Chapter 13

"I won!" Leaf exclaimed, pressing the Thunder Badge against the PC screen.

Mom gasped. "You beat Lieutenant Surge?" When Leaf nodded in excitement, Mom's face was brighter than the sun. "Oh Leaf, I'm so proud of you! Historically, the Vermilion Gym is tough for new trainers. I couldn't get past it myself, though Lieutenant Surge wasn't the Gym Leader at the time."

Mom's glow died a bit. She'd spoken more than she had intended. Before Leaf could think of a response, Mom quickly returned to her cheery self. "So how did the challenge go exactly?"

Leaf put the badge away, still feeling slightly awkward. It hadn't occurred to her that Mom's journey likely ended in Vermilion. She wondered how many times her mom challenged the Gym before deciding that Pokemon training was not her destiny. "It was different from Pewter and Cerulean. I basically had to do a scavenger hunt in a boot camp. There was this electric fence between Lieutenant Surge and everyone else. I had to find two switches to shut down the fence and be able to challenge him."

"Really? What's the point of that?"

Leaf shrugged. "Spices things up, I guess. Lieutenant Surge said that strength wasn't the only thing he cared about."

"I see. Well, how was the battle itself?"

Leaf suddenly found that she couldn't quite meet Mom's eyes. She shifted in her seat. "It was tough, of course. Ivysaur is resistant to electric-type moves and he was nearly knocked out. We got lucky. He learned a new move at the last second that saved him."

"What was it?"

"Sleep Powder. It kept Lieutenant Surge's Raichu asleep long enough."

"Ah yes, I've seen Sleep Powder before. It is a useful move." Mom paused. "So what's the plan now?"

"Just waiting to get my Pokemon back, then I'm off to Celadon."

Mom smiled. "Celadon City is love––" A voice on the intercom calling for Leaf cut her off. When it finished speaking, Mom continued, "Go get your Pokemon. Take care and remember to not push yourself too hard! I love you."

"I love you too, Mom. I'll call you in Celadon."

Leaf hung up and got her Pokemon back from a nurse. As she began to exit the Pokemon Center, she found she couldn't shake away her uneasiness. It had been with her since her battle against Lieutenant Surge, but chatting with Mom about the challenge had reinforced it.

Leaf was annoyed with herself. She had just achieved a huge milestone as a trainer and couldn't fully enjoy it. Why? Because Lieutenant Surge mentioned fighting in the War? He was a freaking lieutenant! Of course he fought in the War and was going to talk about it! She should've seen it coming and it was stupid of her to have been thinking about Blue the entire time. It nearly cost her the battle, too!

Leaf grit her teeth. Even when he wasn't around, Blue could really mess with her head.

Leaf had hoped her mood would improve once she hit the road. Unfortunately, it continued to go downhill.

The quickest way for her to get to Celadon City was to travel through Saffron City. Leaf walked up Route 6, to the gate that led into Saffron, only to find that there was some construction going on and she wasn't allowed to pass. The guard showed her on her map an alternate path. She could take Route 11 and then head north on Route 12 to Lavender Town. West of Lavender Town was another Underground Path, which went directly to Celadon City. It was a bit of a detour, but whatever.

Leaf went back down Route 6, trekked through Vermilion and then Route 11. Eventually, she reached a gate that connected Route 11 to Route 12. What she found there made her want to scream.

"You can't pass through," the guard said nonchalantly, eyes not leaving his newspaper.

Leaf stopped. "What? Why?"

"Well, technically you can pass through this gate. You won't be able to walk on Route 12 much, though. There's some giant Pokemon blocking the path."

Leaf was bewildered. "What do you mean there's a giant Pokemon blocking the path?"

"Go see for yourself if you don't believe me."

Leaf rushed out. Just as the guard said, there was something there, sleeping at the entrance to Route 12. Leaf hadn't seen anything like it before. It was a dark turquoise Pokemon with a cream-colored face, belly, and round feet. It had small, pointed ears and two teeth protruding from its lower jaw.

And it was huge. Vertically and horizontally. There was no way to get around it. Its belly, which made up most of its body, was much taller than Leaf, so climbing over it wasn't possible either. Not that Leaf would dare to climb over a wild Pokemon.

Leaf scanned it with the Pokedex. It was called Snorlax. It let out a thunderous snore and Leaf shuddered. Although the Pokedex described it as a very lazy Pokemon, she had a feeling that it was quite powerful and would not take kindly to its slumber being disturbed.

Head down, Leaf went back inside the gate. The guard chuckled. "Told ya. It's been snoozing there since yesterday."

