Chapter 9: The Forgotten Myth
Today, Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura were taking a short break in the forest to prepare for their next gym challenge in Vermillion City. Gilbert had Sandshrew, Staryu and Machop out of their PokéBalls. Since they were the newest additions to his team, he decided to train them in preparation. "Okay, guys, I know that you 3 are still new to the team, but with my help, you can be the best that I know you can be." He said. "Sand!" Sandshrew chirped. "Hyeugh!" Staryu huffed. "Machop!" Machop exclaimed, pounding his fist. "Sandshrew, since Vermillion City uses Electric-types, you won't be affected since you're a Ground-type. But it won't be enough. I heard the Gym Leader's pretty tough. So, we'll need to work on your speed to use with your immunity." Gilbert instructed. "Shrew!" Sandshrew chirped. "Staryu, I know that since you're a Water-type, you won't last long against Electric attacks. But I might have a solution for your training that can help." Gilbert said. "Hyeugh!" Staryu huffed. "And Machop, as a Fighting-type, you'll want to rely on your strength. But you'll need to learn to strike and retreat if you want to help me win." Gilbert instructed. "Machop." Machop said with understanding.
Sakura looked out into the forest, thinking about what kind of Pokémon there might be in it. "Hey, you okay, Sakura?" Yolanda asked. "Yeah. It's just that…well, I haven't captured a new Pokémon for quite some time. I really want to go and try to catch a new one, but I'm not sure I can do it on my own." Sakura explained. "Well, don't let that stop you. You go on ahead and find a new Pokémon to capture. I'll tell Gilbert when he finishes training and we'll wait here until you get back." Yolanda said. "You sure?" Sakura asked. "Yeah. You deserve this." Yolanda said. Sakura looked back at the forest. "Okay. I'm gonna do it." She said. "Then I can only say this. Catch something cool." Yolanda said. "Thanks. Be back later." Sakura said as she stood up and walked into the forest. "Come on, Espeon." "Espe." Espeon barked as she followed her trainer. Yolanda watched as the 2 disappeared into the trees. "I hope you capture something cool, Sakura." She said.
As Sakura and Espeon walked through the forest, they looked around for any good Pokémon to catch. There wasn't many Pokémon around. Just a lot of Caterpie, Spearow, Rattata and Diglett. "Hmm. You'd think there might be something very cool for me to catch in a forest like this." She said. Just then, Espeon heard some bushes rustling nearby. She walked over to the bushes and sniffed them. "What is it, Espeon?" Sakura asked. "Espe!" Espeon barked. Sakura looked into the bushes and saw an unfamiliar Pokémon. It looked like little chick with a yellow blanket, that was covering a pink blanket, an orange bottom with little white and periwinkle feet, big white blanket ears, black outlined eyes, a little periwinkle mouth and an upside-down periwinkle triangle on its head. And it looked like it was really hungry. "Oh, you poor thing." Sakura said, gently picking up the unknown Pokémon. "Espe?" Espeon asked with worry. "You hungry?" Sakura asked. "Flit?" The Pokémon asked weakly. Sakura gently set the Pokémon down, got her backpack and brought out a can of fruit. "Here we go. You eat up now." She said. The Pokémon chowed on the canned fruit like there was no tomorrow. "Whoa, whoa! Take it easy. Slow and steady." Sakura said. "Espe." Espeon said as she watched the Pokémon slow down with its eating. "What are you anyway? I've never seen a Pokémon like you before." Sakura said as she brought out her Johto Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.
Flittle, the Frill Pokémon. A Psychic-type. Flittle roam through wastelands and mountainous regions, collecting berries. Flittle will chase anyone who steals their berries for revenge.
"Flittle, huh? First time I've heard of you." Sakura said. By then, Flittle had finished the canned fruit and was completely stuffed. "Well, we better get going. Keep that belly filled, Flittle." Sakura said as she stood up and started walking away. "Espe." Espeon barked as she followed her trainer. Flittle watched them leave before deciding to follow. Sakura turned her head and noticed Flittle following her. "Hey, Flittle. Is something wrong?" She asked as she and Espeon stopped. "Flit! Flittle!" Flittle chirped as it went over to her and started nuzzling her leg out of affection. "You wanna come with me, Flittle?" Sakura asked. "Flit!" Flittle accepted quickly. "Alright then. Let's go, PokéBall!" Sakura called, tossing up a PokéBall. Flittle leapt up and tapped its head on the button, sucking itself into it. The PokéBall landed and wiggled for a moment. After a second, the PokéBall dinged, sealing the capture. Sakura picked it up and was amazed by her newest capture. "I did it. I caught a Flittle!" She cheered. "Espeon!" Espeon barked happily.
