Chapter 8: Minor Dispute
With Nikki's first Pokémon Contest in Miyasa Town only a few short days away and Ash's first Gym battle shortly after that the two trainers decided to stop for a very important training session.
"Okay, Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt!" Ash instructed. With a loud cry Pikachu launched his trademark Electric attack at his target and sparring partner Pidgeot.
"Okay, now dodge just like I explained!" Ash shouted. Pidgeot nodded and waited for the attack to get close enough. Just when it looked like Pikachu would score a direct hit Pidgeot began to spin. The swirling air generated from the spin caused the Thunderbolt to veer off-course a miss Pidgeot entirely.
"Alright! It worked!" Ash cheered. Pikachu cheered as well as both of them waited for Pidgeot to land. When he did Ash addressed both Pokémon.
"That was perfect, you two. I'm really proud," Ash said.
"(I knew we could pull it off,)" Pikachu bragged.
"(It is a very effective dodging technique, one I feel will be useful in future battles,)" Pidgeot commented.
"Right, but if we really want this to be as effective as possible we'll have to get everyone to perfect it," Ash explained. "It's going to be tough, but I know we can do it." Both Pokémon nodded in agreement with their trainer.
"Okay, you two! Let's try it again!" The three of them glanced over at Nikki as she, Buneary and Shinx practiced for their first contest.
"Start off with Charge, Shinx!" Nikki instructed.
"(Okay!)" Moments later the Flash Pokémon's body began to spark, her Charge taking effect.
"Okay, now hold that! Buneary, use Hidden Power!" Nikki said.
"(Okay! You ready, Shinx?)" Buneary called. Shinx nodded, letting Buneary know she was ready. With her partner ready Buneary powered up Hidden Power, the floating white orbs circling her moments later.
"(Here it comes!)" she announced right before sending the attack towards Shinx. When the attack reached her they became attracted by the electricity from Shinx's Charge. Soon they began circling her similar to moons orbiting a planet.
"Alright, looking good!" Nikki cheered. Shinx began to feel a sense of pride at doing good, but the minute that happened she began to lose her concentration. Shortly after she started losing control of her Charge attack, and at the same time the Hidden Power.
"Whoa, look out!" Nikki warned. But by then it was too late. No matter how much she concentrated Shinx couldn't regain control of the two attacks. Eventually the Hidden Power orbs began to collide with each other, creating explosions around the Flash Pokémon.
"No, Shinx!" Nikki shouted.
"Look out!" Ash called. Soon the explosions completely engulfed Shinx, blanketing her in a cloud of smoke and dust.
"Shinx? Shinx, answer me! Shinx!" Nikki called. The smoke was slowly clearing, but Nikki refused to wait any longer. She rushed towards the cloud, hoping to find her Pokémon unharmed. Thankfully other than a few minor scrapes Shinx was unharmed.
"Are you okay?" Nikki asked, her voice filled with concern.
"(Yeah… I'm fine,)" Shinx replied.
"Are you sure you're not hurt?" Nikki asked, wanting to be sure.
"(Believe me, the only thing that's hurt is my pride,)" Shinx grumbled. Nikki let out a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
"Well we can repair your injured pride easily by winning our first contest," Nikki declared.
"That's the spirit!" Ash cheered. "You have to keep a positive outlook if you want to win."
"Yeah," Nikki agreed. "So, which way do we go now?"
"Huh?" Ash asked, a puzzled look on his face.
"I said which way do we go," Nikki repeated.
"I don't know. Don't you have the map?" Ash asked.
"No. I gave it to you," Nikki said.
"I don't have it," Ash declared.
"What do you mean you don't have it? I gave it to you before we started training!" Nikki yelled.
"You couldn't have because I don't have it!" Ash argued.
"Well this is just great! Thanks to you we're lost!" Nikki griped.
"Hold on! How is this my fault?" Ash demanded.
"Because you lost the map, that's how!" Nikki told him.
"I didn't lose anything!" Ash retorted. Off to she side the Pokémon could see where this was going.
"(Oh boy… here we go again,)" Pikachu sighed. "(Ash always was too headstrong for his own good, and it looks like Nikki is the same way.)"
"(It certainly looks that way,)" Buneary agreed. Pidgeot and Shinx remained quiet as they all watched Ash and Nikki go back and forth with their argument. The longer it went on the more heated it got until finally…
"That does it! You can just try and find your way out alone!" Nikki yelled. "Buneary! Shinx! Let's go!" Shinx was a bit startled but followed anyway.
"(I'll try to calm her down,)" Buneary said before following as well.