Apparently, other trainers were also scared of waking the beast.

After checking her map multiple times before giving up and asking the guard, whose eyes were still glued to his newspaper, Leaf discovered yet another path and it made her groan internally. She would have to go all the way back to Cerulean City, head east to Route 9, then down Route 10 to Rock Tunnel. Once she crossed Rock Tunnel, she would finally arrive at Lavender Town and be able to take the Underground Path to Celadon City.

It was such an unnecessarily long journey. Leaf considered waking the Snorlax up, but that was potentially a very dangerous endeavor. She then considered waiting for the Snorlax to leave, but she had no idea how long that would take and didn't want to waste more time.

That was how Leaf found herself going up Route 6 and cutting through the Underground Path and Cerulean City again. It felt backwards, like she was going back home to Pallet Town instead of her next Gym challenge. As she thought that, it suddenly hit her that Mom, who had grown up in Viridian City, once had to make that trip. Leaf nearly breathed a sigh of relief when she turned onto Route 9 instead of Route 4.

Leaf hopped down another ledge. Route 9 had extremely rocky terrain that reminded her of Route 3. It made sense: both trails led to a mountain. Route 9 had significantly more ledges though and Leaf was getting quite tired jumping over them. She'd been walking all day, too. Wiping some sweat off her face, Leaf slumped down against a mountain wall and shut her eyes.

It was then when she heard a shout. Leaf opened her eyes and nearly jumped when she heard a boom. She followed the noise, turning around a large boulder, and jolted at what she saw.

It was Blue. Shards of stone were scattered around his feet. Ahead of him, his Pokemon were pummeling a mountain wall.

"Come on, Kadabra!" Blue said in a stern tone that made Leaf think of their high school's football coach. "I know physical combat isn't your forte, but you can do better than that!"

The Kadabra, which Leaf guessed was the evolution of Abra from its yellow and brown coloring, let out a cry. Whether or not it was able to hit harder, Leaf couldn't tell. She quietly pulled out the Pokedex and scanned it.

Somehow, despite all the noise, despite the distance between them, Blue heard the Pokedex's beep. He turned and Leaf flinched when their eyes locked.

"Little Miss Hero? Is that you? Were you watching me?"

Leaf flushed and shoved the Pokedex back into her satchel. "I just happened to be walking by!"

Blue chuckled and walked towards her. Leaf saw now that there was dust all over his clothes and his face was damp with sweat. His rigorous training session had evidently been going on for a while. "Which of my Pokemon were you scanning?"

"Kadabra," Leaf mumbled. Her battle with Lieutenant Surge flashed through her mind and she looked down, suddenly finding it difficult to meet Blue's eyes. She shifted a foot.

"Yeah, Abra got stronger and evolved," Blue boasted. "He looks way cooler now, so no need to be embarrassed about wanting to scan him. I'd do the same in your shoes."

Leaf looked at Blue and it hit her like a ton of bricks why Lieutenant Surge's comments had affected her so much. Lieutenant Surge spoke of the War as if it had simply been a thrilling game that he was excited and proud to have won. He'd bragged about his experience in the same tone Blue was using right now. But a war wasn't a game. It hurt people who weren't even involved. Leaf had seen that herself, so unlike Lieutenant Surge, she would never take joy in thinking about it.

Blue cocked his head to the side. "Everything alright up there? You're looking at me funny."

Leaf shook her head, trying to cast the revelation aside for now. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said, not very convincingly. Blue raised an eyebrow. Wanting to change the subject, Leaf gestured at his Pokemon, "Training hard, I see."

Blue crossed his arms. "Of course. We have to maintain our strength somehow. Three Gym badges don't just fall from trees."

Leaf remembered the news report mentioning that Blue had won the Thunder Badge. An opportunity to rub in Blue's loss to Red on the S.S. Anne appeared in front of her. The slight guilt she felt made her realize she was not that type of person.

Instead, Leaf replied with, "Don't worry, I get it. After all, I beat Lieutenant Surge, too."

"Oh, did you?"

"Yeah, I did!" Leaf straightened herself, suddenly feeling a boost of energy. "What, you surprised to hear that I'm just as much of a trainer as you are?" Then, before she could stop herself, she said, "Well, I bet I could take you on right now and win!"

Blue smirked. "Do you mean that?"

Leaf had said it without thinking, but she did mean it. Why not be able to beat Blue? She was stronger now than she was at Cerulean City. She defeated Lieutenant Surge with only one Pokemon! When she bumped into Blue on the S.S. Anne, she wasn't interested in a rematch because she and her team were worn out from battling. But now, her Pokemon were well-rested and she was more than ready.

