AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 29 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through the Hoenn region. I haven't had very many instances of Taz being helped out lately, so I figured I'd have one for this chapter. You may recall that last time, Taz was working for Colonel Hansen, trying to steal Hillary's Togepi. But then, he lost his Ninjask and Shedinja to Hansen. Let's see what happens this time.
TEASER: Tristan and Hillary help an injured Taz recover from the ordeal he had the night before. Will Taz have changed his ways for good, or will Tristan and Hillary be tricked into a false sense of security and regret saving him?
H29. A FIEND FOR A FRIEND?
(Music Cue: Messenger (full version))
The next morning, Taz managed to regain consciousness and slowly staggered out of the desert on his long journey to try and find help. He was badly bruised and beaten after Colonel Hansen's betrayal, losing his Ninjask and Shedinja to him in the process. "Why do those kids always have to ruin my plans?" he said to himself. "I can't go on like this. Those two Pokémon were my friends. That power-hungry Hansen. I'll teach him a lesson."
Soon, he came to a clearing where he thought of his latest failed plot to steal Hillary's Togepi for Colonel Hansen. Then he thought back to all those times he was beaten by Tristan and Hillary on his journey to be the worst of the worst, including his treacherous life as a member of Team Rocket. Suddenly, he collapsed to the ground from the injuries he sustained earlier, and he passed out again.
(Music Cue: Kanto Title Card)
Our heroes are getting close to Mauville City, site of Tristan's third Gym Battle. But just when they thought they'd have an uneventful day, they're bound to come across something...or someone unexpected!
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu walked along when suddenly, Pikachu spotted something and pricked up its ears.
(Music Cue: Strange Weather (as heard in the Japanese version of "Revolution Lugia"))
"What's the matter, Pikachu?" asked Tristan.
Pikachu leaped off of Tristan's shoulder and ran ahead, motioning Tristan and Hillary to follow.
"What's the deal with Pikachu?" wondered Hillary.
"I don't know, but we'd better find out," replied Tristan. And he and Hillary followed Pikachu as fast as they could.
Suddenly, they saw someone who was on the ground who was very familiar to them.
"Look at that!" exclaimed Hillary.
Sure enough, the person was lying unconscious.
But as Tristan and Hillary turned him over, they saw who Pikachu had spotted earlier.
"Whoa, it's Taz!" gasped Tristan. "Oh, we can't help him. He's evil."
Suddenly, Taz began to moan quietly.
"Look, Tristan, he's waking up," said Hillary.
Taz slowly opened his eyes and saw Tristan and Hillary looking straight at him. "It's youse guys! Please don't hurt me."
"What are you doing here?" asked Tristan suspiciously.
"And what are you pulling this time?" added Hillary.
"Wait, I ain't pulling nothin' Honest!" insisted Taz. "I can't even play tricks on myself anymore."
"Yeah, right! Give me a break!" shouted Tristan.
"Please, you have to believe me. I'm not gonna pull off any tricks on youse guys! I promise!" But as Taz tried to get up, he winced in pain.
Hillary crossed her arms. "Well, if you're not pulling any tricks this time, that would be a first."
"Let's go, Hillary," said Tristan. And he and Hillary started to leave.
"Wait...please!" begged Taz as he started to get up again. "I won't pull any tricks. Really!" But he was still hurting from Colonel Hansen's attack from the night before and collapsed again.
Tristan and Hillary stopped and rushed back over to him. They carefully sat Taz back up and looked him over.
"It looks like he's really hurt this time," said Hillary. "I know it goes against our nature, but maybe we should help him."
"Oh, no!" protested Tristan. "Once evil, always evil. You've seen how much trouble he's caused so far, right? He almost kidnapped your Togepi yesterday, if I recall correctly."
"I know, and he may have almost succeeded, but we were able to stop him in the end. Maybe we can forgive him just this once. What do you say?"
"I say, 'no way.' He doesn't deserve any forgiveness, especially not from me."
"You're right," groaned Taz. "I don't deserve it, especially not from the two of youse. You wouldn't believe the turmoil I've had to go through ever since I blasted off yesterday." And Taz began his story.
(Music Cue: Very Sad Moments (full version))
"After I blasted off, I landed in a vast desert. You wouldn't believe how much sand I had to cough up. Then I ran into this person whom I was working for, or rather, he ran into me."
"It figures," said Hillary. "But whom was it that you were working for?"
"His name is Colonel Hansen, and he was the one who wanted your Togepi for his evil purposes. He wanted to rule a kingdom of some sort."
