Chapter 32:
Where No One Will Hear You Scream
Route 8 – The Wheatfields
Today it has been a day for goodbyes.
The cruise trip had been an enjoyable and very memorable experience, but like all good things, it came to an end when it reached the port of Route 8, also known as the Wheatfields.
And with the end of the cruise trip, two of their new friends split from the group: first, it was Lilia. Like the bespectacled girl had said before boarding the cruise, there was a yacht with the Orangics logo docked at the port, ready to take her back home, at least temporarily.
"It's a pity we have to say goodbye to each other after just meeting each other again," Clemont lamented.
"Don't worry, I will convince my dad to let me come back here. You'll see me sooner than you think," Lilia assured Clemont.
"At the very least, you enjoyed some time together on the cruise," Ash pointed out.
"Yeah..." Clemont said.
"Though, here's a little something for you before I leave, Clemont," Lilia said, as she walked towards him.
And the taller girl gave Clemont a kiss on the cheek, just like how Serena had done with Ash the night before. Serena and Leona gasped in surprise, but Bonnie merely crossed her arms and huffed irritably.
"L-Lilia...!" Clemont said, completely flustered, as his hand flew towards the kissed cheek.
"A goodbye kiss. And when we reunite again, we will celebrate with another one, right?" Lilia said, winking at Clemont, before walking towards her yacht. "Anyway, I better go! Have a safe journey!"
Lilia's wasn't the only departure. Despite having had a great time with them, Leona also decided to leave the group, saying that she preferred to travel on her own.
"Not that this is the last time we'll see each other!" the Alolan girl had said before leaving. "At the very least, we will meet again at the Grand Festival. Though if we meet each other before that, then the better! See you soon and good luck!"
So the group was once again back to Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie. And all four of them were ready to continue their journey.
"East of here is Vinoville Town, which will hold a contest soon," Serena read from her tablet. "And with a good pace, we'll be able to arrive at least a day in advance before it begins! Plus, Vinoville Town also has a Pokemon Gym that Ash can challenge."
"In that case, to Vinoville Town then!" Ash enthusiastically agreed.
…
If there was one word that could describe Route 8, it was "rural".
Also named "The Wheatfields" for a reason obvious to those who set foot on such a part of Tandor, Route 8 was a vast expanse of farmland as far as the eye could see. It was mostly wheat, as the name implied, giving the route a yellow hue that contrasted nicely with the green of the scenery, but there were many other crops, such as corn, carrots, watermelons, potatoes, turnips, and many fruit trees and berry bushes.
"The Wheatfields produce the majority of the food consumed in Tandor, with a good chunk of it being imported to other regions," Serena read from her tablet, as the group walked through the farmlands. "There are also many people who raise and breed Mareep and Baaschaun for their milk and their wool."
"Whoa, I never imagined that Tandor had a place like this," Ash said, looking around. "Most people only talk about the power plants."
"Funny thing you mention that, since there's a Nuclear Plant to the north," Serena said, her voice growing a little less enthused.
"Let's avoid that part," Bonnie quickly said. "You said there are Mareep and Baaschaun? Where? I want to see them!"
"Pikapi!" Pikachu said, pointing somewhere in the distance.
Everybody looked where Pikachu was pointing, and saw a large patch of green grass with yellow and dark gray dots on it. Soft bleats could be heard coming from that place.
"Oh, there they are! Let's go!" Bonnie said, rushing forward.
"Nenene!" Dedenne cheered.
"Bonnie! Come on, those Pokemon aren't going anywhere!" Clemont complained, fearing another jog his unathletic body will be ill-suited for.
Fortunately for the inventor, Ash and Serena didn't follow Bonnie in her dash, walking towards the fenced area at the same pace they've been keeping so far. After a few minutes they finally reached the clearing that had many Mareep and Baashaun peacefully grazing. Bonnie was crouched next to a Mareep, happily ruffling its wool.
"Hehe, so fluffy..." the blond girl gushed.
"I remember saying that Baashaun are much more aggressive than Mareep," Ash pointed out. "But these ones look pretty chill, don't you think?"
"Indeed," Serena agreed. "Looking at them, eating so peacefully... It makes me feel more relaxed."
"Maybe that's why people count Mareep when they can't sleep," Clemont added.
"Still, when trained properly, Mareep can be pretty strong fighters. We all saw them in battle," Ash said.
"Pi," Pikachu nodded.
"Then again, I doubt these Pokemon had any combat training. The website said that they're bred purely for their wool and milk," Serena pointed out.
"One way or another, they're super cute!" Bonnie gushed, seemingly putting an end to the discussion. "You know, if dad's Ampharos ever lays an egg, I'm going to ask him to-"
That moment, something burst from underground, and started to spew flames in every direction, scaring the Mareep and the Baashaun, who quickly ran away while letting out distressed bleats, including the one next to Bonnie, knocking the young girl on her back.
"Ouch!"
"Bonnie!" Clemont said, rushing to her aid. "Are you okay?"
"What's going on? Why are the Mareep and Baashaun so scared?" Serena asked, trying to make sense of the ensuing confusion.
"I think that's the culprit!" Ash said, pointing to something in front of the flock.
It was a Pokemon they had seen before: a small dark brown dinosaur with a red shell on his head and his back, and the tip of his tail on fire.
"A Raptorch!" Serena said.
And indeed, it was a Raptorch, the same Pokemon Natalie had chosen as starter. But while Natalie's Raptorch was formal and obedient, no doubt thanks to the girl's training, this one appeared to be a hooligan who had fun by scaring the Mareep and the Baaschaun with his fire breath.
"Don't worry, I'll protect you!" Ash said to the fleeing flock, a pokeball already in his hand. "Aveden, I choose you!"
The capture device opened, and the Bliss Bird Pokemon appeared from a flash of light, already flying.
"Ave, ave!" Aveden chirped.
"Aveden, we need to protect those Mareep and Baaschaun from that Raptorch!" Ash told his first Tandorian Pokemon. "Air Cutter, Aveden!"
"Deeen!" Aveden chirped, strongly beating his wings to produce a pair of blades of compressed air that flew towards the Fire Dino Pokemon.
"Ra, rap!" Raptorch yipped as he gracefully dodged the attacks, the blades of air leaving a gash on the spot where they crashed.
Feeling it was his turn to attack, Raptorch built fire inside his mouth, before releasing it in the form of small fireballs towards Aveden.
"Deflect those with Gust!" Ash ordered.