"Fine! Just don't come crying back to me when you get even more lost than you already are!" Ash retorted. As they watched Nikki and her Pokémon leave Pikachu and Pidgeot were left to try and calm Ash down.
"Man… just what was her deal?" Ash wondered.
"(You know, you could have handled that better,)" Pidgeot commented.
"(Yeah. I mean, maybe you could have checked and seen if she did give you the map,)" Pikachu suggested. By now Ash had calmed down and realized that, just as his Pokémon had said, he could have handled that much better than he did.
"Maybe," he sighed. While the three of them sat there they were unknowingly being spied on. Hidden in the trees along the edge of the clearing was the mischievous trio of Jessie, James and Meowth.
"Looks like there's trouble in twerp paradise," Jessie commented.
"This could work to our advantage," James added. "With the two of them bickering it'll be easy for us to swoop in and snatch their Pokémon."
"So what are we waiting for? Let's get snatching," Jessie said. She and James were ready to ambush Ash when Meowth stopped them.
"Wait a minute!" he exclaimed.
"What are you doing, Meowth? Can't you see the twerp is ripe for the Pika-picking?" Jessie complained.
"Yeah, but that's what we always think right before taking a one-way trip on a Pikachu Thunderbolt," Meowth pointed out.
"That is true," James begrudgingly agreed.
"Which is why I think we should go after the weak link," Meowth suggested.
"The twerpette?" Jessie questioned.
"Think about it. She's a rookie trainer with only two Pokémon. We can take her with our eyes closed," Meowth bragged.
"When you put it that way we can't lose," James said.
"You know, for once I have to agree with you two," Jessie said. With the three of them in agreement they quickly and quietly slipped back into the forest, looking to ambush an unsuspecting Nikki.
Elsewhere Nikki had put quite a bit of distance between herself and Ash. She was still upset about the argument the two of them had earlier.
"Who does he think he is? Just because he's traveled all over the world doesn't mean he can just blame me for us getting lost!" she fumed. Following behind her were Buneary and Shinx, who looked at their trainer with concern. They had no idea who was truly at fault, but they did not want to see Nikki and Ash at odds as they were now.
"(I wish there was something we could do to get them back to being friends again,)" Shinx whispered.
"Me too, but right now we need to make sure she doesn't travel too far away from him so we can get them back to being friends again,)" Buneary replied. While the two of them were talking Nikki suddenly came to a stop. When Buneary and Shinx stopped she turned to them.
"Guys… I think it might be best if we try traveling alone for a bit," she announced. Both Pokémon were shocked by her sudden announcement. Though they hadn't know Ash or his Pokémon for that long they had grown to like him and didn't want to end their friendship on a sour note.
"(I don't know, Nikki. Don't you think you're being a bit hasty here,)" Buneary warned.
"No… well… I don't know… maybe…" Now that she had calmed down and was able to think clearly she was beginning to see that perhaps she did act a bit too hastily.
"(Nikki? You okay?)" Shinx called, snapping her out of her thoughts.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm good," she replied. "Why don't we stop for a little snack." Neither Buneary or Shinx had any objections to that idea. Nikki set her bag down and reached in for some of the snacks that had been packed. As she looked around she saw something that made her eyes go wide.
"No way… that can't be…" She pulled it out and saw herself holding onto the very map she claimed to have given to Ash earlier.
"(Nikki… is that…)" Buneary questioned.
"I… I think I made a huge mistake," she gasped. "Oh man… I have to go apologize to Ash."
"You won't be doing any of that." Immediately Nikki and her Pokémon turned towards the sound of the voice.
"Who's there?" Nikki demanded. Moments later the familiar trio appeared in the clearing, reciting their motto.
"Out of the sky, falling with grace.
A spark in the eye, arriving with haste.
Ready and willing to put twerps in their place.
Jessie!
James!
Meowth's the name!
Team Rocket, burning a trail!
Blazing a path!
Kickin' some tail!
Wobbu Wobbuffet!
Mime Mime Mime Mime!"
"Oh, it's just you three," she sighed. The three were outraged at being brushed off in that manner.
"How dare you overlook the mighty Team Rocket like we're some second-rate trainers!" Jessie fumed.
"Second-rate? Please, you guys are barely even third-rate trainers," Nikki spat.
"Well then you'll have the displeasure of having your Pokémon taken from you by 'third-rate trainers'," James announced.
"That's not going to happen!" Nikki declared. "Buneary! Shinx! Get ready for battle!"
"(Way ahead of you!)" Buneary shouted.
"(Let's take them down!)" Shinx added.
"Like that'll happen," Jessie spat. "Seviper, get them!"
"You too, Carnivine!" James added. Their Pokémon appeared moments later, but upon appearing Carnivine turned around and bit down on James's head.
