Episode 4: The First Test!
After arriving at the residence of Professor Acacia, the eggs that Ash was carrying have hatched, revealing a Koaleaf, Charmor, and Platide, three starter Pokémon that the Professor wanted to be handed off to his two sons, Brett and Chris, and his new neighbor, Eva. Now these three kids are being given a challenge by the Professor: use these Pokémon to navigate their way to the Professor's lab in Brightmere Town. But as long as they have Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Vernon, and RotomDex by their side, what could go wrong?
In Coastport City:
"So let me get this straight," said Giovanni, facing Jessie, James, and Meowth through the videophone, "the three of you went AWOL to investigate a new region you heard that Professor Oak talk about?"
"You bet!" said Jessie. "And from the looks of it, Ralia is ripe for the taking!"
"There's so many Pokémon here in Coastport City alone!" James explained. "And in Professor Acacia's lab, I see plenty of notes worth of research on the Pokémon of this region to give us our head start!"
"We have a plan!" said Meowth. "If we catch enough Pokémon, we can through everything in the region of balance! The people in this region are so dependant on their Pokémon partners, developing their relationships with both tamed and wild Pokémon, losing them will cause them to fall into disarray."
Giovanni put his finger to his chin. "I suppose that work," he said. "Then you'd be able to ransom those Pokémon off, and keep the ones we could use for our own missions."
"Precisely!" said Jessie.
Giovanni grinned. "Very well. You three are now in charge of our operations in the Ralia region. But don't you disappoint me this time."
"We won't let you down, boss!" James said as he hung up the call. He turned to Jessie and Meowth and said, "The twerps and Pikachu will have to wait. Right now we have a lab to rob."
"Right!" said Jessie and Meowth.
"Good luck, kids!" said Tiffany as she ushered them out the door. "Tell your father I said hello!"
"Can do, Mom!" Chris called back.
"This is so exciting!" said Eva. "I can't believe I'm finally going to me the Professor Acacia!"
"Hey, Eva," said Serena, "are you sure your parents are OK with this?"
"Huh?" said Eva before she suddenly looked anxious. "O-of course they are! I mean, I'm only traveling one Route, right?"
"Eva, you told us your parents wouldn't even let you visit the wind farms," Brett pointed out. "Why the sudden change of heart?"
"Well, they were, um, in a good mood today, so they, uh…" Eva tried to explain. But when everyone started giving her weird looks, she hung her head, sighed and said, "Okay, confession time. My parents don't really know where I'm going."
"WHAT!?" everyone shouted.
"I knew they'd never let me leave town on my own," said Eva, "so I may have told them, the three of us were just hanging out at your place for the day?"
"Eva," said Vernon, "you shouldn't lie to your parents."
"I know," said Eva, "but this could be my one chance to finally see what's outside Greymill Town. I just wanted to have an adventure, even if it was only for a moment."
"Eva..." Vernon said again.
"Please don't tell them!" Eva said. "This challenge probably won't take very long anyway! What's the worst that could happen?"
Ash looked at this young girl, and he could sense something in her eyes. He saw how determined she was, to get out of Greymill Town and have an adventure. He remembered having that same determination when he first left on his Pokémon journey.
"She's right," he said. When everyone gave him shocked looks, he simply said, "I mean, I don't agree with her lying to her parents, but she deserves to enjoy herself for once. I remember how bored it got being cooped up in Pallet Town. You only live once, so I say we let Eva have this."
Serena and Vernon looked skeptical, but they nodded their heads as Vernon said, "You're right! Let's get going!"
Who's that Pokémon?
Its appearance changes with the weather. Recently, its molecules were found to be just like water.
CRASH!
"Who goes there!?" said Stacey, angered when she heard the ruckus from the top floor. She and more of the lab workers raced up the stairs and were shocked to see Jessie, James, Meowth, Wobbuffet, Mime Jr., Napiat, and Choaking standing in front of broken window.
"Prepare for trouble!" said Jessie.
