Well everyone, I worked really hard to get this chapter done before the new year…

Enjoy.

Chapter 14 – The Power of Lightning

Misty's next battle went smoother than the first one. The trainer she faced specialised in fire-type Pokémon and clearly had no counter for her water-types. The opponents first two Pokémon fell without a fight, and if it weren't for the opponent's Charizard, it would have been a clean sweep. She only lost one Pokémon in that match. She felt proud of herself afterwards; she'd shown that she could overcome type disadvantages while most of her opponents could not.

The next round; the last match before the final had been tough, but not overly burdensome. Her opponent used fighting-types. Both were in a stalemate, with neither having the advantage. But it was her Starmie that ultimately tipped the battle in her favour. The match lasted a good twenty minutes, and in that time, Misty lost two of her Pokémon through attrition before coming out on top.

She felt on top of the world; unbeatable. Overconfident, some might say. Waiting patiently inside the tunnel that led out onto the battlefield, she wanted to catch a glimpse of the trainer she would be facing in the last round. Interestingly, there would be a brief intermission before the final. She didn't mind, though; it gave her a chance to study her opponent's tactics and techniques.

But her world quickly came crashing down when she realised who she would be facing.

The crowd cheered after what Misty presumed was one of the trainer's final Pokémon feinting and their opponent being declared the winner. Shortly after, in walked a brown-haired girl that Misty recognised; Ruby Tallons.

Misty remembered her from The Safari Zone incident, but she wasn't worried about that. She remembered that the girl specialised in electric-type Pokémon, immediately putting herself at a disadvantage.

"You won?" Misty questioned.

"Yeah," Ruby confirmed. "She was strong, though." Ruby's eyes darted around the room before falling on the exit; she wanted to prepare for her next match. "Anyway, I have somewhere to be. I'll see you in the last round."

"Okay!" Misty tried to remain calm; to not give away how nervous she was. Whether she succeeded or not, she didn't know, but she didn't get the chance to continue before Ruby darted for the exit. Misty closed her eyes, took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly in an attempt to calm herself. She had an hour to prepare; she could do this.

Misty stood at the opposite end to her opponent, Ruby Tallons, making for what she considered may, in fact, be one of her hardest challenges to date. The hour's gap had been a godsend to her; allowing her to study her opponent as much as possible.

She'd been able to identify Ruby's strength and weaknesses; her strength is that she was a brilliant tactician, while her fault was her over-reliance on her starter Pokémon, Jolteon.

Misty had come up with a plan that she hoped would throw off her opponent and remove any preconceived ideas she may have had.

"This is the final battle between Misty Waterflower and Ruby Tallons. It's a three-on-three match, with both trainers able to make substitutions at any time!" the ref raised her right hand, signalling Ruby. "Ruby Tallons lost the coin toss before the match and will have to select her Pokémon first!"

Misty eyed the battlefield as Ruby selected her first Pokémon. This was it; this was the moment she'd been preparing for. Whatever Ruby threw at her, she was ready for it. Only, she wasn't prepared for the Pokémon that appeared; heck, she'd never even known that the Pokémon was an electric-type.

"Geodude, go!" The rocky, floating body of an odd-looking Geodude on the battlefield completely stunned the crowd.

Misty had no idea what to do. She'd had a plan, sure, but she had no idea if the plan would work against this type of Pokémon. She wasn't sure if it was even an electric-type, but the official seemed unfazed by the Pokémon's appearance, so she guessed it must be one.

Misty quickly shook herself out of her stupor, realising that they were waiting for her to release her Pokémon. She attentively selected her first Pokémon. She remembered that a normal Geodude was a rock and ground-type, and even with one of those types changing, it would still be weak to water-type moves; she could definitely use that. "Starmie, I choose you!"

The purple starfish-like Pokémon, with a red jewel in its centre, exploded out onto the battlefield with a mighty howl that sounded a like a "hiya!"

"Both Pokémon have been chosen, you may begin!" the ref declared.

Misty immediately went on the offensive, ordering her Pokémon to hit Geodude with a Water Gun. Starmie unleashed a burst of water from one of its ten appendages, launching straight at Geodude.

"Geodude, dodge with Rollout!" Ruby countered. Geodude curled into a ball and rolled to its left a breakneck speed before the attack arrived. After the attack finished, all that was left was a great big puddle where Geodude had once been. Ruby smiled.

"Keep it up, Starmie!" Misty encouraged. "Follow it with your attack! All we need is one hit, and it's all over!"

Starmie followed Geodude; continuing the spray water that left a long trailed behind the rock-like Pokémon.

"That's it, Geodude! Keep dodging!" Ruby urged. Geodude continued to zigzag across the battlefield with Starmie's Water Gun not far behind it.

Misty grew weary; Geodude was too fast for her Pokémon to hit from range. It left her with only one option; they would have to get close. "Starmie, stop!" she ordered. "It's time for a change of tactic." Starmie stopped firing water from its appendage, but by then over half the battlefield was flooded. Studying the battlefield, Misty came up with an idea. "Use Rapid Spin, knock Geodude back into the flooded areas!"