"Av, av, aveeeee!" Aveden whistled, beating his wings to create a powerful gust of wind that not only extinguished the Fire-type attack, but it slammed into Raptorch, knocking him backwards.
"Yes! Well done Aveden! Now, Mirror Shot!" Ash followed.
"Veeeeeee...!"
"To, tor rap!" Raptorch yipped in panic as it ran away before Aveden's next attack could strike, before using Dig to escape underground.
"Aw man, he got away," Ash lamented, looking at the hole in the ground Raptorch had left.
"At the very least, he's not bothering the Mareep and Baashaun anymore," Serena said, drifting her eyes towards the flock, which was being calmed down by Clemont and Bonnie.
"Unfortunately, the little bugger will come back," a new voice said. "Thanks for protecting my flock from that troublemaking lizard, though."
"Tan, tan!" something barked.
The voice came from a woman in her late forties, of average height and built. She had curly brown hair that fell down her back. She was wearing an orange shirt, a green ankle length skirt, and a brown apron over it.
The woman wasn't alone: a canine Pokemon trailed besides her. It looked like a Tancoon, only much bigger and fierce looking. It had the body of a lupine, with mostly brown fur, a black mask-like spot over its head and nose, black feet and black stripes across its body. It had three tails, two brown ones and the middle one being black.
Serena took her Pokedex to scan this new Pokemon.
"Tanscure, the Racoon Wolf Pokemon, and Tancoon's evolved form. Dark/Normal. In the wild Tanscure live in packs. They cooperate with their packmates to hunt for food and care for Tancoon."
"You're welcome, uh..." Ash began.
"Ripley. Helen Ripley. And this is my shepherd dog, Tanscure." The farmer, Ripley, introduced herself, while patting Tanscure on the head. She then looked at Ash's Aveden, hovering his trainer, and let out a whistle. "That little bird of yours packs quite the mean punch. You trained him?"
"Yeah! I caught him when he was a Birbie back in Lakeside View. He has won many battles since then," Ash proudly said. "I'm Ash Ketchum, by the way, and this is my buddy Pikachu!"
"Pikapi!" Pikachu greeted her.
Ripley, however, glared at him with her eyes narrowed. "Ash, you said? I once worked with a guy named like that. Biggest scumbag I ever met," the woman hissed, making the Kantonian trainer gulp. Then, she smiled and added. "But it would be stupid to judge all the people sharing his name by his actions, right?"
There were a few chuckles, as Ash sighed in relief as the tension it formed for a few seconds defused.
"My name's Serena. And those two over there are our friends Clemont and Bonnie," Serena said.
"I see," Ripley said, her eyes focusing on Serena, before turning towards Clemont and Bonnie. "And are all your friends trainers as well?"
"Well, I'm a Performer taking on Contests. And Bonnie is too young to be a trainer, but she takes care of a Dedenne," Serena explained.
"I see..." Ripley said, sounding as if her brain was cooking an idea. "Say, you did me a real solid by stopping that bugger from scaring my flock again, so how about if you stay for lunch? As a thank you."
"Oh, we don't want to impose..." Serena replied.
"You ain't imposing anything, girl! Plus, I assume you're going to Vinoville Town, right?" the middle aged woman asked. "There are no Pokemon Centers until you get there, and it will take you at least two more days of traveling until you get there."
"Well, if you insist, it would be rude to say no," Ash agreed.
"Great! Come everybody to my home! The cheese made with the milk of my Mareep and Baashaun has no equal!" Ripley happily said.
…
After a few minutes talking, they arrived at Ripley's house. It was a two story, wooden rural house, which looked rustic but very cozy. There was also a barn next to it.
"Rebecca, I'm home!" Ripley said upon opening the door, her Tanscure quickly scurried inside, leading the group into a small living room.
The house appeared to be smaller on the inside than on the outside, but it was just as cozy and welcoming. The floor was made of wood, with some rugs here and there. The walls were painted white, with many pictures hanging off them, most of them being of Ripley with a black haired man with a buzzcut dressed as a ranger, which the group assumed was her husband.
"My husband, Dwayne," Ripley said, confirming their guess, when she saw her guests looking at the many framed pictures with interest. "Unfortunately he's out a lot due to his job."
"Hey there, mom," a girl of Bonnie's age greeted her. She was wearing blue overalls over a pink, short sleeved shirt, and white sneakers. She had fuzzy, shoulder length brown hair with a pink bow on it. She was a little surprised when she saw the group. Held between her arms, was a Feleng, who eyed the newcomers curiously. "Oh, you brought some friends."
"Yup! They helped mom with that annoying lizard, so I decided that a little thank you was in order," Ripley explained. "Guys, this is my daughter, Rebecca. Becky, these Are Ash, Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie. They'll be having lunch with us today."
"I see. Hello, I'm Rebecca. Though most people here call me Becky," Rebecca, or Becky, said. She then held her little Feleng so they could see it. "And this is my Feleng. His name is Jonesy."
"I'm Bonnie! This is my Dedenne," Bonnie said, showing Dedenne to Becky. "His name is..., uh, Dedenne."
Becky left Jonesy on the ground, with Bonnie doing the same. The two small Pokemon scurried away, playfully chasing each other, with Ash's Pikachu joining them.
"So, you dealt with that Raptorch?" Becky asked.
"Well, Ash did. You should have seen it! That Raptorch never had a chance against Ash's awesome Aveden!" Bonnie cheered.
"Though, it managed to get away, so I wouldn't count if he'd be back," Ash pointed out.
"That Raptorch isn't too bad. He's just bored, and he doesn't know how to pass the time," Becky pointed out.
"If he's bored he better find a passtime better than bothering our cattle!" Ripley resoundingly stated. "Come on Becky, come help mom prepare the food."
"May I help you? I know a thing or two about cooking," Clemont offered. Though his friends knew that referring to his cooking ability as "knowing a thing or two" was him being excessively humble.
"Nope! Stay where you are! You're my guests and thus you'll be treated accordingly!" Ripley's tone didn't leave any room for discussion. "Come on Becky."
"Yes, mom."
…
An hour later, the group was having lunch at the house's dining room. Given Ripley's occupation, the food included many dairy products, such as cheeses and butters.
"Hope none of you guys are lactose intolerant!" she had said with a hearty chuckle as she served them the food. And lucky for all, none of them were.
"You know, Mrs. Ripley, those Baashaun out there look pretty tame. Every other Baashaun we've seen so far has been pretty combative," Clemont pointed out.