"And make it double!" said James.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all people within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"And James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
"Wobbuffet!"
"Mime, mime!"
"Who are you people?" asked Stacey.
"We are Team Rocket!" said Jessie. "Weren't you listening?"
"We came here for all your research on Pokémon!" said James.
"What could you possibly want with our research?" said Stacey.
"No questions!" said Meowth. "Just hand it over!"
"Not a chance!" said Stacey, as she began to be surrounded by some of the lab's security officers, who slapped their batons in their palms.
"Choaking, use Smog!" said James.
"Choa-king!" Choaking cried out as it spewed purple gas everywhere. Stacey and the security officers coughed and tried to fan it away with their hands. Once the Smog cleared, they could see that Team Rocket had disappeared.
"Find them!" said Stacey. "Search everywhere!" The security officers nodded and split up to look for the thieves. Stacey picked up one of Professor Acacia's Pokédexes, dialed in a number, and said into it, "Officer Jenny, we have a situation!"
Route One:
Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Vernon, RotomDex, Chris, Eva, and Brett were all making their way through Route 1, which was proving to be rather uneventful. The sun was shining brightly in the sky, and and all was quiet.
Chris and Eva were carrying their respective Pokémon in their arms, but Brett was only letting Koaleaf walk by his feet. Ash noticed this and decided to ask him why.
"He just doesn't like it when I pick him up," Brett explained. "Guess he doesn't trust me yet."
Suddenly, bushes began to rustle. Everyone turned their heads to witness a Pokémon emerging from the foliage. It was small, brown, furry, had sharp claws, and was sniffing the ground for some food.
"Who's that Pokémon?" asked Ash.
RotomDex scanned it and said, "Wombite. The Digging Pokémon. A Normal Type. Wombite use their sharp claws to dig into the ground, looking for small invertebrates to eat. They sometimes live in colonies, and will leave searching for food to one Wombite while the others get some rest. Evolves into Womburrow at level 17."
"It's so cute!" said Eva, unable to resist running up to it. The Wombite, however, ran back into the grass as it saw Eva running towards it.
Eva began to peek into the other side of the foliage, and called out, "Hey guys, look at this!" Everyone joined her to see a Pidove and a Starly sitting in a tree, singing to each other. They could also see the Wombite looking for food inside a tree, and saw a Vivillon flapping its wings through the trees.
"Pokémon are so pretty!" Eva said.
"And to think, there's so much more in the outside world to see!" said Chris.
"You sure seem excited to be out here and see all this, huh?" Brett said to Eva.
"I've always wanted to see the world of Pokémon for myself," explained Eva.
"Well, I've always been nervous about the outside world," Brett admitted.
"Why?" asked Eva.
"You never know what to expect, what you're gonna see, or what's gonna happen to you," said Brett.
"That's the best part!" Eva said. "There's always a new surprise in store."
The group began to walk away again, and Brett walked up to Eva, and awkwardly asked, "You mind if we walk together?"
Eva smiled. "Not at all."
Serena was smiling to herself as she saw Brett attempting to make a friend. She couldn't help but look over to Ash, still wondering if was thinking about their last encounter.
Unknown to everyone, they were being watched.
Two men dressed in black tuxedos, shades over their eyes, and top hats that had a symbol of a pair of shades in the shape of an S, peeked out from behind the trees.
"So those are the kids the Professor decided to hand some Pokémon over to, huh?" said one of them.
"He has no idea what he's done," said the other. "Look at the Koaleaf. Anxious to scratch that boy."
"Do they really expect such powerful creatures to just obey their every command?"
"Not if we can help it."
"Remember the plan, boys," said a young man approaching. He was wearing a wire to his ear, and his suit alternated between black and grey. "We need to separate those kids from those other trainers. You guys grab the kids' Pokémon, I'll take the others."
The other men grinned. "You bet," one said. "They will know the name, Team Shade."
It's Castform!
"Look around!" said Jessie as she, James, and Meowth scanned the computer lab. Those notes have got to be around here somewhere."