As quickly as Geodude had rolled around the battlefield, Starmie spun through the air; hitting the rock and electric-type Pokémon. With a yelp, Geodude was knocked back into the flooded areas of the battlefield.

"Now, finish it with Hydro Pump!" A significantly larger burst of water was launched from Starmie red gem. The burst raced across the battlefield and collided with Geodude before it could react.

"Geodude is unable to battle!" the ref declared.

Ruby returned her Pokémon before releasing her next surprise; a Raichu that floated on its tail.

"What?" Ash questioned from the stands. "First, that Geodude was different, and now this?"

"I've heard of something like this," Tracey mused. "Due to the environments they evolved in, some Pokémon in different regions have different types and abilities to what we know."

On the other side of the stadium, seated in her own private booth, Lorelei sat stoically; silently studying the battle. Being astringent tactician herself, she studied every move as if it were her own. She could see what was going to happen even if those in the match didn't realise it.

At that very moment, she knew what Ruby's plan was. She saw through the young trainer's strategy from the moment Geodude was released. And even now, as Raichu glided above the field, spreading the water over the battlefield with its psychic powers, Lorelei's suspicions grew. "I wonder if Misty can see what's about to happen; otherwise, this match will be over before she knows it."

Misty couldn't believe it. Two of Ruby's Pokémon had been taken out with one shot each. It didn't make sense. Why would she use such weak Pokémon in the final match? While Geodude had fallen to a super-effective attack, Raichu had been knocked out with even less force.

But when Ruby released her final Pokémon; her Jolteon, Misty knew the battle was far from over. Yet, she was still at an advantage with all three of her Pokémon fresh. Not even Starmie looked like it had broken a sweat.

"Begin!"

Misty eyed Jolteon after the referee began the next battle. This was her chance; she could clean sweep this match without losing a Pokémon; she only needed to make the knockout blow. "Starmie, Swift!"

Dozens of white stars shot forth from Starmie's gem in a similar fashion to its Hydro Pump, racing towards Jolteon.

Ruby smirked. "Good, now, Jolteon, Electro-Shield!"

Misty knitted her eyebrows, confused by her opponent's command. She'd never heard of a move classed 'Electro-Shield', and she was dead sure that there had never been one. It had to have been made up; a combination of moves, or something like one, only she had no idea what it meant. What happened next would tip the balance of the match against her.

As the stars neared, Jolteon unleashed multiple bolts of electricity; surrounding itself in an electric cacoon. But as the bolts connected with the wet ground, the saturated surface acted as a conduit, channelling the electricity out like a wave.

Before Misty could act, the wave of electricity washed over the battlefield. Her Pokémon had no chance, succumbing to jolts of electricity in seconds. As she returned her Pokémon, Misty wondered what move Jolteon had used. While it was similar to Thunder Wave, that move was only designed to paralyse. She guessed that the aftereffect of the attack had been caused by the water and not its primary function. This was terrible; it meant that no matter where her Pokémon were, they could be hit by an electric attack without the need to aim.

She now understood why her opponent had chosen Geodude. It's a weakness to water-type attacks made it too enticing to not use. Ruby knew Misty would never use an attack like Water Gun on a Pokémon that was strong against it. And then she cleverly used her psychic-type Pokémon to manoeuvre as much water across the battlefield as possible.

Misty had fallen for Ruby's trap.

Lorelei watched the match with earnest. Ruby had managed to execute her plan flawlessly, and now the match was moving into its final phase. "Ruby has sprung her trap, but does Misty have the ability to alter the conditions to her favour?" She knew what needed to be done; she knew how to counter such a move; she'd done it before.

Misty began to panic. Only a moment ago was she sure she would win, but now she didn't know. To make things worse, most of the electricity didn't seem to be dissipating very quickly. And if Jolteon was anything like her Vaporeon, it meant that as the electricity flowed through the Pokémon, it was charging back up. She wasn't sure, but she suspected that Jolteon could continuously release electricity into the ground without breaking a sweat; so long as the water channelled some of the electricity back into it.

Misty's second Pokémon; her Kabutops, stood proud upon his release. His large, grey scythes gleamed from the stadium's lights. Misty had chosen the Pokémon because of his duel rock-typing, while he also knew a couple of moves strong against electric-types. But the Pokémon was still weak against electric-types.

Before long, the referee continued the match. This time, Ruby went on the offensive. She ordered another Discharge that fanned out across the battlefield like a wave.

Misty ordered her Pokémon to jump over the wave of electricity and race towards Jolteon; hoping that the remaining electricity wouldn't have the same potency as the initial attack. In a way, Misty was right, but her Pokémon still took damage.

Ruby ordered her Pokémon to attack again, and like before, the electrical wave spread out across the battlefield. And again, Kabutops jumped over the wave, only feeling the aftereffects of the wave. The cycle continued as Kabutops drew closer, but by then the ancient bipedal Pokémon was exhausted from the constant shocks it was feeling.

"Kabutops! Mega Drain!"

As he neared, Kabutops raised his right scythe. It began to glow with a green hue.

Ruby became concerned, ordering her Pokémon to use its strongest attack out of desperation. "Thunder!"