"If you want to take a bite out of something then take it out of them!" James shrieked, throwing his Pokémon back out onto the battlefield.
"Let's get this battle going! Buneary, Hidden Power! Shinx, Charge Beam!" Nikki instructed.
"Seviper, use Haze!" Jessie ordered.
"Carnivine, Bullet Seed!" James added. All four Pokémon fired their attacks. This resulted in a large explosion that blanketed the area in a thick cloud of smoke and dust.
Meanwhile Ash, Pikachu and Pidgeot were still at the clearing where Ash and Nikki had been training before their argument. The mood hadn't improved much since then, and both Pikachu and Pidgeot were beginning to worry about Nikki.
"(She's been gone a long time,)" Pikachu commented. "(What if she ran into some trouble.)"
"(She has Buneary and Shinx with her, but I share your concern,)" Pidgeot said. "(Perhaps we should look for her.)" Pikachu nodded in agreement. They were about to inform Ash of their concerns when the Pallet Town trainer turned towards them.
"Come on. We're going to go look for Nikki," he announced. "I want to make sure she's okay… and apologize for earlier." A wave of relief washed over Pikachu and Pidgeot. The fact that Ash was willing to apologize whether the incident was his fault or not showed just how mature he was becoming. Just as the three of them were about to set off in search of their companions they felt an explosion off in the distance.
"What was that?" Ash yelled.
"(Look at that!)" Pikachu shouted. Off in the distance smoke billowed up from behind the trees, giving the three of them cause for concern.
"(What if Nikki and her Pokémon are over there!)" Pikachu said. That was all the reason Ash needed to investigate.
"Come on! Pikachu may be right about Nikki being over there!" he said. While Ash started running in the direction of the smoke Pikachu jumped onto Pidgeot.
"(We'll fly on ahead!)" the Electric Mouse shouted.
"I'll meet you there!" Ash replied. The two Pokémon took to the skies, hoping that if Nikki and her Pokémon were there they weren't in any danger.
The smoke eventually cleared, showing that all four Pokémon ready to continue.
"Seviper, use Poison Tail!" Jessie ordered.
"Carnivine, Bite!" James instructed. Both Pokémon charged, Seviper's tail glowing purple and Carnivine's mouth opened wide.
"Buneary, use Bounce on Carnivine! Shinx, Charge Beam on Seviper!" Nikki shouted. Her Pokémon went into action. Buneary jumped out of the way of Carnivine's Bite and came down on his head, using him as a springboard to bounce high into the air.
"Now back-up Shinx's attack with Hidden Power!" Nikki instructed.
"(You got it!)" Buneary complied. She quickly charged up her attack and hurled it down at Seviper. The Hidden Power made contact at the same time the Charge Beam did, engulfing Seviper in an explosion that dropped him instantly.
"Now send them back with a Spark and Dizzy Punch!" Nikki shouted. Buneary delivered a dizzying punch to Carnivine while Shinx slammed into Seviper, her body sparking with electricity. Both defeated Pokémon landed right at the Rocket's feet.
"My Carnivine!" James cried.
"You'll pay for that, twerp!" Jessie growled.
"Put it on my tab," Nikki said. "Okay, let's send them on their way. Use Hidden Power and Charge Beam, you two!"
"(One power-packed blast-off coming right up!)" Buneary announced. She once again powered up her Hidden Power and hurled it at the Rockets. At the same time Shinx fired off a concentrated beam of electricity.
"Not this time! Wobbuffet, use Mirror Coat!" Jessie demanded. Her Psychic type appeared before them and began to glow white. The two attacks hit him, but instead of damaging the Pokémon they were sent right back at Buneary and Shinx.
"Look out!" Nikki warned. Unfortunately the attacks were traveling too fast for them to move. They were ironically struck down by their own attacks.
"No!" Nikki cried. Across from her the trio of miscreants laughed maniacally.
"That's what happens to those who oppose Team Rocket!" Jessie declared.
"And now your Pokémon belong to us!" Meowth added.
"Not a chance!" Nikki argued.
"Oh yeah? How do you plan to stop us?" Meowth questioned. By now both Seviper and Carnivine had recovered and were standing next to their trainers.
"Okay, you two! Go get those Pokémon for us!" Jessie ordered.
"(At once,)" Seviper complied. As he and Carnivine headed towards the downed Pokémon Nikki put herself between them.
"I won't let you take them!" she declared.
"Get her out of the way, Carnivine!" James ordered. Carnivine opened his mouth and spat a Bullet Seed volley at the girl, forcing her to jump to the side to dodge.