"Check out this nifty phone!" Meowth said, holding up one of Professor Acacia's Pokédexes. "And there's a game on it that lets you take your picture and use yourself as the avatar!"
Jessie pulled the Pokédex out of his hand and said, "Focus!"
"I found something!" said James. He held out a notebook belonging to the Professor. "According to this, that phone is actually this Professor version of the Pokédex."
"Do we steal it?" asked Jessie.
"No, it's just a prototype," explained James. "But I did find a deck of cards with their Pokémon research on the table.
He showed Jessie a full deck of cards, each with a picture of a Pokémon on it with data on that Pokémon underneath. "Perfect!" said Jessie. "Then let's get out of here."
"Hold it!" came a female voice from behind them. Team Rocket turned their heads to see Officer Jenny confronting them with a Pokémon by her side. This Pokémon was shaggy with gray fur, but with a white face, a wolf-like appearance, and small icicles coming out of its back.
"That's a new Pokémon," Meowth pointed out.
James quickly pulled a card out of the deck that had the Pokémon's picture on it and said, "It's called a Wolfang."
"I'm ordering you three to surrender now, or I will have to use force," said Officer Jenny.
"We're not afraid of you!" said Jessie. "Napiat, use Venoshock!"
"Choaking, use Sludge Bomb!" said James.
Napiat and Choaking geared up to use their respective moves, but Jenny yelled out, "Wolfang use Ice Barrier!"
"Wol-fang!" yelled out the Wolfang, who created a shield around itself and Jenny made entirely of ice. The Poison-Type attacks simply bounced off the barrier, and Jenny then ordered Wolfang to use, "Ice Beam!"
"Wolfang!" it cried out, unleashing a beam of icy energy in Napiat and Choaking's direction. It knocked them back into their trainers.
"Finish it with Dark Pulse!" commanded Jenny. Wolfang prepared to fire dark energy from its mouth, until Team Rocket decided to run for the nearby open window. The Dark Pulse suddenly made contact, blowing them into the sky.
"WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!"
"Well, guys, we're almost there!" Vernon cheerfully pointed out. By now they could easily see the new town in the horizon.
"I can't wait!" said Eva.
At that moment, Serena decided to walk up to Ash and say, "Hey Ash, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."
"Yeah?" said Ash.
"Do you remember what I did the last time we saw each other?" said Serena.
Ash suddenly paused at hearing that. "Yeah, I remember," he said. "But Serena, I actually have something to say to you about it."
Serena perked up, forcing herself not to smile. "Yeah?"
"Well-" Ash started, but suddenly he was interrupted by a sudden explosion.
"What the?" said Chris. The area began to file with smoke, and Brett, Chris, and Eva started coughing, trying to see what was happening. When the smoke finally cleared, they were shocked to see that Ash, Serena, Pikachu, and Vernon had disappeared.
"Guys?" Brett asked. "Where are you?"
"Don't worry, they're fine," came a voice. "We need to have a word with you three."
The three kids turned around to face three men in black suits and top hats. "Who are you guys?" asked Eva.
"We are Team Shade," said one of the men. "And you kids are carrying dangerous cargo."
"What?" asked Brett.
"Those Pokémon, of course," said the man.
The kids looked down at the Pokémon at their feet, who looked as confused as they were.
"How are they 'dangerous cargo'?" asked Chris.
"Do you kids not comprehend what a Pokémon is?" said one of the men. "They are dangerous creatures. They have the power to turn nature into a formidable weapon, and have the powers necessary to do things humans have only dreamed of. You are not safe in their presence."
Chris narrowed his eyes. "What's your point?"
"Surrender those Pokémon to us, and you can go home," said another man.
"I don't think so!" said Eva. "You leave these poor Pokémon alone!"
"Guess we'll have to do this the hard way," said one of the men. They pulled out Pokéballs and sent out three Pokémon, a Murkrow, a Venomoth, and a Sentret.
"We're gonna have to fight them!" said Chris with resolve. Eva nodded in agreement, but Brett looked apprehensive.