The attack came crashing down on top of Jolteon, hitting itself with its own attack. But with such power, instead of a wave, a massive explosion of electricity surrounded both Jolteon and Kabutops.

"Kabutops!" Misty screamed. The explosion had been so powerful that it sent Kabutops flying across the stadium, finally coming to a stop when he collided with the wall behind Misty. "I'm sorry." She returned her Pokémon without another sound. She silently wondered if she should forfeit. She didn't want to put her last Pokémon through such torment. 'If only there was a way I could get rid of the water in the field,' she thought. 'If only.'

Her eyes burst open in realisation. There was a way she could remove the water from the equation, and only her last Pokémon could do it. With a new determination that even surprised Ruby from across the battlefield, Misty released her last Pokémon; her Vaporeon.

"Begin!" the referee declared.

"Jolteon, Dis-" Ruby began.

"Vaporeon, freeze the field with Ice Beam!" Misty interrupted.

Vaporeon fired a beam of ice at the same time Jolteon released another discharge of electricity. Both attacks raced across the field, with Vaporeon's head directing the beam towards the opposite side of the field.

Both attacks met at the centre of the field, but the electrical wave was no match for the sheet of ice that met it. As the water froze around it, Jolteon found the ice too weak of a conductor. Ruby knew it too; the battlefield had been neutralised. Her plan was out the window, but she didn't need it to win; she still had the upper hand.

"Doesn't matter, Jolteon, we still hold the advantage. Vaporeon is weak against your attacks. Use Wild Charge!"

A yellow electrical aura surrounded Jolteon as it was about to take off, but as it pushed off with its hind legs, it slipped on the frictionless surface; falling to the ground. Jolteon immediately tried to stand up but struggled to find any grip with its paws.

Misty realised what it meant; Jolteon could not move, could not evade. "Vaporeon, it's wide open. Aura Beam!"

Vaporeon opened her mouth in a similar fashion as before, with a multi-coloured beam launching from her mouth. The beam hit Jolteon before Ruby could order a command, and while the attack wasn't type-effective, it was still incredibly powerful.

Ruby looked over her Pokémon in concern, but she still had an idea. "Jolteon, you can't move, but that doesn't mean we can't hit Vaporeon from range! Thunderbolt!"

"Vaporeon, dodge to the left!"

Vaporeon dug her claws into the ice, gaining enough grip to run before the yellow bolt of electricity could hit her.

"Now, Vaporeon, Aurora Beam again," Misty commanded.

As Ruby's Pokémon was struck again she realised if her opponents Pokémon could move across the ice, and her Pokémon could not, there was no chance of winning. Reluctantly, she raised her Poké Ball and recalled her Pokémon. "I forfeit Jolteon!" she announced.

The referee eyed her before nodding and raising his left flag. "Jolteon has been forfeited and is unable to battle. With no Pokémon remaining on her opponent's team, Misty has won the match."

As the crowd applauded, Misty made her way towards her opponent. She stopped in front of Ruby and raised her hand. "That was a really nice thing you did for your Pokémon."

Ruby smiled, accepting the handshake. "My Pokémon will always come before any tournament, even one as prestigious as this."

"Still, it takes a lot to admit defeat when you were so close to victory. Some trainers stronger than us will never surrender, even when it's hopeless."

Ruby's smile grew, but she quickly eyed the exit. "I have someone waiting for me. I'll see you at the award ceremony?"

"Sure," Misty smiled.

Ruby departed as a small group of trainers began to crowd around Misty, and while the winner was thankful for all the congratulations, she decided she just wanted to depart and field and change. So, with a polite wave, she made her way through the crowd towards the locker rooms.

A long time ago…

The sun glinted down from above the trees, its yellow glow breaking through the gaps between the leaves. Red was happy to be back in a warmer climate after spending the last few days in freezing conditions.

After capturing the two legendary Pokémon, Red had left Misty and Blaine to their own devices, instead deciding to make the trek back towards Viridian City to get his last Gym Badge. The trek had started off as difficult as it had been heading to Cerulean City. While the Pokémon causing the blizzard had been stopped, the weather was going to take a long time to quiet down again, but as he made his way out of Mount Moon, he found far calmer weather.

Trekking through Viridian Forest was so peaceful that he found himself closing his eyes and listening to the nature around him as he walked.

"Ahh!" Red eyes snapped open. A scream? It sounded like a scream. It sounded like a girl screaming. "Somebody! Help me!"

Red's head snapped in the direction of the call. His intuition took over; his feet picking up the pace as he ran towards the commotion. Bursting through the trees, he found a sight he hadn't expected. Lying on the ground was a young kid; maybe a boy? He wasn't sure. But what he found most peculiar was the severely enrage Dratini eyeing off the kid.

"Please! Help me!" the kid begged, scuffling away from the Pokémon. Dratini snarled in response, ready to pounce on the kid.

Red moved into protective mode, summoning his Pikachu to scare the Pokémon away. But it only emboldened Dratini, who instead of charging at the kid, dodged Pikachu's attack and lunged at Red.