"So he was the one who was behind yesterday's attack."
Taz continued his story. "He'd give me his Ninjask if I succeeded in stealing your Togepi. But thanks to you, my plan ended in failure, though I can't say that I blame you. You always have to save someone or something whenever someone or something else threatens it.
"When he threatened to take my Pokémon after my failure, I challenged his Ninjask to a battle using my Shedinja. But I didn't know much about Shedinja's weaknesses, especially after it got hit by Shadow Ball."
"So you ended up losing, right?" asked Hillary.
Taz nodded. "Then Hansen turned on me and attacked me, causing me to lose my two precious Poké Balls to him. I tried getting them back, but I was too weak to stand, let alone move. And so...I passed out.
"When I woke up this morning, I tried looking for help. It seemed like hours, but it was only one hour. And there was nobody who had a soft spot for anyone in Team Rocket, not even a defenseless person like me.
"So you see, my Ninjask and my Shedinja are gone, never to be seen again," finished Taz.
"Never?" asked Hillary.
"Never. Hansen's too far away for me to track him down and get my Pokémon back. He's probably using them for something evil right about now." And for the first time in his life, Taz began to cry.
Tristan crossed his arms. "Well, I'm sorry you're hurt, but you can't say you didn't deserve it."
"Tristan!" exclaimed Hillary.
"No, he's right," said Taz. "I had it coming."
"You certainly did, especially after all the trouble you caused us," put in Tristan. "Starting out as a hunter trying to steal Pokémon like a whole flock of Butterfree, including mine; then becoming a member of Team Rocket who causes us nothing but trouble."
Taz bent his head low. "I know, and I regret every single moment of it. But I'm begging you just this once: please have mercy on me."
"Mercy is for the weak, like you."
Taz looked hurt.
"All right, Tristan, that's enough," said Hillary. "I think Taz gets the point."
"Hmph!" grumbled Tristan as he crossed his arms.
"I'm willing to give him a chance to redeem himself if he promises to be good," continued Hillary.
"Oh, yes, I do promise," added Taz. "I won't do anything bad while I'm with youse. Just give me a chance to prove it."
Tristan wasn't so sure, but gave the matter a lot of thought. At last, he relented. "Oh, all right. But I'll be keeping a very close eye on you."
This pleased Taz greatly. "Thank you from the bottom of my heart!" And he cried tears of happiness.
(Music Cue: Fortree City (full version))
Tristan soon treated Taz and started preparing lunch for everybody.
Taz seemed to enjoy the delicious aroma. "Mmm! That smells so good! I've never smelled anything like this in my life!"
"Well, then, you're gonna love the taste of it," replied Tristan. But suddenly, he heard Taz panting.
Taz's mouth watered at the delicious stew that was being cooked.
"Uh, Taz? Could you drool somewhere away from the food, please? It'll be ready in just a minute."
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it." He was clearly getting excited. He turned to Hillary. "Does that kid always cook great gourmet food?"
Hillary nodded. "We enjoy his cooking every day. Sometimes, he makes stew while other times, he gives us homemade sandwiches."
"Wow, I'm jealous." He then thought to himself. I never knew that those kids always have great ideas when it comes to food. It makes me wonder if I'm actually cut out to be in Team Rocket. I'm so used to having instant noodles and ravioli. Oh, well. At least I'll finally get a good meal.
Tristan tasted the stew to make sure the taste was perfect. And it was. "Lunch is ready!" he called.
Taz quickly ran over. "Let me taste it!" And he took Tristan's ladel and tasted the stew. He instantly fell in love with it. "This is divine! You must put a lot of work into that!"
Tristan served the stew to everyone. Then he took out some Pokémon food and put it in several bowls. He then turned to Hillary. "Hey, sis, maybe we should let our Pokémon join in on the meal."
"Yeah, great idea," agreed Hillary as she took out her Poké Balls and tossed them in the air.
Tristan did the same.
Mudkip, Treecko, and Beldum emerged from the white light that shot out of Tristan's Poké Balls while Hillary's Squirtle, Pichu, Ralts, and Cyndaquil emerged from the white lights that shot out of hers.
Suddenly, they saw Taz with the group and glared at him.
"Wait, hold on, you guys," advised Hillary. "Taz is only here temporarily because he got hurt. We're just helping him get back on his feet."
Yeah, and we'll be regretting it in no time, thought Tristan. "Okay, everybody, it's lunchtime!" he called aloud.
(Music Cue: Route 29 (as heard at the beginning of "Throwing in the Noctowl"))
The Pokémon were excited and dug in.