"Sentret, use Quick Attack!"
"Murkrow, use Wing Attack!"
"Venomoth, use Poison Sting!"
As Team Shade's Pokémon geared up to use their attacks, Charmor and Platide jumped in front of their respective friends preparing to fight.
"What moves do they know?" asked Eva.
"Platide, use Water Gun!" commanded Chris.
"Um, Charmor use Ember?" Eva guessed.
Charmor began to spew sparks of fire from its mouth, while Platide shot a torrent for water from its mouth. The attacks knocked Murkrow and Sentret back but, Venomoth's Poison Sting attack kept going. Eva and Chris noticed that Koaleaf was somehow sleeping in from of Brett, and that Brett was looking too afraid to do anything.
"Brett, Koaleaf!" said Eva. "Look out!"
Koaleaf woke up too late to see a Poison Sting attack pummeling its face. "Koaleaf, no!" said Brett. He didn't know what to do. He hated this situation. He froze up. But his friends were counting on him. Koaleaf was counting on him.
He saw Venomoth about to use another Poison Sting attack, but he quickly stood in front of Koaleaf. "No!" he said. "You can't hurt him!" Venomoth launched the attack anyway, but Brett covered up Koaleaf with his arms, taking the brunt of the attack.
"Koaleaf," said Koaleaf, looking in amazement at Brett's face.
"Koaleaf, I know you don't trust me much, But I want to help you," said Brett. "Let's do this together."
Koaleaf gained a look of determination on its face and nodded. "Koaleaf."
Brett stood up and said, "Our turn. Use Razor Leaf!"
"Koa-leaf!" said Koaleaf, unleashing a swarm of razor-sharp leaves from its neck. The leaves quickly beat Venomoth backwards.
"Nice one, guys" said Eva. Brett turned to see her and his brother smiling at him, causing Brett to feel a surge of confidence enter his body.
"C'mon, guys," he said, "let's finish this!"
"Guys, what's going on?"
Ash, Pikachu, Vernon, and Serena were being lifted through the air, surrounded by a blue aura. All were struggling to get free, but they were levitated towards a clearing. At that moment, a Pokémon appeared in front of them. It looked like a Beheeyem, but its head was flattened, it was colored green, had three, bulging eyes, and had red, blue, green, and yellow lights on its fingers.
"What is that?" said Serena.
The Pokémon flew closer to Ash, its multicolored fingers starting to flash. Ash kept trying to look away, saying, "Leave us alone!"
"Pikachu!" said Pikachu, suddenly unleashing a Thunderbolt in the Pokémon's direction. When the attack made contact, the Pokémon dropped everyone to the ground.
"What's going on here?" said RotomDex, suddenly approaching the group.
"I don't know," said Ash. "That Pokémon just grabbed us from the others!"
RotomDex scanned the mysterious Pokémon and said, "Eeteeyel, the Extraterrestrial Pokémon. A Psychic Type. Eeteeyels are very rarely seen by human eyes, therefore little is known about them. It is believed them have been encountered more than reported, due to their observed ability to alter memories through Hypnosis. Witnesses claim they come to Earth to gather materials for their own race. Evolves from Beheeyem when exposed to a Moon Stone."
"Did that Eeteeyel catch the others?" asked Serena.
"No," came a voice. "That was us."
The group suddenly witnessed the gray-and-black-suited man approaching them with two other Team Shade grunts.
"Who are you guys?" said Ash.
"We are Team Shade," the suited man explained. "Myself, my name is Darrus."
"What do you want?" said Vernon. "What happened to Brett, Eva, and Chris?"
"They'll be fine, don't worry," said Darrus. "But the three of you need to hand over your Pokémon."
Ash growled. "Not gonna happen!"
"We don't want to hurt you folks," said Darrus, "but those Pokémon do not belong with you. They belong to no one."
One of the grunts behind Darrus scanned Pikachu with his high-tech glasses, and said to Darrus, "That Pikachu is putting off some power! One of the strongest we've seen yet!"