With no time to react, Red flinched as the Pokémon's teeth bored into his shoulder, piercing through his shirt and deep into his skin. He fell backwards, his feet tripping over a nearby tree root. His head hit the ground, but while still in a daze, he was able to reach out with his hands and grab the Pokémon. He tried to rip it from him, but that only caused more pain as Dratini's teeth ripped his flesh from him.

Pikachu didn't like doing it but realised he had no other choice. His cheeks sparked with fury before unleashing a lightning bolt that fried Red and Dratini.

Dratini quickly let go of Red's shoulder and scurried away in fear. Red groaned; lying on the ground in searing pain. He was still feeling the effects of the electric shock and his right shoulder was heavily bleeding.

"Oh my god!" The kid rushed to his side. "Don't move; you're bleeding heavily." The kid looked at Pikachu and then back at Red. "We're too far away from the city," the kid explained to Red and the Pokémon. "You'll bleed out before we even get close."

Red groaned; completely in shock. He was becoming delirious; mumbling random things.

The kid knew this was very bad and concernedly turned towards the rodent companion. "He's gone into shock. He's not going to have any idea what's going on. Luckily, there are some berries around here that can help him. I need you to find a Persim Berry; it's a pink heart-shaped berry with green leaves at the top. It generally grows on low-level bushes and shrubs and should help him recover from the shock. But the most important berry is the Sitrus Berry; it's what will heal his wounds. It's yellow, like your fur, and grows on a few trees around here."

The kid had no idea if the Pokémon understood, but wasted no second thought when the Pokémon raced off into the forest. Time passed slowly after the Pokémon disappeared. The kid examined the severity of the wound but couldn't because their view was obstructed by Red's shirt.

The kid tried pulling Red's shirt off, but with it pinned against the ground, and Red's increased groaning, the kid realised that there was only going to be one way to remove the shirt; it had to be cut off.

But the kid didn't have anything to cut with. Looking around, the kid's eyes fell onto Red's backpack, which had fallen from his shoulders during the commotion. Grabbing the backpack, the kid dragged it back over to Red and searched through it.

The kid knew that most Pokémon trainers carried a first aid kit with them and was sure that Red would be no different. But after pulling everything out of the beg, the kid couldn't believe their eye's; Red wasn't carrying one. "Are you serious? How can you be so foolish?" the kid asked the question directly to Red, knowing they wouldn't receive a response.

But Red wasn't entirely to blame. When he'd returned home his mother had taken all of his stuff out of his backpack, including his first aid kit, but Red had never realised. So, when he darted off to Cerulean City, he only packed what he thought he needed; assuming that the first aid kit was still inside.

Sighing, the kid resorted to the only option; the shirt had to be torn apart. The kid found a small tear at the bottom of the shirt and gripped it with both hands. Pulling it apart, the weakened cloth gave way under the strain. In a second a simple small tear at the bottom of the shirt had grown, with half the shirt now split in two. The kid continued the process a couple more times until the sleeve could be peeled away, and they could finally see the whole wound.

The kid immediately paled; the wound was worse than first thought. Deep gnashes covered Red's shoulder, and the kid was pretty sure they could have seen bone if it weren't for the copious amounts of blood his shoulder was seeping.

Having no other choice but to wait for Pikachu to return, the kid grabbed the torn shirt, wrapped it up like cloth and gently but firmly placed it only his shoulder; maintaining a steady pressure on the wound.

The kid concentrated on maintaining pressure on Red's injury until the Pokémon returned.

Red seemed to come in and out of awareness; sometimes being more lucid than others. In those brief moments, Red was able to focus, he noticed the kid had short blonde hair that was mostly obscured by a sunhat. He guessed the kid must have been a boy, but he wasn't quite sure.

"What's your name?" Red asked in one of his more coherent moments.

"Shh," the kid quieted. "Relax; help will be here soon. But if you must know, my name is Yellow."

"Yellow." Red peacefully closed his eyes again. "That's a nice name."

Yellow blushed at the comment, but it quickly faded when Red suddenly became quiet. "Hey, now, I need you to stay awake, okay?"

"But sleeping seems like a good idea," Red serenely whispered.

"It may be, but if you go to sleep, I don't know if you'll wake up." Yellow's worry intensified. Pikachu was taking too long; Red's shoulder was bleeding out more than she could contain, and she didn't know if the Pokémon would make it back. Time was running out; fast.

When the last glimmer of hope began to fade, Pikachu burst through the nearby bush, carrying yellow and pink berries in its mouth.

"Thank god." Yellow sighed; taking the berries from Pikachu's mouth. "This will be enough. Good job."

Pikachu would have accepted the compliment had he not been so worried about his trainer.

Yellow quickly went to work. She first focused on squeezing the pink Persim berries into a juice that she poured into a delirious Red's mouth. After coaxing him to drink the juice, Red's coherence drastically improved.

Looking around, Red noticed Yellow kneeling next to him. "What?" he said with a sigh.

"I'm sorry, but I need you coherent for what's about to happen," Yellow apologised. "It's going to hurt, and I couldn't have you flailing around and knocking me. Do you trust me."

"Well, whatever I just drank has obviously made me think more clearly, so go ahead."