Taz, who was super happy to see Tristan's delicious food, gulped up his food noisily.
Tristan and Hillary looked on at Taz in embarrassment, then each other.
"I guess Taz isn't too concerned about table manners," remarked Hillary.
"Or his appetite," agreed Tristan. He turned back to Taz. "There's plenty more if you're still hungry!"
"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" said Taz as he noisily took a second helping and gulped it down.
Tristan and Hillary looked at Taz again, then each other.
"Definitely NOT concerned about table manners," remarked Hillary.
"Nope," agreed Tristan.
Later, Taz felt happy after eating a good meal for the first time. "Ah, full tummy, happy heart." He turned to Tristan and Hillary. "I must admit, you two ain't so bad after all."
"We're just glad you're feeling happy again, Taz," replied Hillary.
"Hey, I'm going to go for a walk," said Taz. "I feel like I'm almost back to normal, and I just want to make sure I'm not hurting anymore, okay?"
"Okay, but don't go too far, and don't be gone long."
"Hey, Tristan? Could you write down some other recipes for me to try sometime while I'm gone?" asked Taz.
"Sure, I can do that," replied Tristan.
"Great, I'll be right back." And Taz started off on his walk.
But as he turned his back on them, he gave an evil smirk and thought, Now that that meal helped me recover from my injuries, it'll soon be time to take the kiddies' Pokémon.
(Music Cue: A Devious Plot)
Tristan turned suspiciously to Taz as he disappeared into the bushes.
Hillary turned to him. "What's the matter, Tristan? Do you still think Taz is up to no good? I mean, it's okay if you do."
Tristan said nothing. Then he said, "I'm gonna try and find some berries. I won't go too far." He turned to Pikachu and motioned it to follow him.
Pikachu nodded and followed Tristan.
"Be careful, Tristan!" called Hillary as he disappeared on the other side of the campsite. Then she thought, I think Tristan still doesn't trust Taz. Could he be right...again?
Tristan and Pikachu found berries of all shapes and sizes.
"Look at 'em all!" said Tristan. "I think these berries will be perfect. Right, Pikachu?"
Pikachu happily agreed. It found some Pecha Berries and feasted on their sweet flavor. Then it found a few Sitrus Berries, which really helped perk it up. Then it found a red berry with spikes on them.
Tristan was happily gathering berries as Pikachu ate some. But then he saw Pikachu about to bite into that red spiked berry. "Wait, hold on, Pikachu!" he warned, and snatched the berry just in time.
Pikachu was confused and looked at Tristan.
"That was a Tomato Berry you almost bit into, and it's really hot," he explained. "It'll make your mouth all swollen."
Pikachu gasped and thought of what would've happened had Tristan not stopped it in time, breathing real fire and swelling up its lips in the process. Pikachu frantically shook its head and leaped into Tristan's arms.
Both Tristan and Pikachu shared a long embrace, strengthening their bond even more.
"Yeah, that must've been scary, wasn't it?" said Tristan. "Let's gather a few more berries and get back to Hillary, okay?"
Pikachu nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, Hillary was busy cleaning up the campsite after that good meal as the Pokémon helped. "Maybe Tristan was wrong," she said to herself. "Taz hasn't been up to any trouble ever since we found him. Maybe I'll talk with him after he gets back."
Togepi seemed to agree.
But suddenly, a gigantic net appeared from the sky and captured all the Pokémon in it!
"Hey, what's going on?" gasped Hillary.
"Guess who!" said a voice.
Hillary turned to see Taz smiling triumphantly from his Electabuzz-shaped balloon.
"What do you think you're doing, Taz?!" demanded Hillary.
"What does it look like I'm doing, goily? I'm stealing the Pokémon!"
"How could you do this, especially since Tristan and I went to all the trouble of helping you recover and feed you a decent meal?!"
"Don't get me wrong, kiddo, I'm grateful for your helping me out and all, but I'm a Team Rocket member, foist, last, and always."
Hillary growled as she stared at Taz and the captured Pokémon. "So all that talk about being hurt was just a lie, right? I can see why Tristan was right about you all along once again."
"No, I was hoit, but I couldn't resist taking your Pokémon. Well, I'd love to stay, but I'm not gonna!" And Taz started climbing higher in his balloon.
(Music Cue: Raid! (full version))
"Oh, no, you don't!" retorted Hillary. "Pichu, Thundershock!"
Pichu unleashed a yellow wave of electricity at the net, but unfortunately, Pichu's Thundershock was sent right back at all the Pokémon, who took the hit instead.