"Strange," said Darrus. "Young man, you're in a lot of danger."
"What, from you?" said Ash.
"No, from your Pokémon," Darrus replied. "That Pikachu may seem cute and cuddly, but its power is too great. You saw what it did to my Eeteeyel. Imagine what it will do to you."
"I don't believe you," said Ash. "Pikachu wouldn't hurt me!"
"We are taking your Pokémon one way or another," said Darrus. "Eeteeyel, you Psybeam!"
"Ee-tee!" said Eeteeyel, charging up a beam of psychic energy with the lights on its fingers.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail!" said Ash.
"Pikachu!" yelled Pikachu as its tails turned silver and it slammed its tail down on Eeteeyel's head.
"Braixen, use Ember!" said Serena, throwing out her Pokéball.
"Floattery, use Acid!" said Vernon, throwing out his Pokéball.
"Braixen!" "Floattery!" The two Pokémon jumped into the air, using their respective moves on Eeteeyel.
"You're strong, my friends, but you can't win," said Darrus.
"Why not?" said Serena.
"Because I cheat."
At that moment, more and more Team Shade grunts popped out of the shadows, all holding net launchers. The group groaned, knowing they couldn't take these many grunts.
"It's over," said Darrus. "Hand over those Pokémon!"
"Never!" said Vernon.
Suddenly, the sky grew dark. There appeared a looming figure up in the sky. Everyone looked up to it, but couldn't decipher what it was. However, purple glowing emerged from the clouds above, and the silhouette of a giant, purple, spiky Pokémon appeared above them.
"What is that thing?" said one of the grunts.
"I-I don't know," said Darrus.
The figure in the sky then looked at Team Shade with distaste, and made a loud groan. At that moment, four large stones emerged from the ground, each moving towards each other. Everyone shielded their eyes in anticipation.
The four pieces collided with each other, forming one large rock formation, then it exploded. When the dust settled, the grunts were all lying on the ground, their net launchers broken.
Ash, Serena, Vernon, Pikachu, and RotomDex all opened their eyes, and were shocked to see they had been left untouched. Darrus and Eeteeyel, however, quickly rose from the ground, and Darrus yelled, "Use Psybeam!"
"I don't think so!" said Ash. "Use Volt Tackle!"
"Pika, pika, pika, pika, pika!" said Pikachu as it charged forward, becoming veiled in electricity. Eeteeyel launched its Psybeam attack, but Pikachu collided with it, and after struggling, pushed through to the other side to collide with Eeteeyel. The alien Pokémon flew back into its trainer, who reluctantly recalled it to its Pokéball.
"You win this time, but we'll be back!" said Darrus. "We, Team Shade, will protect all from the viles natures of Pokémon!" C'mon, everyone, fall back!"
The other grunts slowly got to their feet, and followed Darrus off into the distance.
"We did it!" yelled Ash, throwing his arms into the air.
"Pika!" said Pikachu, jumping back on Ash's shoulder.
"I am curious, though," said Vernon. "What was that figure that saved us anyway?"
"I'm more worried about Brett, Chris, and Eva, Vernon," said Serena.
"Oh, right!" said Vernon as he quickly recalled Floattery. "Let's find them!"
"Use Water Gun!" said Chris.
"Use Ember!" said Eva.
"Use Razor Leaf!" said Brett.
"Platide!" "Charmor!" "Koaleaf!" All three Pokémon launched their attacks in Venomoth, Sentret, and Murkrow's direction, with enough force to knock them back into their trainers.
"Drat!" said one of the grunts. "Those kids are pretty tough for newbies."
"You couldn't take their Pokémon?" said a voice from behind them. Everyone looked to see Darrus standing in the distance. "Never mind, we're retreating now, c'mon!"
The grunt turned back to Brett, Chris, and Eva and said, "Sayonara!" before following Darrus off.
"We did it!" said Eva, jumping up and down.