"Okay." Yellow quickly looked at the trees around them before she raced off to one and plucked several leaves from it. Racing back, she shoved the leaves into her mouth and began to chew. She needed something that could stick to Red's wounds, and slimy chewed leaves worked a treat. Spitting the chewed leaves into the bowl she had, she placed the Sitrus berries into it and began grounding them into the sludge.

Once she was satisfied that she had enough, she lathered Red's wounds with it. As she had planned, the sludge clung onto Red's skin, creating a seal around the wounds. Red flinched as the salve was placed onto his skin, but it didn't feel nearly as painful as Yellow had been alluding to.

"Here." Yellow grabbed a small brown stick and handed it to Red.

"What's this?" Red questioned. Why did he need a stick?

"Place it in your mouth and bite down on it. It'll prevent you from screaming out because of what I'm about to do." Yellow placed her hands over Red's shoulder and looked at the boy. "This is where it's going to hurt." She closed her eyes and focused.

Red placed the small stock in his mouth; still confused by the whole situation. He watched Yellow intently, and to his amazement, the green-yellow salve on his shoulder began to subtly glow. But the amazement quickly faded as he felt a searing pain. He bit down hard on the stock instinctively, and for a brief moment was glad Yellow had given it to him. The pain was unbearable; It felt like someone was sewing him back together. For several seconds it didn't let up, until, when the pain felt like it was at its worst, the glow faded around his shoulder and the pain disappeared.

Red gasped; the stick falling from his mouth as he took several sharp breaths.

Yellow opened her eyes; smiling. She wiped the salve away, revealing Red's uninjured shoulder. "There, you're all better."

Small amounts of blood remained, but the deep gashes in his shoulder had disappeared. Red patchy skin was replaced with fresh bright-pink skin that showed no sign of scaring. The skin was so perfect, that unless you'd witnessed it, you wouldn't have even known that there were deep puncture wounds there a moment ago.

"What? How?" Red could barely understand what'd happened. His arm had healed, his mind felt clearer than it had ever been that day, and yet he was sure this must have been a dream. Yep, his imagination was playing tricks on him; wasn't it?

"I, uhh." Yellow didn't know how to explain. "I have the ability to use natural remedies to help speed up the process of healing. I don't fully understand it, but I've had it since I was born."

"That's… That's amazing!" Red exploded in excitement. "You saved me!" He enveloped Yellow in a tight hug.

"You saved me first," Yellow replied; shocked, but she reciprocated the hug. "I was only returning the favour. I would have been a goner if you hadn't shown up." The hug lingered for longer than Yellow liked, softly she lowered her arms and nudged Red. "Umm, do you mind letting go of me?"

"Oh!" Red let go of Yellow and stepped backwards. He didn't know what had come over him; he'd forgotten that he was even hugging Yellow, and his mind was racing a mile a minute. "Sorry, I seem to have a lot on my mind at the moment. It's hard to focus."

"That would be the Persim berries," Yellow explained. "They're designed to help Pokémon focus and reduce the effects of confusion, but in humans, they cause hyper-activity of the mind."

In that brief moment after the hug, Yellow's eyes darted over Red's naked chest; a massive blush covering her cheeks. She squeaked and quickly covered her eyes; looking away for good measure.

"What's wrong?" Red asked; visibly concerned.

"I had to tear your shirt to clean your wounds," Yellow mumbled through her hands. "You're not wearing a shirt."

For the first time, Red looked down, realising what she meant. He immediately blushed; embarrassedly crossing his arms over his chest. He had no idea why he felt this way, nor why the kid was acting in such a manner, but he decided it was best to cover himself. He grabbed his backpack, pulled out another shirt; his remaining one, and put it on.

"It's alright to look now, you can look," Red explained as his head popped through the shirt.

"Are you sure?" Yellow cautiously asked; never removing her hands from her face.

"Yeah. I had another shirt in my backpack, and I've put it on," Red explained.

"Okay. Good." Yellow sighed when her eyes landed on Red's clean black shirt.

Red looked around. "We should head to Viridian City," he suggested. "It's only mid-day, but I don't want to be trapped out here after dark."

"Sure," Yellow agreed.

The route to Viridian City was far longer than either of them had realised. Red wondered what a young kid was doing so far city. It was a miracle that Yellow had made it as far as she had without being confronted by a wild Pokémon.

Yellow knew her way around; Red was sure of that, but it still didn't make sense for her to be wandering around so far from the city. Where were her parents? Kids weren't allowed to go on their journey until they were ten years old, so she certainly wasn't there with her parent's permission. In fact, he believed that her parents would be charged with neglect if a person of authority found her, or she'd gone missing.

Many questions went through Red's head on the long walk back. Why had she come out here? What was she doing before he found her? What'd she done to make the Pokémon attack her? He'd decided not to ask her; she would tell him if she wanted to.

Yellow began to fidget in the eerie silence. She loved the forest, and all the noises nature made, but when she was with someone, she always needed them to be talking. She needed to know what they were thinking. She didn't like the insecure side of herself but growing up with nature had made her nervous around people.