"Ah, you noticed, huh? Well, the secret is in the genes! Mareep are much more docile, so the key is to have them breed with Mareep exclusively! That way, you ensure the next generation of Baashaun are much more friendly!" Ripley proudly explained.
"So you're a Pokemon Breeder?" Ash asked.
"Yup! With an official certificate and everything!" the woman replied. "Don't look so surprised! What, you think we country folk are dumb hicks or what?"
"Oh no, I didn't mean that! In fact, I'm from a small town too!" Ash quickly replied, raising his hands defensively.
Ripley let out a chuckle. "Relax kid, I was just joking. All of you look too nice to be the kind of jerks who look other people down. Otherwise you wouldn't have moved so fast to keep my flock calm and deal with that pesky fire lizard."
"Has that Raptorch been causing you problems for a long time, Mrs. Ripley?" Serena asked. "By the way you and your daughter spoke of it, it seems to be the case."
"Indeed he's been. One day the little bugger showed up and began causing all sorts of trouble. Thankfully the guy is easy to scare," Ripley replied.
"Have you guys tried to capture it?" Ash asked. "Maybe that way he'd stop bothering you."
"You think I didn't try? But that Raptorch's too smart. Always attacks when no one's close, and runs away whenever I show up," Ripley said. "Hell, I was surprised he dared to attack my flock with you guys present. Guess either he didn't notice you or he didn't think you were a threat.
Then again, that lizard is small potatoes compared to what we have to deal with once a month," Ripley ominously said. "Which... forgive me for the deception, but I didn't bring you here just to thank you for scaring that Raptorch. I'd like you to help me to deal with this problem I have once per month."
"What happens once a month?" Serena asked.
"You're going to think that we're crazy but..." Ripley began. "Aliens."
"Aliens?" Clemont repeated, sounding skeptical.
Becky nodded quickly.
"Aliens! They come here every night of New Moon, and take away several Mareep and Baashaun!" Ripley said.
"That's awful!" Ash exclaimed.
"They show up a couple days later. But they look really scared and disoriented," Becky added.
"I get chills to imagine what those extraterrestrial freaks are doing to our cattle!" Ripley shouted.
"Aliens? Come on, let's be rational. I'm sure they're just normal robbers in disguise," Clemont said.
"If they're robbers, why do they let the Mareep and Baashaun back?" Becky asked.
"Plus, that's not the only thing they do," Ripley said, as she hurriedly left the dining room. She returned less than a minute later, holding several papers. "Look what they do in the crop fields!"
Ripley showed them the papers, which were pictures of the area's crops taken from above. Some of the crops were bent over, forming all sorts of weird symbols and shapes.
"Whoa," Bonnie said. "Do you know what they mean?"
"No idea. I consulted some so-called experts, but they snubbed me off. They think this is a publicity stunt," Ripley said, crossing her arms, and huffing. "Those city dwelling stuck ups, thinking we're a bunch of attention-seeking hillbillies!"
"Maybe they're trying to communicate with us..." Serena suggested.
"Then they should do it without attacking our cattle!" Ripley shouted. "Today's a New Moon, that means that those space thieves will be back for more! Please, help me defend our cattle from them!"
"Can we?" Bonnie asked, looking at her three friends. "Not only would we be doing a good deed, but we'd get to see aliens!"
"Aliens or not, I don't think we can leave anybody at the prey of cattle robbers," Ash stated.
"Can we see crops? Maybe we can find some clues there, and maybe some proof that might reveal who the true culprits are," Clemont requested.
"Sure thing. Becky will show you the way. I need to prepare the house for tonight," Ripley said.
…
A few minutes later, Becky, with Jonesy trailing her, led the group towards one of the wheat fields, specifically to one of the parts that had been pressed in order to make the strange symbols on the fields.
"Sooo..." Ash began, looking around at the bent over wheat stalks. "Do you guys see anything unusual?"
"What are we looking for to begin with?" Serena asked.
"I don't know... evidence the aliens might have left while doing this?" Ash suggested, though his voice lacked conviction. "I mean... whenever I see a movie or TV show about aliens, they always find some kind of evidence of their presence."
"That sounds like a good idea, but how can we do it?" Bonnie asked. In response, Clemont began to snicker as his glasses reflected the sunlight in an eerie way. The lemon blonde grimaced. "Oh no..."
"I'm glad you asked, little sister, because I have the perfect invention to help us with this! The future is now, thanks to science! Clemont Gear On!" Clemont said in a bombastic manner.
Clemont's Aipom Arm picked from his backpack the invention in question, and placed it in front of all to see, which looked like a mechanical Hoothoot with a small satellite dish on its head.
"Behold, the Hidden Clues Tracker and Analyzer!" Clemont said, patting the mechanical Hoothoot. "This invention of mine is able to locate and identify radiation footprints, heat footprints, actual footprints, and more! If those aliens were here, we will know!"
"Science is so amazing!" Ash gushed upon seeing the invention.
"Whoa..." Becky softly whispered.
"Word of advice, Becky. Don't stay too close to that," Bonnie curtly said, pulling the awed girl back. "Or else you're going to regret it."
Clemont held a large remote with a screen on it, and pressed a red button. "Alright, time to put this into action!"
The mechanical Hoothoot hummed to life, as it began to flutter around. Its glowing red eyes scanned every millimeter of the area the aliens had seemingly flattened in order to draw their strange symbols, as data began to appear on the remote's screen.
"Hmmmm..." Clemont hummed as he studied the results on the screen.
"Do you find something, Clemont?" Serena asked.
"Yeah... residue of psychic energy... it's faint, but it's still here..." Clemont said. "That means that whoever did this, had psychic powers."
"So aliens had psychic powers?" Rebecca asked.
"It was more than likely a Psychic-type Pokemon," Clemont corrected her.
"What kind of Pokemon would be able to do this, then? It had to be a very powerful one!" Bonnie pointed out.
"Maybe there were several?" Clemont asked.
"So several Pokemon just agreed to come here and use their powers to draw weird symbols in the wheat?" Bonnie said, spreading her arms for added emphasis. "Sure, that makes more sense than aliens."
"Well, when you put it that way..." Ash began.
"Come on Ash, you aren't going to-" Clemont was interrupted when his remote beeped. He looked at the screen. "Hey, aside from residual psychic energy, there's also residual heat... in fact... the heat signal is increasing! It's getting closer!"