Leaf crossed her arms. "I do. Let's battle right here."

Blue's eyes gleamed. "Are you sure? We're not near any Pokemon Center that you can run to after you lose."

If Leaf still felt any discomfort from earlier, it had been now completely dispelled by her rage. "I'm going to make you regret saying that, Blue!"

Leaf stomped off until there was a decent amount of space between them. She grabbed Spearow's PokeBall and sent her out. Leaf wasn't surprised when Blue returned his Wartortle and Kadabra, leaving Pidgeotto out. If he was expecting a repeat of their battle at Cerulean, he was wrong.

"Ladies first," Blue called out.

Leaf pointed at the Pidgeotto. "Spearow, use Fury Attack!"

"Pidgeotto, use Gust!"

The Pidgeotto forcefully flapped its wings, creating a powerful gust. At their last battle, Spearow had been immediately pinned to the ground. This time, Spearow was able to withstand the gale long enough to fly out of its range. The Pidgeotto turned itself to redirect the Gust, but Spearow spun around it the way she spun through the trees. The Pidgeotto screeched as Spearow jabbed at its body. It tried to smack Spearow away with its wings, but Spearow would angle herself away enough that it was ineffective.

"Keep going at it!" Leaf yelled, proud of Spearow's growth. She glanced at Blue. She was expecting him to appear surprised, but his face remained calm.

"Grab Spearow and fly around!" Blue commanded.

As fast as lightning, the Pidgeotto's talons shot forward and wrapped around Spearow's frame. The grip must've been tight because Spearow cried out. Leaf watched in horror as the Pidgeotto bumped Spearow into any boulder it glided by. Blue had used this strategy before. She could tell by his smug expression.

She wasn't going to let his plan work. "Spearow, use Fury Attack on the Pidgeotto's legs!"

Fortunately, Spearow was able to cock her head and do so. The Pidgeotto shrieked, but refused to let go.

"Throw Spearow down and use Gust!"

The Pidgeotto gladly obeyed. It was low enough that Spearow hit the ground when the Pidgeotto threw her. Before Spearow could recover, the Pidgeotto flapped its wings and the wind sent Spearow flying into another boulder.

Leaf's mind was racing. How had the tables turned so quickly? But she couldn't give up. "Spearow, use Fury Attack!"

"Pidgeotto, use Wing Attack!"

The two birds flew at each other. Right before they could crash into each other, the Pidgeotto swung its wing into Spearow's side. Spearow's cry was cut off by another Wing Attack. Leaf tried telling Spearow to fly away, but the Pidgeotto was too fast and continued to knock her around.

Just as Leaf was about to return Spearow, Spearow's body began to glow white. The glow more than quadrupled in size and when it disappeared, Spearow was no longer there. In Spearow's place was a brown vulture with a red comb on its head. It spread its wings, which were bigger than its body, and cawed. The Pidgeotto, stunned at its large opponent, backed away.

Leaf fished out the Pokedex, half-dazed at the sight.

Fearow, the Beak Pokemon. Its huge and magnificent wings can keep it aloft in the sky. It can remain flying a whole day without landing.

Fearow had learned a new move as well: Aerial Ace.

With astounding speed and precision, Fearow slashed the Pidgeotto with her long, narrow beak. She continued to strike the flailing, screeching bird until it fell from the sky. Blue returned his Pokemon before it could hit the ground.

"Fearow!" Leaf exclaimed as the vulture gracefully landed by her side. She pet Fearow's comb, not believing that her tiny bird had evolved into something nearly her height. Fearow pressed her head against Leaf's and cooed.

"Congrats on the evolution," Blue said. Leaf couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not. "The battle's not over yet, though."

Adrenaline was still rushing through Leaf as she replied, "Of course. Fearow, you can keep going, right?" Fearow nodded.

Blue sent out his Kadabra and Leaf finally got a good look at it. Like the Abra, the Kadabra was yellow everywhere except for its chest, which was brown. It had pointed ears and gnarled fingers and toes. Unlike the Abra, however, the Kadabra had a red star on its forehead and three wavy lines on its small abdomen. It had a long mustache, deep-set eyes, and a large, thick, curvy tail.

These features, individually, were strange to Leaf. The strangest of them all was that the Kadabra appeared to be holding a silver spoon.

"Fearow, use Aerial Ace!"

"Kadabra, use Reflect!"