Brett looked at his Koaleaf, who was grinning brightly at him. At that, Brett felt a grin of his own appearing on his face, slowly growing brighter. "That was kinda awesome! We make a pretty good team."
"Koaleaf," Koaleaf nodded.
"Great, but what about Ash, Serena, and Vernon?" Chris pointed out.
"Hey, guys!" said Ash's voice in the distance. The kids turned their heads to see their friends approaching them.
"Are you guys alright?" Serena asked when they caught up with them.
"Yeah, we're fine." said Brett. "You won't believe this, but we saw a bunch of guys in suits. They called themselves Team Shade, and-"
"We know," said Vernon. "They attacked us, too. They wanted our Pokémon. Said they wanted to protect us?"
"I wonder what that's all about?" said Chris.
"Hey, guys!" said Eva, pointing ahead. "I think I see Brightmere Town up ahead! Let's go!"
Arriving in Brightmere Town, the group saw that it was relatively bigger than Greymill Town, on the side of a massive lake, where people were running around next to, but also with slightly tall buildings and tents everywhere.
"According to my map," said RotomDex, "the Professor's lab should be in that building over there!"
The group noticed a large building made out of tent flap, but had much noise coming out from inside of it.
The group walked up to the building and walked inside, and they all saw a small zoo of Pokémon living inside. Various Pokémon were being carried in and out, others were playing in a section nearby an open flap, where some wild Pokémon also came in.
"This place looks kinda cool," said Chris. "I wonder if Dad'll give us a tour."
"Sure, how's right now?" came a voice from behind them. Everyone turned around to see a blonde-haired man wearing a denim vest, brown shorts, and work boots. He smiled and waved to them all. "G'day, kids! Bet you were looking for me?"
"Dad!" said Chris and Brett, who quickly gave the man a hug. "Guys, this our father, Professor Steven Acacia!"
"Dile!" came a voice from the floor. Everyone looked down to see a small Sandile walking along the floor. It looked up and smiled when it saw Brett and Chris.
"And this is his pet Sandile, Crocky!' Brett explained.
Acacia picked Crocky up off the floor and said, "Yep, best lab assistant ever! And he doesn't mind when you put him in the field to test his behavior!"
"It's such an honor to finally meet you, sir!" said Eva, excitedly shaking Acacia's hand. "I'm a big fan of your work!"
"So you must be Eva," said Acacia. "I'm glad you could make it." He then turned to face Ash. "And you must be Ash. My uncle Samuel has told me all about you."
"I'm glad I finally found you, Professor," said Ash. "These are my friends, Pikachu, Serena, Vernon, and RotomDex."
"Hello!" Ash's friends chorused.
"Pleasure to meet you all!" said Acacia. He turned back to his sons and Eva before saying, "So I assume you accomplished my challenge for you, eh?"
"Well, yeah," said Brett, "but we still don't understand. What was the point of this challenge?"
"It was a test for you three," Acacia replied simply.
"A test?" said Eva.
"I wanted to see if you three were capable of taking care of yourselves in the outside world, because I have a favor to ask you kids. You know about my research on Pokémon, right?"
Everyone nodded.
"Well, there's only so much my lab friends and I can do on our own. But then I got an idea. What if you three went around the Ralia region and researched Pokémon in the field for me?"
"Us?" asked Eva.
"I always thought it would be a great experience for you kids," Acacia continued. "After all, a Pokémon journey builds character, discipline, and confidence. It helps you grow a little."
He walked up to Eva and said, "Eva, I know that you've always wanted to see the world. I used to chat with your parents before my family moved here. I'm giving you an opportunity to have an adventure, to explore our world, to try things no one's ever tried before!"
He then walked up to Chris. "Chris, my son, you always wanted to follow in your old man's footsteps. You always wanted to increase your own knowledge. You always wanted to study the world up close and personal! So now, I'm letting you do just that!"
Finally, he walked up to Brett and said, "Brett, my boy, you have always been worried about how the world will look at you. But I firmly believe that you're something special. You may not realize it, but you have more power than you realize. I want you to see the world to find yourself, to find who you are meant to be!"