"I was looking for a wild Pokémon to catch!" she blurted, her anxiety reaching fever pitch.

Red halted at her outburst, turning to eye Yellow. "Why?"

"Because I wanted a companion," she admitted; her eyes dropping towards the ground. She really hated her insecurities. "I have a few friends, but no Pokémon. I love nature. I come out here every chance I get. I'm not sure, but I think it has to do with my gifts."

"You feel more in tune with nature than society? I know how you feel; I grew up in a small country town right next to the forest."

"Yeah, but I grew up in Viridian City. I've lived most of my life with my uncle in his apartment. Nature's something you don't see much of where I live."

"Doesn't matter where you grew up," Red explained. "Some people just naturally enjoy the serenity of nature. It doesn't make you any different from anyone else."

"Still… My uncle hates it when I venture into the forest. He says it's dangerous, and I shouldn't do it, but I keep being drawn out here by some invisible force."

"I don't blame him," Red mused. "We are pretty far from the city. You're lucky you didn't get lost."

"I know; I hadn't planned on venturing this far into the forest, but one thing led to another and here I am."

"I'll tell you what; how about we find a Pokémon for you?"

"Really?" Yellow's eyes lit up with hope.

"Why not?" Red shrugged. "I'll be able to teach you how to capture a Pokémon, and you'll get to show your uncle that you can look after yourself."

"Deal!"

"But-but-but-but…" Red watched a small bit of hope disappear from her eyes. "I get to choose the Pokémon, okay? I don't want you to have a Pokémon you can't handle. Maybe a Pidgey, or a Rattata."

"Fine!" Yellow groaned; she was really hoping to catch a Dratini.

"Now, come on, let's go find you a Pokémon."

"Yay!" Yellow squealed.

Red smiled; the joy on Yellow's face making him happy.

Wandering through the forest, Red and Yellow were surprised by how scarce the place seemed of Pokémon. Since deciding to catch her a Pokémon, they hadn't seen one. They hadn't heard one either; not a single chirp or call from any Pokémon.

Red joked that they all must have sensed what they were planning to do and had gone into hiding, which didn't go down well with Yellow. She felt like it was s dig at her, but it was far from the truth.

As the continued to wander through the forest, they both noticed the small Rattata walk by at the same time. Red and Yellow stopped, with the former pulling out a Poké Ball that housed one of his Pokémon.

"Now, the key is to weaken the Pokémon, you want, enough that they can't fight the capture sequence." Red released Pikachu. So far, the Rattata hadn't noticed them, but the sound of a Pokémon being released was enough to draw its attention.

Immediately, the little purple Pokémon took off in the opposite direction to Red and Yellow; trying to run away from them.

"Pikachu, stop it!" Red commanded.

Pikachu's speed was far greater than Rattata's, and before it knew it, Pikachu halted the Pokémon in its tracks by knocking it over. What came next Red hadn't expected; Yellow squealed in fear.

"Don't hurt it!" she cried.

"But we have to weaken it," Red argued. "It's the only way."

"No! There's another way!" Yellow looked pissed, but not towards the Pokémon; instead of directing her anger at Red. "Is that all you think Pokémon are for? Battling?"

"Well no-"

"I thought you may have been different, but you're just the same as any other Pokémon trainer!" Yellow was nearly seething now, and Red had no idea why. "There are other ways of catching a Pokémon!"

"Okay! Fine! You do it then!" Red shoved an empty Poké Ball into Yellow's hands; he wasn't in the mood for this.

"I will!" Yellow marched up to Rattata, who fretfully looked up at the girl. "Hey, I'm sorry about the mean brute over there." Yellow leaned down, extending her hand out for the Pokémon to sniff it.

After the Pokémon had sniffed her hand and hadn't recoiled, Yellow patted the Pokémon soothingly. Yellow paused, letting her hand rest near the Pokémon's head. Suddenly, a strange yellow glow appeared between her hand and the Pokémon.

Red had no idea what was going on; it didn't look like she was using aura, but he'd never seen anyone do what she was doing before. After several seconds the glow died down.

Yellow smiled, continuing to stroke the Pokémon. "Thanks." She tapped the empty Poké Ball into the Pokémon's forehead. The Pokémon was instantly absorbed into it, the Ball signalling its capture a moment later.

"What. Was. That?" Red demanded; utterly shocked by what he'd just witnessed.

"It's another part of my abilities." Yellow shrugged. "If the Pokémon wants to, I can communicate with it through some strange link."

"That was amazing!" Red exclaimed. It sounded like she was using aura, but it didn't look like it.

Suddenly, the calm serenity of the forest turned sour. A large gust of wind was followed by a few spots of rain. In a matter of seconds, without warning, the clear blue sky's shifted, dark and gloomy clouds quickly blocking the sun.

Within moments, Red suddenly felt that they weren't alone. His eyes darted in every direction; unable to shake the feeling that they were being watched. Yet, he spotted no one, nothing, around them.

"Can you feel that?" Yellow hugged her chest; her body shivering. "I feel like we're not alone anymore."

"Yeah," Red agreed. The feeling; it was getting more intense, and so was the storm.