A wall of light materialized between Fearow and the Kadabra. Fearow flew through it and struck the Kadabra, which acted as if Fearow had simply tackled it.

"Kadabra, use Psybeam!"

The Kadabra raised its spoon and a pink ray shot from it. The Psybeam landed squarely on Fearow, knocking her back. When Fearow stopped at Leaf's feet, Leaf saw that the vulture had fainted.

Leaf was speechless as she returned Fearow. She knew Fearow had taken quite a few hits from the Pidgeotto, but she didn't expect a single Psybeam to finish her off. And what was that Reflect move? It must have weakened Fearow's Aerial Ace, because there was no way the Kadabra was tough enough to brush it off.

Leaf studied the Kadabra, not knowing what to make of it. The Pokedex had said it was a psychic-type. Leaf suspected from her battle with Misty that Ivysaur was weak against psychic-types. Would Psyduck be the better choice then? But she didn't think Psyduck was a strong match, either.

Unfortunately, a decision was made for Leaf. Leaf froze when she heard a PokeBall click open. Psyduck appeared in front of her, clutching his head as he studied his surroundings.

Blue laughed. "Is that the Psyduck from Cerulean City? The one who kept going around begging people for food?"

Leaf bristled. "Yeah, what about it? He's a strong Pokemon." Not wanting to admit that Psyduck popped out on his own, she added, "That's why I'm going to use him against your Kadabra!"

Blue rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say. You can go first again."

There was only one move Psyduck could really use. "Water Gun!"

"Use Psybeam!"

The Kadabra leaped out of the Water Gun's way and fired a Psybeam. Psyduck dodged and the battle soon turned into a sort of cat-and-mouse game, with the two Pokemon shooting at each other while trying to dodge the other's attacks. Occasionally, Psyduck was able to hit the Kadabra and the Kadabra was able to hit Psyduck.

Leaf's mind was scrambling. Neither Pokemon were gaining the upper hand. At this rate, it was going to come down to who had greater stamina and Leaf wasn't confident about Psyduck in that regard. She needed to wrap this battle up soon, but that was going to be hard with the Kadabra constantly shooting Psybeams.

Then, Leaf remembered that Psyduck knew a move he could use besides Water Gun. She hadn't tried it before––she didn't quite understand how it worked––but she was running out of options.

"Psyduck, use Disable!"

Psyduck immediately stopped his Water Gun and made eye contact with the Kadabra, eyes shining as he did so. The Kadabra, who had raised his spoon to fire another Psybeam, suddenly faltered, with a bewildered expression on its face.

"What's wrong?" Blue demanded. "Use Psybeam!"

The Kadabra tried so hard, it began to sweat, but it couldn't do anything. Having been hit with a Disbale, the Kadabra wouldn't be able to use Psybeam for some time.

Leaf pointed at the Kadabra. "Psyduck, use Water Gun and hold it!"

"Kadabra, use Reflect!"

The Water Gun went through the wall of light, but to Leaf's surprise, it didn't seem to weaken the Water Gun at all. The Kadabra's limbs flailed around as the Water Gun pushed it into a boulder. Psyduck held the Water Gun, face reddening as he reached his limit. When he stopped, he was bent over and wheezing, but the Kadabra had fainted.

Leaf jumped and clapped her hands. "Great work, Psyduck!" She glanced at Blue and said smugly, "How does it feel to get your ass kicked by the Psyduck from Cerulean City?"

Blue snorted. "You got lucky with that Disable, I'll give you that. But don't forget: I have one more Pokemon."

Yeah, a Pokemon who has no advantage over my team. Leaf stopped herself from speaking the thought out loud. There was no use in trying to humble Blue Oak with words.

Blue sent out his Wartortle. "Use Rapid Spin!"

As the Wartortle retreated into its shell and began to spin, Leaf said, "Psyduck, use Disable!"

But Psyduck, still worn out from his battle against the Kadabra, couldn't move fast enough. The Wartortle rammed him into one boulder, then a second, and then a third.

"Psyduck, use Confusion!" Leaf called out.

To her dismay, Psyduck wasn't able to use Confusion. The Wartortle knocked him against a fourth boulder and Psyduck slumped onto the ground, motionless.

Leaf returned Psyduck, ignoring the uncomfortable prickling on her skin. The battle wasn't over yet. She still had Ivysaur. He could beat the Wartortle.

Leaf sent out Ivysaur. Her starter tensed at the sight of the one Pokemon to have defeated him.

"You can do it, Ivysaur," Leaf said. "Use Razor Leaf!"