Just then, a twig snapped. Sakura turned around just as a strange Pokémon landed in front of her, causing her to fall on her butt. She looked up at the strange Pokémon that surprised her. It looked like a purple knight with shadowy flaming swords for hands. "Espe!" Espeon barked, getting in front of Sakura to protect her. "Ceruledge!" A voice called. Sakura and Espeon looked to see someone walking out of the forest. A man with spikey gelled hair, a black leather jacket, purple t-shirt, blue pants and white sneakers. "Sorry about my Ceruledge. He has the habit of scaring people as a way of saying hello." He said. "That's okay. Ceruledge, huh?" Sakura asked, scanning the Pokémon, known as Ceruledge, with her Pokédex.
Ceruledge, the Fire Blades Pokémon. A Fire & Ghost-type. Ceruledge prefer to do close-quarters combat with a mixture of sneak and surprise attacks. They are merciless and will do anything to win.
"Whoa. So, this Pokémon is yours?" Sakura asked. "Yes. You see, we're from the Paldea Region." The man said. "Paldea? I never heard of that region." Sakura said. "Yeah. It's pretty new. I'm Stanford. Stanford Isaac Rhodes IV." The man, named Stanford, introduced as he helped Sakura to her feet. "Nice to meet you. I'm Sakura from Ecruteak City." Sakura said. "We saw what you did before you caught that Flittle. You're quite a caring young lass." Stanford said. "Thanks. I originally came out here to catch some new Pokémon. Then I came across Flittle and you know." Sakura explained. "You know, if you're looking to catch some more, there's a stream that's perfect for fishing just at the end of the forest over there." Stanford offered. "Sure. That sounds nice." Sakura said.
Stanford and Ceruledge brought Sakura and Espeon to the fishing stream. "Wow. It looks so calm here." Sakura said. "And it's a perfect spot for fishing. Go on. Take a shot at it." Stanford said. Sakura got out her fishing rod, cast her lure into the stream, sat down and waited. Espeon lay down beside her. Stanford and Ceruledge watched her as she waited. After a minute of waiting, something started tugging on the rod. "Hey, I caught something!" Sakura called. "Quickly, reel it in!" Stanford exclaimed. Sakura yanked the rod up and fished out the Pokémon that it caught. "Wooper!" The Pokémon called. It was a pink Wooper. "It's a Wooper." Sakura said, scanning Wooper with her Pokédex.
Wooper, the Water Fish Pokémon. A Water and Ground-type. While preferring to live in cold waters, they bury themselves in mud at the bottom for sleeping. They coat their bodies with a toxic slime to protect themselves from drying out and cold weather.
"This Wooper looks different from others I've seen." Sakura said, noticing the color difference on the Wooper. "That's because this Wooper is a shiny colored Pokémon. Very rare." Stanford said. "Well, either way, I wanna catch it. Espeon, you wanna battle?" Sakura asked. "Espe. Espeon." Espeon said, tapping one of Sakura's PokéBalls. "You want Beautifly to take this one?" Sakura asked. "Espe." Espeon barked as she nodded. "Yeah. I haven't used Beautifly in battle for a while. Okay then. Beautifly, come on out!" Sakura called, tossing her PokéBall. "Beautifly!" Beautifly sang as she came out. "Wow. Beautifly really are beautiful." Stanford said. "Wooper!" Wooper leapt up and fired Water Gun. "Beautifly, dodge it and use String Shot!" Sakura called. "Beautifly!" Beautifly flew away from the Water Gun and fired String Shot from her suckler. The strings wrapped around Wooper. But they suddenly slid right off due to its slimy coating. "Ugh! Wooper's slimy body's making Beautifly's strings slide off." Sakura said. "Wooper!" Wooper fired Mud Shot from its mouth. "Beautifly, look out for that Mud Shot!" Sakura called. "Beautifly!" Beautifly dodged the Mud Shots as best as she could. But one of them struck her in the wing, causing her to fall. "Beautifly!" Sakura cried. Beautifly quickly recovered and flew back up. "You okay?" Sakura asked. "Beau!" Beautifly sang. "We gotta try something else." Sakura said. "Wait. Does your Beautifly know how to use any powder attacks?" Stanford asked. "Yeah, she knows a few." Sakura said. "If you use one, it'll give Wooper a status condition and make it easier to capture." Stanford explained. "Oh yeah. Beautifly, hit Wooper with Sleep Powder!" Sakura called. "Beautifly!" Beautifly sang as she flew towards Wooper. Wooper fired Mud Shot again. But Beautifly dodged the attack and sprayed Wooper with Sleep Powder. As the powder sprinkled all over Wooper, it became drowsy and fell asleep. "Now's the time. Go PokéBall!" Sakura called, throwing one of her PokéBalls. It tapped Wooper and sucked it right in. As the PokéBall landed, it started shaking for a moment. After a minute, the shaking stopped with a ding, sealing the capture. "I caught a Wooper!" Sakura cheered. "Espe!" "Beautifly!" Espeon and Beautifly cheered.