That moment, there was a rustling sound coming from within the wheatfield, startling everybody. Something was coming their way. All the girls huddled around Ash, who stood his ground as his hand reached for Greninja's pokeball. The rustling sounds continued, until...
"Rap!"
Raptorch happily peeked his head out of the wheat plants.
Everybody groaned and gasped in relief.
"Hehe... I guess the heat that I picked was from him..." Clemont nervously chuckled.
"It was just that Raptorch. Way to give us a scare, big bro," Bonnie chastised Clemont.
"Let's hope he doesn't plan to cause anymore trouble," Serena said, not dropping her guard.
Raptorch walked out of the mass of wheat, and rather than attacking them, began to excitedly run circles around everybody, vigorously wagging his tail, while he looked at both the human and Pokemon with curious eyes.
"Raptorch's not a bad Pokemon. He's just bored here," Becky said again. "He doesn't know what to do, so he sometimes causes problems so somebody can pay him attention. I'd like mom to let me catch him, but not only I'm too young to be a trainer, and she doesn't even want to see him."
Then, Raptorch saw the mechanical Hoothoot, and quickly went to inspect it. Getting closer, he cautiously sniffed it. Cocking his head at the unfamiliar smell, it began to poke it repeatedly with his nuzzle.
"Wait, don't do that!" Clemont shouted, alarmed. "The Hidden Clues Tracker and Analyzer is very delicate!"
But Raptorch didn't listen, and not only did he continue poking it, but it tried to scratch it as well. Sparks began to jump out of it.
"I knew it! Everybody, run!" Bonnie said, grabbing Becky by the wrist and pulling her towards the crops of wheat.
"Frosulo, I choose you!" Ash said, tossing a pokeball forward. "Frosulo, keep Raptorch away from that machine with String Shot!"
"Sulo!" Frosulo chirped, as the Ice Crystal Pokemon shot a sticky thread at Raptroch, which wrapped around his body, before the Bug and Ice-type Pokemon pulled the Tandorian starter backwards with deceptive force.
Raptorch's fall was cushioned by the many wheat plants around the area. Burning the sticky webbing with his fire breath, the Fire Dino Pokemon charged towards Ash and Frosulo while exhaling several small fireballs at them.
"Frosulo, Protect!" Ash ordered.
Frosulo's eyes glowed green, and a light barrier of the same color appeared between the Ice Crystal Pokemon and Raptorch, easily stopping the fire attack, much to the Fire and Ground-type Pokemon's confusion.
"Come on Raptorch, show me what you can do!" Ash challenged him, as Frosulo prepared for a heated battle.
And what Raptorch could do was run away when things didn't go the way he expected, as the Fire Dino Pokemon quickly turned around and disappeared within the wheat field.
"That Raptorch might be bored, but guess that you provide him with more 'fun' than he can handle," Serena commented.
"Maybe he doesn't know how to react when somebody challenges him," Ash guessed. "Return, Frosulo. Great work."
"Whew! Thank goodness it didn't explode," Clemont said, checking the mechanical Hoothoot. "It only has some minor damage that I can easily repair."
"It didn't explode?" Bonnie asked incredulously, as her head peeked from behind the wheatfield. "What kind of sorcery is this!?"
"Why are you disappointed that his invention didn't explode?" Becky asked, her head peeking above Bonnie's.
"It's a law of the universe," Bonnie stated.
"Alright, I think- huh?" Clemont asked, as he checked the tracker's screen. "More psychic energy! And it's coming from…" Clemont began to look around, trying to find the direction of the energy. "...that farmhouse!"
Everybody looked in the direction Clemont had pointed at, and there was indeed a farmhouse in the distance. Unlike the other farmhouses, though, it looked dilapidated, as if no one had taken care of it for a long time
"That place, who's living there?" Ash asked, wondering if another farmer might have been behind the attacks.
"No one," Becky said. "Mama said that that used to be the Hudsons' house, but after they died, well, nobody bought the property and it has been abandoned since then."
"In that case, I don't think anybody will mind if we go check it out," Clemont said.
…
Unfortunately, while Clemont found more traces of the same psychic signature, the abandoned farmhouse had nothing of interest.
After that, they spent an hour or so in the fields helping Clemont retrieve data from the so-called aliens, but other than more of the same strange psychic signature, they didn't find anything, so they decided to go back to Ripley's house. They found the woman outside, herding the flock of Mareep and Baashaun inside a large fenced enclosure with the help of her Tanscure. It reminded Ash of the one at Oak's Ranch.
"Ah, I see you're back," Ripley said, upon seeing the group back. "Did you find something useful out there?"
"Psychic signatures. Whoever did some symbols in the fields, it used some kind of psychic power. A Psychic-type Pokemon, more than likely," Clemont explained.
"Makes sense. Sometimes I see my cattle floating away in the air as if being lifted by an invisible force," Ripley replied. "At first I thought they were being abducted into their mothership, but guess that's how they carry them away."
Clemont let out a groan of exasperation at Ripley's insistence on the culprits being aliens, but didn't feel like getting into an argument.
"We also found that Raptorch, but he ran away when I challenged him to a battle," Ash added.
"Good. We don't need that troublemaker around for today," Ripley curtly stated, before locking the gate of the enclosure, not that it would do any good against the cattle robbers. She then looked into the west, the sun slowly setting in the horizon, making the middle aged woman frown. "Those extraterrestrial scoundrels will be here soon. Becky, get inside the house and don't get out until I say so."
"Bonnie, you should go with her," Clemont said.
"No fair! I want to see the aliens!" Bonnie protested, stomping on the ground with one foot. "Whenever something cool happens, I'm always told to go somewhere else."
"Bonnie, this is going to get dangerous! It's for your own sake!" Clemont insisted.
"Come on Bonnie. I have some games in the house that we can play with our Pokemon," Becky softly said.
"...fine," the blonde replied, letting the other girl lead her towards the farmhouse.
"I wish Bonnie was as obedient as Becky is," Clemont said, shaking his head, as he saw the two girls go. "Alright, now that we don't have to worry about them, I have a plan to battle those cattle robbers. First..."
…
An hour later, it was already night. With no moon to cast even the faintest of lights, the whole Wheatfileds was covered in a thick blanket of darkness.
Unseen in the night sky, there was a man standing on what most people would think it was some sort of standing platform. Floating around him were dozens of small drone-like objects.
"It is time," the man simply said. "You know what to do."
And the unidentified flying objects moved towards Ripley's farm.