"(N-Nikki!)" Buneary shouted. She and Shinx tried to stand up to help her, but Team Rocket wasn't about to let that happen.
"Stop them with Haze, Seviper!" Jessie ordered.
"And you use Bullet Seed, Carnivine!" James added. Their Pokémon carried out their orders. Seviper blanketed Buneary and Shinx with a thick Haze cloud while Carnivine bombarded them with Bullet Seed. When the assault ended both Pokémon were in bad shape.
"And now, we'll be taking them," Jessie declared.
"No, you can't!" Nikki protested.
"Face it, girly! You can't stop us!" Meowth declared. "In fact there's no one here who can stop us!" Just when it looked like Meowth's proclamation was true a bolt of lightning streaked down from above and struck Seviper and Carnivine, stopping them in their tracks.
"Hey, where did that come from?" Jessie shrieked. Moments later a shadow passed over head. The next thing they knew Pikachu and Pidgeot landed in front of Nikki.
"Pikachu! Pidgeot!" Nikki cheered.
"(Good thing we decided to go ahead,)" Pidgeot said.
"(We should have known that you three were behind this!)" Pikachu stated.
"Wait! Where's Ash?" Nikki asked. Then, almost as if on cue, Ash appeared from the forest and ran to Nikki's side.
"You okay?" he inquired.
"Yeah. You got here just in time," she told him.
"Oh, great! Now we got the main twerp to contend with too!" Meowth complained.
"No matter! We'll beat them both and take their Pokémon!" Jessie declared. "Yanmega, front and center!" The Ogre Darner Pokémon appeared from her Poké Ball moments later, hovering over the defeated pair of Seviper and Carnivine.
"We don't have time to waste on you three," Ash said. "Cyndaquil, Flamethrower!" As soon as the Fire Mouse Pokémon appeared from his Poké Ball he spewed flames, hitting Yanmega and blasting her into Team Rocket and their balloon. The gases from the balloon ignited, creating a massive explosion that sent the evil doers hurtling through the air.
"No! Why is it that whenever we have something going our way this always happens?" Jessie cried.
"Maybe we need to look for a new line of work!" James suggested.
"Hey, nothing's going to tear me away from Team Rocket or a place on the Boss's lap!" Meowth yelled.
"Team Rocket's blasting off again!" they screamed, fading in the distance.
"Oh man… I hope we don't have to constantly deal with things like this," Nikki sighed.
"Try putting up with them for seven years," Ash offered.
"No thanks. I'll pass," Nikki commented. The two trainers chuckled a bit before Ash started speaking once again.
"Listen, Nikki… about earlier…"
"You don't have to say anything, Ash," Nikki interrupted. "In fact, I should be the one apologizing. I… found the map. It was in my backpack. I'm sorry for accusing you of getting us lost." Apologizing like that took a huge weight off her chest, but then she felt Ash's hand on her shoulder.
"I'm glad we were able to clear that up. I don't want us to have our friendship end over something as silly as this," Ash admitted.
"Me neither," Nikki agreed with a smile.
"Besides, I think our Pokémon would like it if we stayed traveling partners too." Looking over the Pokémon all of them nodded in agreement with Ash. Then, Ash noticed something strange happening to Cyndaquil.
"Cyndaquil, what's wrong?" he asked.
"(Ash… I feel funny,)" he squeaked. Moments later his body gave off a blinding white glow.
"Cyndaquil!" Ash shouted.
"He's… evolving!" Nikki gasped. From within the light they could see Cyndaquil's body begin to change. He grew longer, his body taking on a lean shape. His snout also became more rounded in contrast to its pointed shape. When the light faded Cyndaquil had evolved into Quilava.
"Alright! I've got a Quilava!" Ash cheered. He took out his Pokédex and immediately scanned him.
Quilava, the Volcano Pokémon and the evolved form of Cyndaquil. Quilava are fully covered by nonflammable fur. It can withstand any kind of fire attack.
"Wow… that's amazing," Nikki gasped, in awe of Ash's new Pokémon.
"Alright! With you on our team our chances of winning the Legenda League are that much better!" Ash cheered. "We'll be counting on you, Quilava."
"(No problem! Just leave it to me!)" Quilava boasted.
"Well then, let's get going," Ash said. He recalled Quilava and Pidgeot while Nikki recalled Shinx. After Pikachu and Buneary took their places on their respective trainer's shoulders the group resumed their journey towards Miyasa Town, this time sure of which direction to go.
Though things may have started off a bit rough Ash and Nikki's friendship grew stronger. And with Cyndaquil evolving into Quilava Ash's Pokémon team has gotten stronger as well. What new challenges await them on the road ahead? Find out in the next chapter of Search for Power!
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