Kanto Gets Loud
Chapter 8: Prepare for Trouble!
Meanwhile, at Professor Oak's Laboratory,
The Professor has just sat down for some dinner, while his thoughts were on each of the trainers who left his lab earlier in the day, especially Lincoln, "I do hope Lincoln made it to Viridian City without issue," he said to himself. Just then, the videophone began ringing, "A call? At this hour?" he commented, as he went to go answer it. Upon picking up the receiver and answering, he was greeted with Lincoln's face on the screen.
"Hello, Professor?" Lincoln said.
"Ah, Mr. Loud, I was wondering when you were going to call. I trust you made it to Viridian City without any trouble?" Professor Oak asked.
"More or less. Pikachu and I got into a bit of a battle against a flock of Spearow on our way over here," Lincoln replied.
"Hmm, I'm glad to see you're alright. Spearow have a tendency to be rather vicious. So, were you able to catch one?" Professor Oak asked.
"Well, technically no. The flock had gotten their boss, a big Fearow, involved. Fortunately, Pikachu was able to come out on top, and we managed to add a new member to our team," Lincoln replied.
"My word, that's quite the lucky break. Not many trainers are able to catch an evolved Pokemon on their first day, much less one as fierce as a Fearow," Professor Oak replied, impressed at Lincoln's capture of Fearow.
"Yeah. I've registered for the Pokemon League Challenge, so tomorrow, I'm going to head out to my first Gym," Lincoln replied.
"I see. Well, the Gym up in Pewter City can provide a challenge, especially for a new trainer such as yourself," Professor Oak suggested.
"That's my plan. I'm hoping to catch some more Pokemon along the way," Lincoln replied.
"Well, the Viridian Forest should provide quite a plethora of Bug Type Pokemon that you can try catching," Professor Oak stated.
"I'll see what I can do," Lincoln replied.
"Splendid. And now, I'm going to touch on a rather sore topic, but have you made contact with your family since you arrived?" Professor Oak asked.
"Not yet. I'm giving them some time to install the Videophone you gave them. That, and I'm hesitant to call them," Lincoln replied.
"I see. Well, if it'll help, I'll be giving them a Progress Report in a few days. I'll try my best to get through to them that their actions could potentially have dire consequences," Professor Oak replied. Lincoln looked confused.
"What do you mean?" Lincoln asked.
"Well, you see, my boy, what your family did was not only cruel and unusual, but it was also highly illegal. Your family could face serious criminal charges if word got out about their actions," Professor Oak explained. Lincoln looked concerned.
"You aren't going to call the authorities, are you? I mean, while my family are boneheads for jumping on the whole 'Lincoln is Bad Luck' bandwagon a little too eagerly, but they're still my family, and I would rather not see them get separated. For the twins, that could be really cruel to them," Lincoln replied.
"You needn't worry. While I feel I SHOULD call them, I will respect your wishes, and give them a chance to redeem themselves," Professor Oak replied.
"Thanks, Professor. I'll see about calling when I get to Pewter City," Lincoln replied.
"That's all I ask of you. Now, is that all you wanted to talk to me about, or is there something else on your mind?" Professor Oak replied.
"Not at the moment. I was just calling to check in with you," Lincoln replied.
"Very good. I look forward to hearing about your journey's the next time we talk," Professor Oak stated.
"Yes sir. I'll talk to you later," Lincoln said, as he hung up.
"Sounds like Lincoln has been quite busy with his first day as a trainer. I wonder what'll be in store for him," Professor Oak wondered, as he sat down to eat his dinner.
Meanwhile, at the Loud House, Day Time,
Lori was lounging around on the couch, enjoying her favorite pastime; Texting her boyfriend, Bobby. She was about to send another affection filled message, when the sound of knocking from the front door could be heard, "Oh, of all the rotten timing! This had better be important!" she grumbled, as she got up to answer it. Upon opening the door, she greeted with the sight of Ronnie Anne, Bobby's little sister, and Clyde McBride, Lincoln's best friend, "Alright, what do you two want? I'm kind of in the middle of something important," she said a little more rudely that intended, not that she cared.