…
"Something's coming!" Clemont said.
Turns out the mechanical Hoothoot, aside from scanning surroundings for all kinds of traces and energy signatures, could also work as a radar. Clemont had tuned it to detect the same trace of the psychic signature that he had scanned in the wheat fields.
"How many of them, kid?" Ripley asked.
"Plenty. I'm counting up to twenty. And there may be more," Clemont said, gulping a little. The battle ahead was proving to be a tough one.
"How far are they?" Ash asked.
"Half a kilometer away, but approaching really fast!" Clemont said, looking at the screen on the back of the mechanical contraption. "They'll be here in less than a minute!"
"Do you guys hear that?" Serena asked.
And indeed, perking up their ears, they could hear something akin to a low pitched whistle coming from above. Even if it was very dark, they could see multiple saucer-shaped figures against the night sky. Aliens or not, they were here.
"Two hundred meters... one hundred and fifty... one hundred... fifty meters... twenty five meters...!" Clemont frantically said.
"NOW!" Ash yelled. "Aveden, Flash!"
"Braixen, Fire Blast into the air!"
"Luxray, Discharge! Eletux, Charge Beam!" Clemont called, as he pressed a button on his backpack. "Heliolisk Lantern, activate!"
Aveden's body burst with white light, illuminating the night sky, helped by Braixen's wall of flames, Luxray and Eletux's electric attacks, and Clemont's own Heliolisk lantern, allowing them to see the mysterious objects that were approaching them.
"I knew it! Space invaders! Alien scum!" Ripley shouted. "You want my cattle to do your sick experiments on! Well come and get'em if you have guts!"
"Tanscure!" her Tanscure barked.
Because indeed, the host of strange creatures did resemble aliens: they had disk-shaped metallic bodies with a green head sticking out of it. Said head only had a pair of black beady eyes, and two small stumps as ears. Two purple arms ended in three fingers dropped from their underside.
The creatures had stopped their advance when all the attacks came, and appeared to be confused, letting out more of those strange low pitched whistles, perhaps because they no longer had the cover of the dark, perhaps because they didn't find any resistance.
"Pi, pikachu!" Pikachu told Ash.
"Wait... are you telling me those creatures are Pokemon?" Ash asked, as he almost automatically pulled his Pokedex to scan them.
"S51, the UFO Pokemon. Psychic/Steel. A peculiar life-form that hovers above the ground with a mysterious force. Rumors say they came from outer space." The Pokedex explained.
"S51? What a weird name," Ash commented.
"A weird name for an even weirder Pokemon," Serena noted.
The moment of confusion and hesitation of the horde of S51 was short lived, as the UFO Pokemon moved to attack, launching a barrage of varied moves, such as Psybeam, Thunderbolt, Energy Ball, Shadow Ball and Flash Cannon.
"Braixen, Fire Blast! As big as you can!" Serena ordered.
"Aveden, use Gust on the Fire Blast to fan its flames!" Ash added.
Braixen aimed her ignited wand at the incoming barrage of attacks, before releasing a massive torrent of flames in the shape of the kanji for fire, while Aveden beat his wings, producing a powerful wind that made the Fire Blast's flames burn with more intensity. The two attacks clashed, and quality trumped over quantity as the enhanced Fire Blast easily plowed through the S51's attacks as it kept barreling towards them, forcing them to hurriedly disperse.
"Quickly Eletux, trap that group to your right with an Electro Web!" Clemont ordered.
"Tux, tux!" Eletux cried, as he fired an orb of yellow lightning from one of his tail bulbs.
The orb burst into an electrical net that trapped the cluster of S51, making them drop to the ground as they fruitlessly struggled to break it.
"Eletux, watch out! Above you!" Clemont cried.
The Hippocampus Pokemon looked upwards, and much to his mounting horror, saw a pair of S51 firing an Energy Ball towards him.
"LUXRAY!"
Fortunately for the Water and Electric-type, Luxray jumped above him, his whole body crackling with the electricity of Wild Charge, plowing through the Grass-type moves and smashing against the UFO Pokemon, sending them back reeling.
"Nice catch, Luxray!" Clemont praised his strongest Pokemon.
"Ele, eletux!" Eletux said to Luxray, who simply nodded in return.
As this battle happened, another group of S51 tried to flank the group and get to the cattle inside the enclosure. However, Ripley wasn't going to have any of it.
"Oh no, you won't! Tanscure, Roar!" the middle aged farmer ordered.
"GROOOOOOOOOOAAARRR!" Tanscure bellowed, the power of its voice causing ripples in the air.
Upon hearing the bone-chilling roar, the group of UFO Pokemon lost all traces of resolve or bravery, and quickly flew away from them.
As the battle continued, it was made obvious that the S51 weren't going to make even a single dent on the makeshift defense that the three trainers and Ripley were putting up, and after glancing at each other, decided that a retreat was in order.
"Look, they're leaving!" Clemont pointed out in joy.
"Yes! We won!" Serena cheered.
"That will teach them not to harass peaceful farmers ever again," Ash said with a nod.
"Well, you guys proved to be an invaluable help," Ripley said, as she walked towards them. "So, I think a good reward for this would be-"
"CLEMOOOOOONT!" they heard Bonnie's scream
"MAMAAAAAAAAA!" Becky yelled as well.
Looking in the direction of the house, both Ripley and Clemont paled upon seeing Bonnie and Becky being carried away into the air by a pair of S51, each of the UFO Pokemon grabbing the girls by an arm. The girls struggled against their captors, but in vain.
"NO! NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCHES!" Ripley yelled, as she ran towards the retreating S51.
"Bonnie!" Clemont yelled.
"Aveden, follow them and use Flash to mark their position!" Ash quickly ordered.
"Ave!" Aveden whistled in confirmation, as he followed the captured girls through the air.
"Come on, let's go!" Ash said, as he, Clemont and Serena returned their Pokemon and went to follow Ripley.
As they ran, they didn't notice that they had woken up a certain somebody from his sleep, as some plants began to rustle.
…
Aveden's various flashes of light proved to be an invaluable help to tracking the missing girls in the dead of the night. After ten minutes of running, they could see that they were heading towards another farmhouse. One that looked dilapidated.
"It's that abandoned farmhouse! They must be using it as a base," Ash pointed out. "Maybe that's why you found traces of psychic energies there, Clemont."
"Indeed. Being unoccupied, it makes it an ideal place for a base or a hideout," Clemont surmised.