They heard a noise; a sort of rustling, like the wind travelling through the trees. It was soft a first, but within moments it thundered so loudly that they couldn't hear anything else. Red turned towards Yellow in confusion when a Pokémon suddenly sprinted through the trees from out of sight.

The Pokémon was moving too fast Red to avoid it. He placed his arms up to cover his face when the Pokémon barrelled into him; knocking him over. He heard Yellow scream, and a moment later, she was on the ground next to him; withering in pain.

Red observed Yellow make sure she was okay, before turning to study their surroundings. Where only moments ago there had only been the two of them now stood dozens of angry Pokémon, who were all snarling at them.

They had no idea where the Pokémon came from, but the threat they proposed was clear. Red wasted no time in realising the direness of the situation, and that their only option was to flee. Luckily, he hadn't returned his Pikachu, who was now snarling at the Pokémon around them.

He turned to warn Yellow. "This may sting." Yellow narrowed her eyes in confusion before Red gave the order. "Pikachu, Thunder Wave! Stun all the Pokémon around us." Pikachu looked at Red, concerned. But Red knew what his order meant. "We'll be fine."

Red grabbed another Poké Ball as his Pokémon prepared to attack. Fear crept into Yellow's eyes; she had no idea what was going on. She was about to tell Red to not do it when the Poké Ball in Red's hand popped open.

"Venusaur, Protect! Make sure it encompasses us all!" Red ordered before the Pokémon had even appeared. After the hulking Pokémon appeared a clear shield quickly rose around them.

The wild Pokémon took this as the time to strike. Powerful beams and balls of energy struck the shield, but they ricocheted off it like they were nothing. Pikachu took that moment to strike. It jumped onto the barrier; rising to the very top where unleashed a wave of electrical energy the quickly stunned the Pokémon.

With the Pokémon momentarily stunned, Red hurriedly returned his Pokémon, grabbed Yellow's arm, and sprinted further into the forest. They never looked back to see if the Pokémon were following; they had no idea if they were safe or not, but they didn't stop until either of them couldn't go any further.

"Can we… Can we please stop?" Yellow asked between gasps. She'd never run so far in her life, and with Red pulling her by her arm, she'd never ran so fast either.

"Sure." Red studied their surroundings. He had no idea if they'd fled further into the forest or towards Viridian City, but he hoped it was the later. They'd been running for the better part of half an hour before Yellow had asked for a rest, so he guest they were either in the middle of the forest or near the edge of the city.

Yellow dropped to her knees in exhaustion, eventually crashing down onto the ground on her back. She breathed heavily, and loudly, much to Red's dismay; who was trying to control his breathing so no Pokémon would pick them up.

Red began pacing around the area they were in while Yellow caught her breath. He wandered in and out of trees but never venturing too far away from Yellow when he found a clearing not too far from them.

He wandered back to where Yellow had crashed, finding her seated; having recovered. "Umm, there's a clearing not far from here. We can use it to figure out where we are."

"Sure!" Yellow enthusiastically agreed; she was just happy to get out of the forest for a moment.

Red lead the way, directing her towards the clearing when they suddenly heard the same rustling from before. Realising what it meant, they picked up their pace; making it to the clearing before the Pokémon could reach them.

When they entered the clearing, Red was surprised to find one end of the clearing closed off by a large chain-link fence. They approached the fence wearily; studying the un-natural structure. Yellow went to place her hand on the fence when Red forcedly yanked it away.

Yellow looked at Red; annoyed, who simply pointed towards the sign on the fence. Yellow read the sign and palled; she knew what the sign meant. Written in bold red letters was a straightforward warning; 'CAUTION! Electrified Fence! Do Not Touch! Authorised Personnel Only!'

"I've never seen such a structure before," Yellow muttered. "And I know most of this forest like the back of my hand."

Red continued to wander along the fence when he noticed another sign obscured by some bushes. He pulled the shrub back, revealing the second sign. "Viridian City Substation," he read aloud. "Authorised Personnel Only."

"What did you just say?" Yellow questioned, approaching him. She read the sign, quickly identifying where they were. "Oh! This is the connection point that supplies most of the city's electricity. My uncle asked me to never venture close to it, which explains where I've never seen it before."

The trees around them began to rustle again, but Red was prepared this time; summoning several of his Pokémon to defend them. Pikachu, Venusaur, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Growlithe encircled them, with the fence behind them to protect their backs.

Dozens of Pokémon all roared through the forest, coming to a stop in front of the two humans and their Pokémon. Red studied the Pokémon more clearly, noticing they all had the same blood-thirsty red eyes. He knew he'd seen it before, but he couldn't quite remember when.

He prepared his Pokémon, but no attack would ever come. In the sky, the storm turned chaotic, and a sharp cry screeched over the entire area. A bright yellow winged Pokémon suddenly descended from beyond the clouds.

"Zapdos!" Yellow gasped. "But what's a Pokémon of such power doing in a forest like this?"

The Pokémon strangely hovered above the clearing, eyeing everything in the clearing. Its spiky wing flapped almost serenely to keep it airborne. One of the snarling Pokémon suddenly reacted, launching an attack that barely touched the legendary bird, but that's when all hell broke loose.