"Right, because texting my brother is SO important," Ronnie Anne stated sarcastically. This seemed to irk Lori something fierce, but she retained her composure.
"Look, what is it that you two want?" the eldest Loud sister asked.
With every ounce of effort to keep his cool around his crush, Clyde spoke up, "We were headed for the arcade, and wanted to see if Lincoln wanted to come. Is he in?"
"That, and we wanted to ask where he's been. No one has seen him since last week," Ronnie Anne added. Lori froze up, a look of concern etched onto her face. But the concern was not for her brother, rather, it was at the thought of both kids asking questions about Lincoln that Lori didn't want to answer, questions that Lori knew, without a doubt in her mind, could end up ruining her family's reputation beyond repair. Lori knew that what she and the rest of the family did was very illegal, and if word got out, she was certain that her parents would be serving some serious jail time, and she and her sisters would all be separated. That was something she couldn't allow to happen.
'But I can't stay silent. They could grow more suspicious, and start snooping around on their own. Even if Ronnie Anne is Lincoln's girlfriend and practically part of the Loud Family, she has to keep her nose out of this,' she thought. Then, an idea popped into her head.
"Well, I'm afraid I don't know where Lincoln is either, nor when he'll be back. I'm a little worried about him myself," Lori lied. Well, at the very least, half-lied. She kind of knew where Lincoln was, but she didn't know when he would be back. While she was still ticked that Lincoln was allowed to have $300 to himself, a small part of her was worried about him, what with him being on the other side of the world.
"Well, when you do see him again, could you let him know we came by asking for him?" Clyde asked.
"Sure," Lori replied, as she shut the door. Clyde then collapsed to his knees.
"Oh man, I wasn't sure I was going to last any longer! I thought for sure my nose would start bleeding!" Clyde exclaimed, only to notice a suspicious look on Ronnie Anne's face, as she was looking at the front door.
"I ain't buying what she was selling, Clyde," Ronnie Anne commented.
"What do you mean?" Clyde asked.
"I mean Lori was acting a little… off, as if she was hiding something," Ronnie Anne replied.
"You're saying there's more to what Lori said than she's letting on?" Clyde asked.
"It's quite possible," Ronnie Anne replied, as the two of them left. From her bedroom window, Lisa overheard their conversation.
"If only they knew what was really going on," she commented.
Back in Viridian City, outside the Pokemon Center,
"Hurry up with those charges, James!" the woman barked, as the man, now known as James, was planting the explosives they had brought with them.
"Patience, Jessie. You can't rush perfection, especially when it comes to crime," James replied.
"Plus, it is dark out here, and James can't see too well," Meowth added.
"And, done!" James said, as he planted the last of the explosives.
"I'm guessing I don't need to cut the power?" Meowth asked.
"No, not with these charges in place," Jessie replied, holding the detonation device.
"Alright, shall we then?" James asked.
"We shall," Jessie replied, pressing the detonator, causing the charges to explode, creating a massive hole in the wall, while also destroying a nearby bike rack, "Showtime, boys!" she said, as they entered the building.
One Minute Earlier,
"So, Lincoln, seeing as how you're new to the whole Pokemon Trainer business, how's about Misty and I helping you out until you at least get your first Gym Badge?" Raigo offered.
"Right. If you have any questions regarding Pokemon, then don't hesitate to ask," Misty added.
"Thanks guys. Don't suppose you guys know what Pokemon I should use in the Pewter City Gym battle?" Lincoln asked.
"I've heard from several trainers that the Pewter Gym specializes in Rock Type Pokemon, so your best bet would be to go with Water, Grass, Steel, or Fighting Type Moves, or at the very least Pokemon that know those types of moves," Raigo explained.
"If you want, I can help you fish up a Water Type Pokemon. There's a river just outside of the city that has all kinds of great Water Pokemon," Misty offered.
"I think I might take you up on that offer," Lincoln replied.