"Did the attacks really come from this close, with us none the wiser?" Ripley asked.
"Maybe that's why all the attacks happened during new moons," Serena pointed out. "All this darkness makes it hard for anybody to see them coming."
Once they were close enough, Clemont activated his Heliolisk Lantern once, again, flooding the area with a bright yellow light. The many S51 hovering around the place quickly turned towards the source of light, and got ready to battle. They couldn't see either girl outside, so they guessed they were keeping them inside.
"I'll only say this once," Ash said, pokeball in hand. "Return Bonnie and Becky to us, right now! We aren't afraid to fight!"
Before Ash could make good on his threat, a laser beam fell from above, blasting the spot just in front of the teen, causing him to tumble backwards.
"Where did that come from?" Ash asked, looking upwards.
The answer came in the form of another flying saucer, or a creature looking like one.
"Is that guy the leader...?" Clemont asked.
The new threat also looked like an alien piloting a flying saucer. Except this one was much larger. Like the S51, its organic part was a green head with two pointy ears, an upside-down triangle mark that was a darker shade of green than the rest of its skin, and one eye blue and the other yellow. Unlike the S51, its head was covered by a glass dome, and the flying saucer it piloted was more complex, having both yellow stripes around the dome, and four lights of different colors at its bottom. Two large purple arms hung from its bottom, except these ones had four fingers instead of three, and yellow palms.
"Let me guess, you are another Pokemon, aren't you?" Ash asked, pulling out his Pokedex.
"S51-A, the UFO Pokemon, and S51's evolved form. Psychic/Steel. Some people suspect that Beheeyem, Clefable, and S51-A are conspiring to invade the planet. No one is safe!" the Pokedex said, the last line delivered in a dramatic way, in contrast to its usual emotionless exposition.
"I'd say the invasion had just begun," Ripley said.
"What do we do? We need to save Bonnie and Becky," Serena asked.
"I don't think they'll let us do that without a fight. I'll deal with the leader, you fight the others," Ash stated. "And when you find an opportunity, sneak into the house and save the girls. Metalynx, I choose you!"
"Braixen, go! You too, Pancham!" Serena said, sending her first two Pokemon to battle.
"Come out, Bunnelby and Eletux!" Clemont followed. "Let's keep the S51 away from Ash! If they behave like other Pokemon who live in groups, they will disperse if their leader is beaten!"
"We're counting on you, Ash!" Serena said.
"Leave it to me then! Come on Metalynx, Energy Ball!" Ash ordered.
"Meta!" Metalynx growled, as a sphere of green light formed in front of its jaws, much larger than when she was an Orchynx, before firing it at its enemy.
The triangle mark on S51-A's forehead began to glow with a multicolored light, before firing a beam of the same color, which phased through the glass dome, before blasting the Energy Ball to bits.
"Such a potent Psybeam..." Ash said in awe.
S51-A decided it was time to attack. Bringing its hands together, energy particles began to gather into a single orb of light, which then fired in the form of a light blue beam at Metalynx, carving a furrow on the ground it touched.
Ash didn't know what kind of attack was that, but he didn't plan to find out.
"Dodge it!" Ash ordered. "And follow up with Iron Tail!"
"Lynx!" Metalynx growled, as she sidestepped, letting the blue beam pass besides her, as her curved tail began to glow with a silvery sheen. The Armored Pokemon then leaped forward, delivering a powerful swipe at the glass dome, making S51-A to let out a buzz of pain.
"Well done!" Ash cheered. "Don't let it time to rest! Follow up with X-Scissors!"
"Meta, ly!" Metalynx growled, leaping at the UFO Pokemon once again, a yellowish-green aura coating both of her claws. "META-lynx?"
But much to her and her trainer's surprise, Metalynx's attack only hit thin air, as S51-A vanished right before their very eyes, dodging the attack, before reappearing behind her, and began to charge the unidentified beam attack it had used before.
"Metalynx, quickly, dodge it!" Ash called.
Metalynx tried to jump out of the way just as S51-A fired the attack, the beam being yellow now for some reason. Unfortunately for Armored Pokemon, she wasn't fast enough, and the attack hit her on her side, making her whine in pain.
Fortunately for her, though, the attack didn't appear to cause that much damage, given that Metalynx appeared to be not that harmed from the move, as she quickly recovered.
"Guess that could have been worse. Though we better not let that happen again," Ash said. He allowed himself a moment to look around and see how his friends were doing: Serena didn't seem to have a problem with her group of S51, being kept at bay thanks to Braixen's fire attacks and Pancham's Dark Pulses, while Clemont's Eletux and Bunnelby were also giving the horde of UFO Pokemon a hard time, aided by Ripley's Tanscure.
The moment Ash's sight returned to the battle, S51-A was reading another Psybeam. Ash didn't need to tell Metalynx to dodge it for the Grass and Steel-type feline to jump from the attack.
"Now, Energy Ball!" Ash ordered.
The Armored Pokemon fired another sphere of green energy, but once again, S51-A Teleported out of the way, quickly reappearing behind her, charging the same beam attack as before.
"Iron Tail!" Ash shouted.
Once again, Metalyx jumped into the air as her sickle-like tail glowed with a silvery light, ready to slash the UFO Pokemon with it. However, just as she was about to strike, S51-A vanished at the last second.
"Pika!?"
"What the...? It can use Teleport at the same time it prepares another attack!?" Ash asked in shock. He would have been genuinely impressed if it weren't for the current stakes.
S51-A reappeared behind Metalynx, and fired the unidentified attack, the beam being a vibrant red this time, hitting the Armored Pokemon squarely in the back. The feline's cry of pain was much louder this time around, as well as the explosion it produced. And indeed, when the smoke cleared, even if Metalynx wasn't knocked out just yet, the damage caused was much greater.
"Metalynx! Are you okay!?" Ash asked.
The Armored Pokemon was wincing in pain, but forced herself to get back to her feet. "Met..." she growled.
"What's with that attack? Metalynx took it before and it didn't cause her that much damage..." Ash surmised. "Perhaps the colors have something to do with it...?"
S51-A didn't look like it was willing to give Metalynx any time to breathe, the triangle mark on its forehead shining with a multicolored light as it prepared another Psybeam. She wouldn't have time to dodge.
"Counter that with an Energy Ball!" Ash called.
Metalynx opened her jaws, and hurriedly formed another green orb of power, just in time before the Psybeam was fired. Both attacks clashed against each other, resulting in a small explosion. But when the smoke cleared, the UFO Pokemon was no longer there.
