)
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.