The Wartortle used Rapid Spin again, dodging all of the leaves. Instead of hitting Ivysaur straight on, the Wartortle veered to the side, flipping Ivysaur onto his back. Ivysaur's stubby legs flailed uselessly in the air as the Wartortle began to pummel his stomach.

Leaf winced. This wasn't good. "Ivysaur, grab Wartortle with Vine Whip!"

Ivysaur's vines shot out and caught the Wartortle. She saw Ivysaur flinch. It must've hurt grabbing onto the spinning Pokemon, but his grip was adequate enough to stop it.

"Now throw it!"

Ivysaur threw the Wartortle with so much force that he rolled himself back onto his feet. Before the Wartortle could crash into a boulder, it began to spin again towards Ivysaur.

"Razor Leaf!"

Ivysaur still couldn't hit Wartortle, but thankfully he spread the leaves around enough that the Wartortle couldn't get near him. It was like Psyduck's battle with Kadabra: no one was gaining the advantage. Leaf desperately searched for an opening, but it was difficult to see through the hurricane of leaves.

"Wartortle, add Water Gun to your spin!" Blue called out.

Leaf's eyes widened as water shot out of the spinning turtle. The Water Gun swept the leaves away, allowing Wartortle to get to Ivysaur and knock him into a boulder.

"Now use Bite!"

The Wartortle clamped down on Ivysaur's leg. Ivysaur yelped and tried to shake him off to no avail.

"Vine Whip!" Leaf shouted.

Ivysaur smacked the Wartortle with a vine. The Wartortle released him, a clear look of pain on its face.

"Again!"

"Water Gun!" Blue ordered simultaneously.

The Wartortle fired a Water Gun with so much power, it pushed his entire body back, out of the vine's range. When the Wartortle stopped around thirty feet away, Ivysaur was still conscious, but struggling to stand.

Leaf sighed with relief. "Razor Leaf!"

Ivysaur didn't obey. He was breathing hard, legs shaking. Leaf's heart sank. "Come on, Ivysaur," she urged. "You can do it!"

Ivysaur straightened slightly. For a moment, Leaf felt hope. Ivysaur would unleash a Razor Leaf like no other and immediately knock the Wartortle out. She would beat Blue. She felt it.

Then, just as fast as the moment came, Ivysaur collapsed onto the ground.

Mind blank, Leaf raced to Ivysaur's side and knelt down. "I-Ivysaur?" She stammered.

Ivysaur didn't respond. He was out cold.

Leaf lost. Again.

She didn't notice Blue coming towards her until he was right next to her, hand extended. He was holding three yellow diamonds.

"Here, take these Revives," Blue said. His tone and expression were unreadable. "Like I said before, we're far from a Pokemon Center and it's not good for your Pokemon to stay fainted for a while. Give these to your Pokemon and let them rest for a bit." After Leaf shakily accepted the Revives, Blue said, "Smell ya," and walked away, hands in his pockets.

Following Blue's orders, Leaf sent out Fearow and Psyduck and fed everyone a Revive. She felt immense relief when their eyes opened. It was extremely disturbing having three fainted Pokemon lie beside her. She didn't return them to their PokeBalls until she was certain they were healthy enough to travel. According to her map, there was a Pokemon Center by Rock Tunnel. Leaf pulled out her flashlight. It was late; the sun had already set.

For a while, Leaf was numb, too shocked over the fact that she had lost to Blue again. Then, her disappointment rammed into her like a truck. She felt especially bad for Fearow. Her evolution and triumph over the Pidgeotto had been spoiled by the immediate loss to the Kadabra.

How did she lose again? What did she do wrong? Leaf couldn't find an answer. She'd been so confident in her skills after defeating Lieutenant Surge. After all, she'd passed the test so many others failed. Of course, Blue had passed as well. And now that she thought about it, the only reason why she beat Lieutenant Surge was because Ivysaur learned a useful move at the last second. He would have fainted if he'd relied solely on Leaf, who couldn't even stay focused during the battle.

Leaf stopped, suddenly feeling overwhelmed, and shut her eyes. She didn't know how long she stood there with her eyes closed, but a booming sound made her reopen them. Leaf looked ahead and her mouth fell open.

In the distance, beyond the mountain peaks, a trail of lightning shot from the ground towards the dark sky. It swiftly disappeared behind a cloud, but not before Leaf made out, at the front of the bolt, the silhouette of a bird.

Aaand that's chapter 13! Leaf lost to Blue again, Fearow evolved, and Leaf saw something mysterious (I think we all know what it is though).

Thanks for reading; as usual please let me know your thoughts!