"Metalyx, behind you!" Ash shouted.
Metalynx turned around to see S51-A reappear before her, only to vanish once again, and teleport to another side. The UFO Pokemon continued to ceaselessly teleport around the Tandorian Starter, in an effort to confuse her, which unfortunately was not only working, but during the brief times it reappeared Ash could see it was preparing yet another beam attack.
"Metalynx, it's about to attack again!" Ash warned her.
"RAAAAAAAP!"
Almost out of nowhere, a fireball blitzed past Ash and slammed against S51-A just as it reappeared again, throwing it off balance and interrupting the attack before it had the chance to fully form.
Once it regained its bearings, S51-A's angrily clenched its fists as it stared at whatever had got in the way of its battle.
"Torch, tor!"
"It's that Raptorch!" Ash said in shock. "You... you helped us?"
"Ra, rap!" Raptorch vigorously nodded, before looking at the reeling S51-A.
"Heh... maybe you aren't as bad as you look," Ash said, chuckling a little. "Alright Metalynx, let's go! Time to save the girls!"
"Meta!"
"Rap!"
"Pikapi!"
The UFO Pokemon looked at the pair of enemies in front of it a little worried, but it didn't look like it was planning to surrender peacefully.
"I think that's enough," somebody said.
As soon as said new voice spoke, the battle came to a screeching halt, as the S51 and their leader stopped fighting. Everybody then turned in the direction of the voice. It was a glasses-wearing man who looked to be in his early thirties. The white, long sleeved shirt, blue tie and dark blue pants he was wearing made him look like some sort of office worker. He had dark spiky hair that flared upwards, with two white, lightning bolt-shaped streaks running through the sides.
But rather than the man's appearance, the most important part was that Bonnie and Becky were with him. Thankfully he didn't look like he was restraining them, and quickly ran towards the group as soon as the girls saw them.
"Clemont!" Bonnie said.
"Mama!" Becky shouted.
Both the inventor and the farmer forgot about everything else, and quickly greeted their sister and daughter, respectively, with a hug.
"Oh my Becky! I was so worried!" Ripley cried.
"Bonnie, are you okay? Did those weird Pokemon hurt you!?" Clemont worriedly asked.
"Nah, I'm fine. I don't think those guys would have dared to lay a finger on me," Bonnie nonchalantly boasted.
"Ahem," the glasses-wearing man cleared his throat as he began to walk towards the group. The S51 and the S51-A quickly began to hover around him as he walked, almost as if he was their leader. "First of all, I'm sorry to get you involved in my games. The S51 were only supposed to kidnap a bunch of Mareep and Baashaun, but... well, guess they didn't want to return empty handed. Come on guys, you should know that kidnapping people is a no-no."
The S51 looked at the man bashfully. Some of them looked away and twiddled their fingers.
"Wait a minute... game? What game?" Ash asked.
"Are these Pokemon yours?" Serena asked.
"You were the one behind the cattle robberies!" Ripley accused.
"Yes, yes, aaaaaaaaand... yes, but not really," the man replied. "Sure, I might have taken one or two, but they did come back to you, didn't they?"
"Just, who are you?" Clemont asked.
"Oh, right, I didn't introduce myself! Sorry, very sorry!" the man said. "My name is Sheldon, and I'm Vinoville Town's Gym Leader!"
"A Gym Leader?" Ash immediately perked up.
"Some Gym Leader you are! Sending your Pokemon to steal other people's Pokemon and little girls!" Serena angrily chastised him.
"Yeah, like I said, I'm sorry for the little girls. My Pokemon taking them was an accident, and hopefully they have suffered no harm," Sheldon said.
"But you didn't apologize for stealing the Mareep and the Baashaun," Ash pointed out.
"Because I'm not sorry for that! And if it wasn't for my charade about aliens being blown up, I'd keep doing it!" Sheldon angrily said.
"But... why? Why do you feel the need to torment these good people?" Serena asked, now sounding more disappointed than angry.
"Good people? More like boring people!" Sheldon shouted, throwing his hands in the air, as he began to pace around furiously. "This place, with nothing but farms and crops as far as the eye can see... I can't take it anymore! It drives me nuts! And the people! Nothing but dull hillbillies who can't talk about anything other than corn and craft beer!"
"If you dislike country people so much, nothing stops you from leaving this place, four eyes!" Ripley angrily yelled back.
"I would, if moving a Pokemon Gym to another town or city wasn't such a bureaucratic nightmare, not to mention the cost! And now that my entertainment in this wheat-filled hell has been busted, I don't know what I'm going to do!" Shedon said. Then, his anger disappeared all of sudden as a realization dawned upon him. "Though...how were you able to mount such a defense against my S51? It's not like the farmers here haven't tried before, and my Pokemon were always able to fool them. Hell, they believed they were aliens for real!"
"While we didn't have any evidence, I knew we were dealing with a group of Psychic-type Pokemon when I was able to track some residual psychic energy in the drawings on the fields-" Clemont began to explain.
"Whoa, there! You tracked psychic energy? How?" Sheldon asked disbelievingly.
"Oh, with my Hidden Clues Tracker and Analyzer!" Clemont proudly said, as he used his Aipom Arm to fish the mechanical Hoothoot from within his backpack. "This invention of mine is able to locate and identify radiation footprints, heat footprints, actual footprints, and more! And thanks to the data I gathered, plus all the information provided by Mrs. Ripley, I was able to draw a defense plan."
"You... you built that machine?" Sheldon asked.
"Yep, all me," Clemont replied, puffing his chest a little, clearly enjoying Sheldon's growing incredulity.
"I can't believe it... another man of science!" Sheldon cried, as his eyes began to swell with tears. He then rushed towards Clemont and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Where have you been all my life!? If I had somebody like you to talk and exchange ideas with, this rural hell would have been way more bearable!"
"Still, bored or not, what you did here not only was wrong, but highly irresponsible. Sure, Bonnie and Becky are fine, but they could have ended up hurt when they were kidnapped by your Pokemon," Serena said, still in the same chastising tone.
Shedon sighed despondently. "I guess you're right, and I'll have to come up with a different hobby other than tricking these hicks into thinking that their lands are being attacked by extraterrestrials."
"You said you're a Gym Leader, right? Well, you might have some entertainment soon, since we were heading to Vinoville, and I was planning to challenge the Gym there for my fourth badge," Ash stated.