"Oh, no!" exclaimed Hillary. "Are you all okay?"
The Pokémon groaned, but slowly recovered.
"Ha!" laughed Taz. "Hope you're not too shocked about this, but ever since my last anti-electric net, I decided to get the best one available!"
"You're not gonna get away with any of this, Taz!" retorted Hillary.
"Now that was fun. But now, I've gotta run!" laughed Taz as he raised his balloon even higher and increased his speed.
Hillary chased after him at once. "Oh, yeah? Beldum, try using Take Down to break out of the net!" instructed Hillary. "And, Treecko, help out by using Pound!"
Beldum tried charging at the net full-body style, but the net was too durable to be damaged.
Even the force from Treecko's tail proved to be no match for the net.
"Cyndaquil, try your Flamethrower!"
Cyndaquil ignited the flame on its back and unleashed a powerful stream of fire to try and break out of the net, but it was all in vain, as the net was too strong to be burned.
"Mudkip, Squirtle, try a Water Gun attack!"
Mudkip and Squirtle unleashed powerful streams of water from their mouths at the net, but were met with the same result.
"No way!" exclaimed Hillary. "How could nothing work?!"
"Because," replied Taz, "I made a wise investment and went for the best net, which is resistant to all types of attacks. Well, you didn't win the game, but I'd like to send a heartfelt thanks for playing the game, 'Try to Save the Pokémon.'" And he drifted higher into the sky.
"All right then, Taz, you leave me no choice," grumbled Hillary. "Ralts, use Teleport and get everybody out of there!"
Ralts nodded and instantly glowed, disappearing out of the net.
The rest of the Pokémon, aided by Ralts, did the same and reappeared on the ground next to Hillary.
"Great job, Ralts!" commended Hillary. "Are you all okay?"
All the Pokémon gave happy replies.
Taz gasped in horror as he saw the now-empty net. "Augh! Where'd all the Pokémon go?!"
"Down here!" replied Hillary. "And down here's just where they're staying, too!"
"You've got some nerve!" growled Taz. "That good-for-nothing Ralts has gotten in my way for the last time. Now it's time to get the payback I so richly desoive! Go, Electabuzz!" And he threw his Poké Ball.
(Music Cue: Kanto Trainer Battle (as heard in "For Cryin' Out Loud!"))
Electabuzz emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"We can handle you!" said Hillary. "Ready, Squirtle?"
Squirtle nodded and prepared itself for battle.
But then, Treecko jumped in front of Squirtle, making Hillary surprised.
"What? You wanna battle, Treecko?"
Treecko nodded and leaped into battle.
"Okay, Electabuzz, ThunderPunch!" instructed Taz.
Electabuzz made a fist as electricity crackled from it.
"Treecko, use Quick Attack, now!" ordered Hillary.
Treecko quickly sped toward Electabuzz as a white line streaked behind it, not only dodging Electabuzz's ThunderPunch, but scoring a direct hit on it as well.
"Yeah, that's the way!" commended Hillary. "Keep showing them what you can do!"
Treecko nodded and gave a happy reply.
"Oh, yeah? How about I show you?!" retorted Taz. "Electabuzz, give that green pest a Thunderbolt!"
Electabuzz unleashed a powerful bolt of electricity from its body at Treecko.
But Treecko managed to spin its tail around and around, faster and faster, successfully deflecting the attack in the process.
"Yeah, great move, Treecko!" smiled Hillary. "Now, use another Quick Attack!"
Treecko sped toward Electabuzz again and sent it flying into Taz in the balloon.
Taz finally lost patience. "That does it! Nobody sends my own Pokémon flying into me and gets away with it! Now you're gonna pay!"
But before he could send his Electabuzz back into battle, Pikachu arrived on the scene and delivered a powerful Iron Tail attack on Taz's balloon, popping it and sending Taz and Electabuzz spiraling down to the ground, screaming as they went.
CRASH!
Hillary and the Pokémon covered their eyes from the ensuing dust that followed.
Then she saw Pikachu land in front of her just as Tristan quickly arrived on the scene.
"Are you okay, sis?" he called.
"I'm fine, thank you," answered Hillary as Tristan approached. "You have perfect timing."
"Naturally."
Taz crawled out from the wreckage of his balloon with his Electabuzz. "That's no fair," he groaned. "I was just about to score a victory. Why can't I have something to show for it?"
"Oh, I'm sorry, Taz, did you really want something?" asked Tristan. "I've got a couple of things I can share with you." And he took out two red spiky berries from his backpack.