"Well, for now, I just want to turn in," Raigo commented.
"Yeah, I could use some sleep," Misty replied.
"That makes three of us," Lincoln added. But as they were about to head to their room for the night, a large explosion rocked the whole Pokemon Center, and had knocked everyone to the floor. Lincoln and Misty had ended up in a rather… peculiar position, with Misty landing right on top of Lincoln, with her chest in his face.
"Oh, god, I am so sorry!" Misty exclaimed, pulling back.
"It's alright, that explosion is really to blame. But what even caused it?" Lincoln asked.
"'What', you may be asking?" Jessie said, as she and her teammates entered the Pokemon Center.
"These guys look like trouble," Raigo commented.
"'Trouble'? Shall we then, James?" Jessie asked.
"Indeed we shall, Jessie," James replied, whipping out a rose. Jessie then struck a dynamic pose.
"Prepare for trouble!" she stated.
"Make it double!" James continued.
"To protect the world from devestation!"
"To unite all people within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!" Meowth said, landing between the two, as they struck one final pose. An awkward wind blew through the Pokemon Center.
"Wow, just, wow," Lincoln was at a loss for words at how painful their routine was to watch.
"Scared by the official Team Rocket Motto, little boy? Well, you should be, since now we're going to be confiscating ALL of the Pokemon in this Pokemon Center for our nefarious purposes! So make it easy on yourselves and just hand them over," James declared.
"First of all, so you're the Team Rocket that Professor Oak warned me about. Secondly, what even was that whole 'motto' thing, and why should I be scared of it? It looked like something you ripped off of a Saturday kid show, given how cheesy it was. Thirdly, there's no way any of us are giving up our Pokemon!" Lincoln proclaimed.
"You're calling us rip offs?! How dare you! James, let's teach this whelp a lesson!" Jessie said, whipping out a Pokeball.
"With pleasure, Jessie," James said, readying his own Pokeball.
"We're with you, Lincoln," Misty said, getting one of her Pokeballs ready.
"I'll help out any way I can," Riago added, readying his Pokeball.
"Thanks guys," Lincoln said, as Pikachu was raring to go.
"Ekans, you're up!" Jessie said, throwing her Pokeball, releasing a purple rattlesnake like Pokemon.
"Koffing, you're needed too!" James said, sending out his own Pokemon. It was spherical in shape, with numerous craters around it's body, which were emitting some kind of gas.
"Pikachu, you're up!" Lincoln declared.
"You got it!" Pikachu replied.
"Staryu, I need your help!" Misty said, sending out a starfish like Pokemon with a glowing red core.
"Skipper, time to battle!" Raigo said, sending out a small, blue quadrupedal Pokemon with a long fin protruding from its head, and orange spikes on it's cheeks Lincoln took out his Pokedex, and began scanning each Pokemon.
"Ekans, the Snake Pokemon, a Poison Type. The older it gets, the longer it grows. At night, it wraps it long body around tree branches to rest."
"Koffing, the Poison Gas Pokemon, a Poison Type. In hot places, it's internal gasses can expand and explode without warning, so be extremely careful with this Pokemon."
"Meowth, the Scratch Cat Pokemon, a Normal Type. It likes shiny objects, and can't help but pick up anything that sparkles. It becomes more active at nighttime. This Male Meowth is Level 10, and knows the moves Scratch, Growl, Bite, and Fury Swipes."
"Staryu, the Starshape Pokemon, a Water Type. It can regenerate any part of it's body with ease, as long as the core in it's center remains in tact."
"Pokemon Unknown. Activate National Dex Mode?" the Pokedex asked.
"'National Dex Mode'? What's that?" Lincoln asked.
"When enabled, the National Dex Mode will identify Pokemon from all around the world," the Pokedex replied.
"Oh, well, in that case, yes, enable National Dex Mode, please," Lincoln replied.
"Enabling National Dex Mode. Pokemon Entry Found. Mudkip, the Mud Fish Pokemon, a Water Type. With the fin on it's head, Mudkip can sense the flow of water to keep track of where it's going. Although small, it has the power to heft large boulders," the Pokedex explained.