Sheldon adjusted his glasses as he looked at Ash. "Heh, look at that, a challenger! It's been a while since I had one of those! Not many trainers challenge me, you know! Since I'm among West Tandor's toughest Gym Leaders, and Vinoville is not that interesting to people outside rural tourists."
"Ha! You said that now, but Ash is going to wipe the floor with you! You'll see!" Bonnie said.
"Wait, Ash? Ash Ketchum? The same Ash Ketchum Maria and Davern have been talking about?" Sheldon said, sounding surprised, as he adjusted his glasses a second time. "Well, look at that! Not only do I get a challenger, but one against whom I can go all out! I thought that they were exaggerating, but you must be something else if you were able to fight evenly against my S51-A! It's my strongest Pokemon, after all!"
"Yeah. I figured out it was way too strong for a wild Pokemon," Ash said. "It was beating Metalynx really badly. If it wasn't for Raptorch's help..."
"Rap, rap!" Raptorch happily yipped upon being acknowledged.
"That pest again! Doesn't he sleep or what?" Ripley groaned, rolling her eyes.
"What, do you hate Raptorch too?" Sheldon asked.
"Not all Raptorch, just this one! Always sneaking around, scaring away my cattle, breaking stuff!" Ripley complained, as she glared at the Fire Dino Pokemon, who happily wagged his tail.
"Raptorch isn't a bad Pokemon, mama. I think he's just bored," Becky interceded.
"So, is being bored an excuse to bother honest, hard working people like us? Ugh! Why don't you catch this Pokemon and take it with you, Sheldon? You're made for each other, it seems!" Ripley mockingly suggested.
"I would, if only to spare him having to deal with the likes of you, but it wasn't me this Pokemon helped," Sheldon said, looking at Ash.
"What, me?" Ash asked. He looked at Raptorch, and scratched his temple. "Yeah, he helped us against S51-A... but whenever I tried to battle him, he ran away!"
"My guess is that the farmers here chased him away, so that was his response whenever a human faced him," Sheldon said, placing a couple fingers under his chin. "But the fact that this Pokemon not only followed you, but helped you, is because he finds you intriguing, boy!"
"Yes. Raptorch could use a trainer that would put all that energy he has to good use," Becky agreed.
"If that's the case..." Ash said, turning towards Raptorch. "So, what do you say? Would you like to join my team?"
"Rap, raptorch!" Raptorch yipped, as he began to bounce up and down.
"Hehe, I'll take that as a yes!" Ash said, pulling out an empty pokeball. "Pokeball, go!"
Ash gently tossed the capture device at the Fire Dino Pokemon, who was turned into pure energy and sucked inside it. The pokeball fell to the grassy ground, and dinged without shaking even once. Smiling widely, Ash picked the pokeball.
"I caught a Raptorch!" Ash triumphantly cried, as he held the pokeball above him like a trophy.
"Pi-pikachu!" Pikachu cheered alongside his trainer.
"Well, I better leave. I'll be eagerly waiting for you to arrive at my Gym, Ash. Our battle shall be epic!" Sheldon said, as he sat on top of S51-A. "Let's go back home, guys."
And with that, the S51-A and the S51 all Teleported away, leaving the group alone with Ripley and Becky. The middle aged woman let out a weary sigh.
"I guess all's well that ends well, but I'm still angry," Ripley said, running a hand through her auburn hair. "Even if in the end there were no aliens and the culprit was that uptight nerd, you guys will always have my thanks for helping me so much."
"Don't sweat it!" Ash happily said.
"That's why I feel a little bad asking for one last favor," Ripley solemnly said.
"Well, if it's within my ability..."
Ripley's mouth then curved into a wide smile. "When the time to face that prick comes, give him quite the beatdown on my behalf, will you?"
Ash couldn't help but laugh. "Haha, I'll try!" he said, before letting out a loud yawn.
"Anyway, it's pretty late. How about if we go back to my house to get some shuteye, before you continue your journey, huh?" Ripley suggested.
"Sure. Today has been quite the rough day," Clemont said, with the rest of his friends agreeing.
And with that, the group and the Ripleys returned to the latter's house in order to get some sleep.
And as they walked, Ash couldn't help but touch the pokeball where his newest friend was resting, eager to see what the energetic Raptorch could do in battle.
Author's Note: And there goes Ripley's Sidequest.
For those of you who haven't played the game, there's a female NPC in a house on Route 8 who, if you talk her at night, will tell you about aliens messing with the crops, and asks you to deal with the alien leader. If you accept, you must do a stealth mingame avoiding the patrolling S-51 until you reach the leader, S-51A, and defeat it (sadly you can't catch it). After that, Sheldon shows up and reveals it was him who sent the S-51 to mess with the farmers because he was bored, and gives you a S-51 (the only way to obtain one outside Mystery Gift) as a reward for your strength. Though here, rather than a S-51, Ash got a Raptorch instead.
Speaking of which, given that some complaints about Ash only having 4 Tandorian mons and no main character catching a Raptorch, I hope this chapter helped to alleviate those complaints. Oh, this is going to be the very last capture chapter, so don't expect any of the main characters to catch more Pokemon. And before you ask how Ash can have 7 Pokemon at hand, remember that just like Clemont did with Dedenne, Ash sent Pikachu's empty pokeball to Oak's lab. That way he can have a party of six plus Pikachu. Some would call it cheating, but given that Pikachu doesn't fight for the time being, I feel it's fair.
While the sidequest was an obvious reference to the Alien Franchise, with the questgiver being named Ripley and dealing with alleged extraterrestrials (though oddly enough, the quest doesn't feature the Xenomite line, Uranium's own Xenomorph expy) I really had a lot of fun vastly expanding the Alien references, making Ripley's first name being "Helen", given her a daughter named Rebecca (which is Newt's true name), a husband named Dwayne that works in the closest thing Tandor has to a military, a feline Pokemon named Jonesy, and a bad past experience with somebody named Ash.
Thanks a lot to Fox McCloude, Jake, 61394, MegaSalamence64, BrightNova169, hirowriter and Viroro-kun for reviewing last chapter, as well as special thanks to Viroro-kun for his great job as betareader, whose edits and suggestions made this chapter all the better.
Next chapter, our heroes continue their journey through the Wheatfields towards Vinoville Town, where Ash and Serena will try to win their next badge and ribbon, respectively. Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and hope you have a great 2023! Also, do you know what it would be a great Christmas present? If you left a review on this chapter. Come on, it won't even cost you money! ;P