"That was a brilliant capture, Sakura." Stanford said. "Thanks, Stanford. Beautifly was excellent today. But if it wasn't for you, I never would've thought of using one of her powder attacks." Sakura said. "Well, I do what I can." Stanford said. "Anyway, I'm sure my friends are finished with their training by now. So, I should be heading back to them now." Sakura said. "Oh. Well, that's just fine." Stanford said. "Wait. Would you like to come with me and meet them?" Sakura asked. "Oh! Well…I, uh…I'm not really a…people person." Stanford said, hesitantly. "Oh, it's not any trouble. They're really nice." Sakura said. "Well then, I would be honored to meet them." Stanford said.
Later, Sandshrew, Staryu and Machop were tuckered from their training. "That's it, guys. Take deep breaths and drink plenty of water. You all did really well today." Gilbert said as he poured water from his canteen into 3 water bowls for his Pokémon. "That was some really intense training, Gilbert." Yolanda said. "I know. I know when my Pokémon friends do their best when they're either training or battling." Gilbert said as he gave Sandshrew, Staryu and Machop their water bowls. "Speaking of doing their best, I wonder how Sakura's doing with catching some new Pokémon." Yolanda said. "Well, how about if I tell you?" Sakura asked, surprising her friends as she and Espeon returned with Stanford and Ceruledge following her. "Hey, Sakura, welcome back." Yolanda said. "Did you catch any new Pokémon?" Gilbert asked. "Yes. I caught 2 new ones." Sakura said. "And who are your new friends?" Yolanda asked, noticing Stanford and Ceruledge. "Oh, this is Stanford and Ceruledge. They're from this region called Paldea." Sakura said. "Paldea?" Gilbert and Yolanda asked. "It's nice to meet you both." Stanford said.
Later, the group made a little fire and settled down for lunch. All their Pokémon were out of their PokéBalls to join the meal and get acquainted with Sakura's new Flittle and Wooper. "So, I hear that you guys met a mysterious Mythical Pokémon." Stanford said. "How'd you know that?" Gilbert asked in shock. "I met a similar Pokémon once before back in Paldea." Stanford said. "Can you tell us about it?" Yolanda asked. "Yes. One day, I met this injured Pokémon back home in Paldea. I helped it restore its health in a few days until it was all better. As I released it back into the wild, before it left, it gave me a kiss." Stanford explained. "The same thing happened to me." Gilbert said. "If it happened to us both, we must be very special to be chosen by them." Stanford said. "Them?" Yolanda asked. "A duo of Mythical Pokémon that were long forgotten by myth. The Giver Duo." Stanford said. "The Giver Duo?" Sakura asked. "They were the most caring Pokémon in the world. Their kiss would give those trustworthy with amazing powers beyond most people could imagine. But one day, they gifted power to the wrong kind of person. And that person misused his gift to bring chaos and destruction to the world. Although the person was stopped, the Giver Duo fled from the humans and were never seen again. Which in time, they were since forgotten." Stanford explained. Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura put all this to thought.