"Alright, so how should we do this?" Lincoln questioned.
"We divide and conquer. I'll take on Koffing," Raigo volunteered.
"Then leave Ekans and that red haired hag for me," Misty stated. That one commented seemed to infuriate Jessie immensely.
"What did you just say?! You dare to call me a 'hag'?! James, you take that kid with the Mudkip, I want to put this red-headed hussy in her place!" Jessie ordered.
"You sure? I'm willing to help out if need be," James offered.
"JUST DO WHAT I SAID!" Jessie yelled, causing James to cower in fear.
"Alright, alright, have it your way," James replied, noting a pitying look on Lincoln's face.
"Whoa, this guy has to deal with a bossy girl too?" Lincoln commented.
"Wait, you know how I feel?" James asked.
"All too well," Lincoln replied.
"Well, in either case, we're enemies!" James proclaimed.
"I'm your opponent, blue boy," Raigo said, as Skipper took a stance against Koffing.
"Then that leaves me with Meowth," Lincoln said, looking at the Scratch Cat Poikemon, "Just one thing before we begin," he said.
"And what's that?" Meowth asked.
"How is it that you're able to talk like a human?" Lincoln asked. A look of pride worked it's way onto Meowth's face.
"Well, I'm glad you asked! I happen to be a unique, one-of-a-kind Pokemon, one that can talk human talk!" Meowth proclaimed.
"And when I scanned you with my Pokedex, it indicated that you're a wild Pokemon, true?" Lincoln pressed.
"Dat's right! I don't need no trainer!" Meowth boasted.
"I see. That works out just fine for me," Lincoln commented, an intent look on his face.
"Eh, what do you mean?" Meowth asked, not liking the look on the white-haired boy's face.
"Well, it's not every day that I have an opportunity to catch a one-of-a-kind Pokemon, and seeing as how you are a Wild Pokemon, then that means you're fair game," Lincoln declared. Meowth looked horrified.
"No way! You ain't going to catch me! This is one Pokemon that ain't going to be owned by no human!" Meowth declared, running off.
"You aren't really going to try to catch Meowth, are you?" Pikachu asked.
"No way. I only said that to keep him out of Misty and Raigo's battles," Lincoln whispered back.
"I see. Very clever," Pikachu replied, as they gave chase.
"Clever brat. He can catch Meowth for all we care. The only thing it's good for is translating what Pokemon are saying," Jessie stated.
"Just like a crook to not even care about your own teammates. We'll show you! Now, Staryu, use Water Gun!" Misty instructed. Staryu then fired a jet of water from it's top point, blasting Ekans back a few feet.
"Pull yourself together, Ekans, and use Bite!" Jessie ordered. Ekans then lunged at Staryu, biting down on the Starshape Pokemon.
"Staryu, use Rapid Spin!" Misty intsructed. Staryu began to spin rapidly, with Ekans still clenched down. Staryu continued to spin until Ekans was thrown off, completely dizzy.
"Skipper, use Iron Tail!" Raigo instructed. Skipper then leaped up, and, with it's tail becoming metallic, struck Koffing.
"Koffing, use Sludge!" James ordered. Koffing then fired a ball of sludge at Skipper, only for it to dodge.
"Nice dodge, now use Water Gun!" Raigo instructed. As Skipper was preparing to fire Water Gun, James got an idea.
"Koffing, use Smokescreen! Shroud the entire Pokemon Center in it!" he ordered. Koffing then began to spray out a thick cloud of smoke, causing the three heroes and their Pokemon to start coughing.
"I can't see!" Misty exclaimed.
"There has to be a way around this!" Lincoln proclaimed, as Pikachu was blindsided by Meowth.
"Hey, that was a cheap shot!" Pikachu snarled.
"So what? I'm a bad guy! Of course, I'm going to cheat!" Meowth replied, as he went in for a Fury Swipes, slashing away at Pikachu. It was then that Pikachu's Static kicked in, and began to hinder Meowth's movements.