Little did Taz and Electabuzz realize that they were Tomato Berries, and they quickly snatched them from Tristan's hands in gratitude. Then they bit into them. An instant later, their faces turned red and flames burst out from both their mouths.
(Music Cue: The Great Electric Mice Race (as heard in "Don't Touch That 'dile"))
"FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!" screamed Taz. "GET ME WATER! GET ME WATER!"
Taz and Electabuzz frantically ran around in circles as they continued shooting their flames.
Even Hillary was taken aback by the turn of events. "Tristan! You gave Taz and Electabuz Tomato Berries?"
"Well, I figured they were acting a little cold after what had happened, so I decided to warm up their spirits," explained Tristan.
This made Hillary chuckle. "Oh, Tristan, you really know how to turn up the heat."
"True, but don't you think we should put them out?"
This surprised Hillary a little; she thought Tristan hated Taz; now he wanted to put out his fire. At last she said, "Okay, we can do that."
"Mudkip, use Water Gun!"
"You, too, Squirtle!"
Squirtle and Mudkip unleashed powerful blasts of water from their mouths, drenching Taz and Electabuzz, but also put out their fire.
"That should do the trick," said Tristan as he and Hillary exchanged high-fives.
Taz angrily turned to Tristan and Hillary. "How dare you give us Tomato Berries! Don't you know how to treat an ailing Pokémon thief?!"
"Well, maybe that's what you get for trying to steal the Pokémon," retorted Tristan. "And besides I thought you liked my cooking."
"Not that kind!"
"And we saved your miserable life, too!" added Hillary.
Taz scowled at Tristan and Hillary. "Just 'cause you saved my life doesn't mean I can't be mean and nasty! Now, if there's anyone out there who has any reason to stop me from being mean and nasty...may any Pokémon attack strike me this minute."
Seconds went by.
Then suddenly, a teal blue ball of energy and a pink ball of energy came down from out of the sky; they combined together and scored a huge direct hit on Taz and Electabuzz, sending them skyward.
BOOM!
"Hey, no fair! That was mean and nasty!" yelled Taz as he and Electabuzz disappeared in the sky.
DING!
Tristan and Hillary were confused.
"Where did those attacks come from?" wondered Hillary.
Just then, happy shrilling was heard from above.
Tristan and Hillary looked up.
Sure enough, two familiar Eon Pokémon were hovering above them.
"It's Latios and Latias!" said Tristan.
"They must've come to help us out," added Hillary.
Latios and Latias gave happy shrills as if they were telling them they were happy to help. Then they flew off as fast as their wings could carry them.
"Bye, you guys!" called Tristan.
"Thank you!" added Hillary.
All the Pokémon waved until Latios and Latias were out of sight.
(Music Cue: To Be Continued (full version))
"So you picked some Tomato Berries not just for us, not to eat, but to make more Poké Block?" asked Hillary later that evening.
"That was the idea," answered Tristan. "But since I figured Taz would deceive us, I decided to play a trick on him."
"That's awesome! And a little mischievous, too."
Tristan had to chuckle at that.
"I'm sorry for not believing you about Taz again. I guess I'm not very good at judging people, am I?"
"Well, it isn't the first time Taz wanted to pull a dirty trick or two out of his hat."
"From now on, I promise to do better at believing you. Deal?"
"Deal."
Tristan and Hillary shook hands and then embraced as Pikachu and Togepi watched.
"I'm confused about something," said Hillary.
"What?"
"Why did Latios and Latias come here to help us out in the first place? Did you use your Silver Wing?"
"No. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I was just thinking that Latios and Latias wouldn't come here unless we called them here. Unless they just happened to be flying by."
"Maybe they were."
Pikachu hopped on to Tristan's shoulder as he smiled.
"Well, sis, shall we go?"
"Yeah."
And they set off.
Another day, another adventure. After helping Taz recover and foiling another one of his schemes, our heroes remember what they've learned on their journey as they continue on to Mauville City.
As for Taz, he had landed on the ground with a crash after his flight. He wasn't too badly hurt this time, but he was most annoyed. "Ow! That wasn't fun. I'll get those kids next time! But then again, I guess that's what I desoive." Then he looked out at the sunset, and for the first time, he gave a genuine smile. "This is kind of peaceful after all." And he closed his eyes. "You know, this reminds me of how those kids helped me earlier today. I guess I could show them some gratitude. But why?" And he fell fast asleep, dreaming of someday winning against Tristan and Hillary in battle.
TO BE CONTINUED...