The three kids were left in stunned silence, until Chris said, "Can we actually do this?"
"I talked it over with Tiffany, you boys are free to go!" said Acacia. "And Eva, I even talked about this with your parents. They've known where you are this whole time."
"What?" said Eva.
"They want you to do what makes you happy," said Acacia. "So what do you kids want to do?"
The kids looked at each other for a long time, but suddenly, they looked back at Acacia with determination in their eyes before saying, "We want to go on an adventure!"
"That's the ticket!" said Acacia, handing them each PokéDexes. "These PokéDexes will help you record the Pokémon you see, and here." He handed them three Pokéballs. "You'll want to officially catch your new partners!"
Brett, Eva, and Chris took the PokéDexes before taking the Pokéballs and tapping the buttons on the heads of their respective Pokémon. The Pokémon turned into red light and went into the Pokéballs, each shaking three times before clicking.
The kids let their now official partners out of the Pokéballs to pick them up.
"We're gonna have so much fun together!" said Eva.
"Charmor!" agreed Charmor.
"We're gonna make a great team, you and I!" said Chris.
"Platide!" said Platide.
"I think this could be the start of a beautiful friendship!" said Brett.
"Koaleaf," Koaleaf nodded.
Ash, Serena, and Vernon all looked onto the scene with approval. However, Ash felt the need to ask Acacia an important question. "Say, Professor?" he said. "On our way here, we ran into some people in suits called Team Shade. Do you know who they are?"
Acacia suddenly frowned. "Unfortunately," he said. "See, Team Shade decided long ago that Pokémon were dangerous creatures of mass destruction. They though the world wouldn't be safe until someone put a restraint on them, for the sake of humanity. But don't listen to them. They are wrong. Pokémon and humans have always lived in harmony, helping each other prosper. We're all on the same side."
Serena decided to walk up to Eva and say, "So what are your plans now?"
"Besides talking to my parents about this?" said Eva. "I've always wanted to try out for a Pokémon Pageant!"
"Pokémon Pageant?" said Serena.
"You know about Pokémon Contests and Pokémon Showcases, right?" said Eva. "Well, a Pokémon Pageant is essentially those two things put together. They judge both Trainers and Pokémon on talent, beauty, and skill. Win enough Pageants, you can earn enough medals to compete for Pokémon Pageant Queen!"
"I see," said Serena, now thinking hard about what she had just heard.
"I just wanna fill up the PokéDex, like Dad said!" said Chris. "I'll love to learn as much about Pokémon as I can!"
"I think I'm gonna visit the gyms," said Brett. "Earn a badge or two, then qualify for the Ralia league."
"Wait," said Ash, "there are gyms in Ralia? An Elite Four? A Pokémon League?"
Brett nodded. "You bet."
Ash looked at Pikachu on his shoulder. "Pikachu, we were waiting for a new adventure, and I think we just got it!"
"Pikachu!" Pikachu nodded.
Somewhere on the outskirts of Coastport City, Team Rocket was limping away.
"Well, that was just embarrassing," said Meowth.
"Well, at least we got the notes," said James. "The best way to defeat your enemy is to know them."
"Indeed," said Jessie. "Right now, though, I'd like to catch up to that twerp, so we finally give him what for, don't you think, guys?"
"Right!" said James and Meowth.
"Wobbuffet!" said Wobbuffet, emerging from its Pokéball.
"Mime mime!" said Mime Jr., appearing on James's shoulder.
"I like your spirit, you two!" said Jessie.
It looks like a new adventure awaits for Ash and his friends! But else could be waiting for them in this new region? And have we seen the last of Team Shade? More to come as the journey continues!
TO BE CONTINUED!
You guys have no idea how hard it was to make this chapter. But I did it! Last chance to guess what country I based Ralia off of. I will probably make one more chapter before I take a break for a while. I have college classes to worry about now. Once again, please review and favorite.