"Pikachu, tag out! You did great!" Lincoln called out, as Pikachu ran back to Lincoln.
"With my Static Ability, taking on Meowth should be easier," Pikachu stated.
"Right, and this gives us an opportunity to give our new friend a chance to battle. Now, Fearow, go!" Lincoln said, sending out Fearow, who looked around curiously, before setting her eyes on Lincoln.
"Seeing as how we're not in the forest anymore, I'm assuming that you've managed to capture me?" Fearow asked.
"Yeah. I'll get you caught up on everything that's happened between then and now, but for the moment, I need your help with battling that Meowth," Lincoln replied, pointing at Meowth.
"I'll hold you to that. As for Meowth, consider it defeated," Fearow replied, as she took flight.
"Alright, let's start off with a Fury Attack!" Lincoln instructed. Fearow then swooped down, and began to repeatedly peck at Meowth.
"Why you…! FURY SWIPES!" Meowth yelled, as he began to slash at Fearow, who cleverly flew out of reach.
"How predictable… Charging straight in like that," Fearow commented, only to get blindsided by Koffing, "Gah! What hit me!?"
"Hey, that was a dirty trick!" Lincoln stated.
"Of course it was! Bad guys always cheat! Now Koffing, provide backup for Meowth!" James ordered.
"Why you little," Raigo seethed at the dirty tactics.
"Hey boss, should I go help out?" although Raigo couldn't understand Skipper's question, he could sense what he was saying.
"Right! If that blue haired guy's going after Lincoln now, then we'll take on Meowth!" Raigo replied, as they rushed over to take Lincoln's place in battling Meowth.
"Alright Fearow, let's focus our attention on Koffing for now!" Lincoln instructed.
"With pleasure!" Fearow replied.
"Oh no you don't! Koffing, use Smokescreen again!" James ordered. Koffing once again began spewing smoke, which hindered Fearow's vision.
"*cough* I can't breathe!" Fearow yelled.
"Fly up and out of the smoke!" Lincoln instructed. Fearow went to do just that, when…
"Koffing, Tackle it!" Fearow once again got blindsided from Koffing, who Tackled it from above, sending Fearow to the ground.
"Ah, Fearow!" Lincoln exclaimed.
"I'm fine, but that was way dirty!" Fearow growled, as she flew up again. Koffing once more tackled Fearow before retreating inside the cloud of smoke.
"Resorting to a hit-and-run tactic? Talk about cowardly," Lincoln commented.
"Call me a coward all you want! If a strategy isn't broke, then don't fix it," James countered, as Koffing continued to attack from inside the cloud.
"There has to be something I can do, but what?!" Lincoln questioned.
"Suggestion: Using Arieal Ace will result in a sure-fire hit, regardless of any reduction in accuracy," Lincoln's Pokedex pointed out.
"Really? In that case, Fearow, use Arieal Ace!" Lincoln instructed.
"Got it!" Fearow replied, as she dived at the smoke cloud, a mach-cone forming around here.
"How desperate. You're so eager to lose that you're just sending your Pokemon into be defeated? That's so…" James' statement was cut short, as Koffing was knocked out of the Smokescreen, "Wait, what?!"
"How do you like that? Even with all that Smoke, Arieal Ace will always land, no matter how much you reduce Fearow's accuracy," Lincoln stated with a snap of his fingers.
"What?! That has to be cheating!" James seethed.
"Oh, that's rich, coming from someone who talks big about how cheating is alright for the bad guys," Lincoln bluntly stated.
"Because that's what bad guys are supposed to do!" James argued, pulling out Koffing's Pokeball, "Koffing, return!"
"Oh no you don't! Pursuit!" Fearow then struck Koffing with her wing, sending the Poison Gas Pokemon down to defeat.
"Just great! I spent weeks perfecting that Smokescreen strategy, and some brat finds a major weakness in it!" James grumbled, recalling Koffing, "This isn't over, brat! You'll rue the day you decided to mess with us!" he said, before running off.