Suddenly, their meal was interrupted when a cherry bomb was thrown at their fire and exploded, startling everyone. They all stood up, turned and saw their old enemies from Team Rocket, Hun and Attila, once the smoke cleared. "You 2 again?!" Yolanda asked in shock. "Long time no see, kids." Attila said. "It's payback time for your interference at Mt. Moon." Hun said. "You know these 2?" Stanford asked. "Yes. They're part of Team Rocket." Yolanda said. "Team Rocket?" Stanford asked. "They're an evil group of criminals who are dead set on stealing Pokémon and conquering the world." Sakura said. "We encountered these 2 at Mt. Moon. They were trying to steal Mega Stones." Gilbert said. Stanford looked at the 2 from Team Rocket, glaring and becoming cross. "Enough talking! It's battle time!" Attila exclaimed. "Steelix, let's go!" Hun exclaimed, tossing her PokéBall. "Skarmory, Muk, go!" Attila exclaimed, tossing both of his PokéBalls. Steelix, Skarmory and Muk came out and prepared to fight. "Alright, if that's how you wanna do it." Gilbert said as he, Yolanda and Sakura prepared to fight with their Pokémon. Suddenly, Stanford stopped them as he and Ceruledge walked up. "I'll handle this." He said. "This is none of your business, accent." Hun said insultingly. "Yeah. Step off before you get hurt." Attila said. "That, I cannot do." Stanford said.
Ceruledge walked up and took a stance. "You think you can take all our Pokémon on with just that thing?" Hun asked mockingly. "Not by himself." Stanford said. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a black PokéBall item. Energy started to build up into it before he threw it at Ceruledge. Ceruledge became encased in crystal for a minute. When he burst out, Ceruledge was completely crystalized and wearing some kind of crown with a giant snowflake over his head. Everyone was shocked by what happened. "What did you do to your Pokémon?!" Attila demanded. "I'm afraid that's for me to know and for you to never find out." Stanford said. "Keep your secrets. It won't matter. Get him, Steelix!" Hun exclaimed. "Skarmory, Muk, let him have it!" Attila exclaimed. Steelix, Skarmory and Muk charged towards Ceruledge. "Ceruledge, use Bitter Blade." Stanford said as he commanded his partner. Ceruledge closed his eyes as his blades began charging up with fire. When Steelix, Skarmory and Muk got close enough, Ceruledge gave a powerful slash and struck all 3 of them at the same time, sending them flying back towards their trainers. As the Pokémon hit their trainers, all 5 of them blasted off into the sky. "I can't believe we were beaten by some guy and his weird Pokémon!" Hun exclaimed angrily. "We'll get them next time!" Attila exclaimed angrily. "And now we're blasting off again!" They exclaimed as they disappeared into the sky.
When it was all over, Ceruledge returned to normal. "Good work, Ceruledge." Stanford said. Ceruledge nodded. Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura were shocked by what they had just seen. "What was that?!" Gilbert asked. "Your Pokémon just turned into complete crystal!" Yolanda exclaimed. "And just blew Team Rocket away with one single attack!" Sakura exclaimed. "Well, where do I start? That was a little something called…Terastal Phenomenon. It's a very special thing that exists back in my home region. I can unlock its power using this. A Tera Orb." Stanford explained, showing his new friends his black ball, called a Tera Orb. Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura were amazed by this.
Later, the group made it to the end of the forest. "Well, this is where we part ways. Ceruledge and I still have our own way to go." Stanford said. "Okay. Well, it was great meeting you, Stanford." Gilbert said. "We hope to see you again someday." Yolanda said. "And thanks again for helping me with catching Wooper." Sakura said. "Until then." Stanford said, holding out his hand. Gilbert took it and shook it. As they shook, Stanford felt a strange surge of power between their hands. After they released, Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura turned around and walked off down the path. Stanford and Ceruledge watched as their new friends leave. "There's something about these kids that makes me wonder. And I hope to see them again." Stanford said. 'I know. So do I, Stanford.' Ceruledge said telepathically.
Major Events:
Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura meet Stanford Isaac Rhodes IV, a mysterious trainer from the Paldea Region
Sakura catches a Flittle and a Shiny Wooper
Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura encounter Hun and Attila again while Stanford meets them for the first time
Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura learn about Terastal Phenomenon
Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura learn about the mysterious Mythical Pokémon lost to myth, known as the Giver Duo
Stanford parts way with Gilbert, Yolanda and Sakura, but discovers a strange power surge in Gilbert