"Hey, get back here!" Lincoln said, as he and his Pokemon gave chase.
Meanwhile, with the battle between Misty and Jessie,
"Staryu, use Swift!" Misty instructed. Staryu then fired off star like projectiles, which sent Ekans down at Jessie's feet.
"No! How can a kid like you be so strong?!" Jessie exclaimed.
"Well, it helps that I did all my training at the Cerulean City Gym, as the Gym Leader," Misty proudly proclaimed.
"Gym leader?! You?!" Jessie exclaimed in disbelief. Misty whipped out a teardrop shaped badge, "Tsk, if I was up against a regular trainer, then this battle would've been easily won, but had I known you were a Gym Leader, then I wouldn't have wasted my time!" Just as she said that, a truly evil idea popped into her head, "Ekans, forget about Staryu, and fire Poison Sting at the girl instead!"
"WHAT?! You'd stoop so low as to attack the trainer?!" Misty exclaimed, as Staryu got in front of Misty, intent on shielding the girl.
"Of course! If I can't win the traditional way, then I'll take whatever win I can get," Jessie replied, as Ekans was getting ready to fire Poison Sting at Misty, only to have Meowth thrown at it, causing the move to fail.
"Hey! That's the lowest of the lowest moves you can make!" Raigo said, as he and Skipper made their way over to help Misty out.
"Hey, thanks Raigo, you and Skipper really saved my bacon," Misty commented.
"Think nothing of it. Now, time to deal with the leftovers," Raigo said, turning his attention to Jessie.
"Tsk, I guess I have no choice! We're retreating for now, but mark my words! I will crush you all underneath my feet someday!" Jessie said, recalling Ekans, and carrying Meowth out of the Pokemon Center.
"Whatever, grandma!" Misty called out, causing Jessie to yell out in irritation.
Outside the Pokemon Center,
"I hope Jessie and Meowth did better than I did," James commented, waiting in the hot air balloon, only to be greeted with the sight of his cohorts running towards them, "Jessie? What happened? I thought you were going to mop the floor with that orange haired hussy?"
"I could ask the same of you and your battle against the kid with the Mudkip," Jessie retorted, as she got into the basket.
"Hold it right there!" the sound of Lincoln's voice called out, as he, Misty, and Raigo were running towards the balloon as it was beginning to make it's get away.
"You may have won this battle, twerps, but you haven't seen the last of us! By getting in our way, the three of you are now officially enemies of Team Rocket!" Jessie proclaimed, as the balloon began to fly away.
"Pikachu, quick, use Thundershock! Don't let them get away!" Lincoln instructed.
"On it!" Pikachu replied, firing off Thudnershock, only for it to miss it's target.
"Dang it, they got away," Lincoln grumbled.
"On the bright side, at least we foiled their heist plan," Raigo replied.
"True," Lincoln replied as they went back inside, and made their way over to the front counter.
"Thank you, all three of you. Because of you, all of the Pokemon at the Center is safe from harm!" Nurse Joy exclaimed.
"No problem, Nurse Joy, but do you think we can leave our Pokemon in your care again?" Lincoln asked.
"Sure. Just leave everything to me!" Nurse Joy replied, as the trainers handed off their Pokemon to the nurse.
"I'll see you in the morning, Pikachu," Lincoln said to his partner.
"Likewise. Have a good night," Pikachu said.
"Well, now I'm ready for some much-needed sleep," Lincoln commented.
"Chansey, could you show them to their room?" Nurse Joy asked.
"Of course! If the three of you will follow me," Chansey said, as they followed the Egg Pokemon, eventually arriving at a room, "This is Room #3. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to come and ask," Chansey said, despite the fact that Lincoln was the only one who understood what she was saying. Swiping the key card he received from Nurse Joy, Lincoln opened the door into the room. True to what Nurse Joy had previously said, there were in fact two sets of bunk beds.
"Ok, so how should we do this?" Lincoln questioned.
"Well, how about I take one set of the bunks, while the two of you take the other," Misty suggested.
"Sounds fair. You can take the top bunk if you want, Lincoln," Raigo offered.
"Sounds good," Lincoln said, as they put their bags down.
"Well, I'm going to go take a quick shower," Misty said, grabbing a change of clothes, before heading into the bathroom.
"In the meantime, could you share some more information that could prove useful during my travels?" Lincoln asked Raigo.
"Sure," Raigo replied, as they talked all about what the world of Pokemon had to offer.
Meanwhile, somewhere in Kanto, in an dark office room,
A man in a fancy orange suit with slick, combed hair sat with his legs crossed, glaring disapprovingly at the trio of Jessie, James, and Meowth. He was stroking a fairly large, cat like Pokemon with a red jewel in it's forehead, "Words cannot even begin to describe my disappointment with you three. You had a task so simple, even you could've done it with ease. So, what happened?" the man asked.
"Well, you see, Giovanni, sir, some twerps got in our way and sent us packing," Jessie nervously explained.
"You mean to tell me that you allowed a couple of kids managed to drive you away?!" Giovanni yelled, causing the three to flinch.
"To be fair, sir, they were quite strong. One of them was a Gym Leader, even," James replied, hoping to calm the tension in the air. Giovanni turned to one of the other grunts.
"Bring me the surveillance footage. I want to see these trainers," Giovanni ordered.
"Yes sir," the grunt replied, typing something into a tablet device, as the footage from the battle came onto a nearby monitor, showcasing the battle at the Pokemon Center.
"I recognize Misty, the Cerulean City Gym Leader, but what of the other two?" Giovanni asked, intrigued by what he was seeing.
"Sir, we have information on both of them. The boy with darker hair is Raigo, from the Hoenn Region's Lavaridge Town. He's been training in Kanto for several weeks. As for the other one, his name is Lincoln Loud, from Royal Woods, Michigan, in the United States. He only started out on his journey this morning," the grunt explained.
'You mean I was beaten by some greenhorn?!' James screamed internally. The fact that he was beaten in battle was bad enough, but by someone who only just started out? His pride as both a trainer and a member of Team Rocket took a serious beating.
"The girl and the boy from Hoenn I can understand, but how could some newbie have beaten us?!" Meowth exclaimed.
"Be silent, insolent fool!" Giovanni yelled, causing Meowth to tense up. It was then that he made an important decision, "I'm giving you three a new assignment- You are to follow this Lincoln Loud character, and monitor everything he does, from the people he contacts, to the Pokemon he catches, and to the places he goes," he ordered.
"Um, sure thing, boss, but might I ask, why?" Jessie asked.
"You see, defeating a member of Team Rocket, even the lowest of the lowest ranked grunts, such as yourselves, is no small feat. I want to see about recruiting him to our cause," Giovanni explained.
'Not to mention it would keep the three of you clowns out of all of the big operations I have planned in the future,' he thought.
"Recruiting him as a Team Rocket member? Really?" James asked.
"Indeed. In addition to your normal duties, you three are to battle him every now and again to assess his prowess as a trainer, to see if he can make the cut. And I cannot stress this enough when I tell you NOT to fail me again. Because if you do…"
"ROGER! WE WON'T LET YOU DOWN, GIOVANNI, SIR!" the three grunts exclaimed.
"Good. Now then, get out of my sight before I change my mind about you three," Giovanni ordered. The three of them quickly ran out of his office, while Giovanni looked at the orange clad boy, "Yes, I'm almost certain that you'd make a fine member of Team Rocket."
Ok guys, got a serious question here for you in regards to the next chapter. Here's the deal, in this story, Lincoln had turned 12 years old sometime before the Bad Luck mess got started, and the Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny he met are actually the 15-Year-Old interns, working under the official Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny for Viridian City. Despite this, the two of them physically appear to be adults (i.e., their breasts are K-J cups). My question is this: Would you guys like to see these two try and hit on Lincoln, like giving him their numbers and telling them to call? Let me know what you think in the comments.