Zapdos retaliated; firing off bolts of lightning indiscriminately. Several of the attacking Pokémon fled, with those remaining struck by the fierce electricity.

Red's Pokémon weren't so lucky either with Pikachu, Gyarados, and Venusaur knocked out in an instant. Aerodactyl took to flight; planning to fight the Pokémon like it had on Cinnabar Island. But Red wasn't going to risk it, instead of recalling his Pokémon.

He was about to recall his Growlithe when he felt the same energy emanating from the strange badge in his pocket. The energy rose quickly and latched onto his remaining Pokémon. Growlithe began to glow. Its body grew rapidly. Red couldn't believe what he was seeing; his Pokémon was evolving without a fire stone; something he was sure had never happened before. Something he'd thought was impossible. When the glow faded, Arcanine stood tall; growling defiantly at Zapdos.

Red, still confused, saw the latest development as the key to their survival. He grabbed Yellow's hand and yanked her towards Arcanine. He helped her climb the Pokémon before climbing up himself.

Yellow sat in front of Red, who instructed her to grip the Pokémon's fur tightly. He ordered the Pokémon to run, but Arcanine was too focused on Zapdos.

"Arcanine, no!" He lightly kicked the Pokémon's side to get it to focus on him. "I know you want to fight it, but we don't have any hope of surviving. Plus, we have Yellow to look after. We need to flee."

"Arcanine!" the Pokémon growled.

"Now!" Red demanded. Arcanine lowered its head and growled before taking off into the forest.

Zapdos seemingly didn't give chase, instead deciding to focus on the feral Pokémon that remained.

Yellow led them to the edge of the city where they disembarked the Pokémon. Red thanked the Pokémon before returning it to its Poké Ball.

They walked into the city when Yellow was suddenly mobbed by a group of kids. "Yellow, my gosh! Where have you been? Your uncle has been looking for you everywhere."

"I just took a little adventure into the forest, is all." Yellow shrugged. "But have a look at what I got!" She held up the Poké Ball with Rattata in it. The kids were immediately enamoured by it. They asked question after question which she was happy to answer.

The kids started to drag her away when she turned to Red. "Thank you! I'll cherish this forever!"

"It was nothing." Red waved off. "Because you're only eight, the Pokémon is still registered to me, okay?"

Yellow nodded.

"When you're ten, you'll be able to transfer it to yourself. But for now, just say it's your pet."

"Sure!" Yellow smiled. Her friends again tried to drag her away, this time succeeding as she waved goodbye. "Goodbye, Red! I hope to see you again!"

"I'm sure we will!" Red waved as she disappeared around a corner. "Hmm, what a nice kid, I'm sure he's got a bright future." Red had made an important friend that day, only he didn't know it yet.

For the first time that day, Red found himself alone. He liked it; he loved the calmness of hearing only his own thoughts. It allowed him to think. It allowed him to think about his journey; how much he'd changed due to the people he'd met and the experiences he'd shared with them.

He wandered through the city replaying the last few weeks in his head. He'd seen more Legendary Pokémon in those few short weeks than most would in their entire lives. At first, he'd thought that Blaine had some form of connection to the Pokémon, but that was quashed with his encounter with Zapdos. Blaine was nowhere to be seen, so he was sure the first two encounters were purely coincidental.

Then his mind turned towards the badge he carried. He had no idea why, but it appeared that the mysterious badge was connected to the legendary birds. All three times he'd encountered them, the badge had activated, allowing his Pokémon to beat the legendary birds in some way.

But all his thoughts quickly changed when he walked by Viridian City's Pokémon Gym. He paused, studying the massive doors of its entrance. He thought he might as well claim his last badge while he was there; no point in heading home if he was only going to come back.

So, with a hearty sigh, he pushed on past the doors, heading for the local Pokémon Centre.

What is Misty's Prize for Winning the Tournament? How Will Red Go in the Pokémon League? Will Ash and Misty Ever Make Up? Find Out Next Time!

Thanks to those that reviewed the previous chapter. There was a mistake that someone pointed out. I will have to edit the previous chapter and make a note of a serious, but minor, change in the past.

As we're nearing the movie, and are over halfway through the Arc, I wish to know which Pokémon you would like Ash to use in his battle against Drake? Feel free to choose any Pokémon from his list.

Any questions, Pokémon suggestions, ideas for the story, or OC's you have that you would like to see in the story, just PM me or send it in a review! All are welcome!

Ash's Pokémon:

On Hand:

Pikachu (Electric) (Male)
Lapras (Water/Ice) (Female)
Ivysaur (Grass/Poison) (Male)
Charizard (Fire/Flying) (Male)
Wartortle (Water) (Male)
Rhydon (Ground/Rock) (Female)
Riolu (Fighting) (Male)
Snorlax (Normal) (Male)
Ralts (Psychic/Fairy) (Male) (Shiny)
Grubbin (Bug) (Female) (Shiny)
Egg

At Oak's Ranch:

Pidgeot (Normal/Flying) (Male)
Arcanine (Fire) (Male)
Nidorino (Poison) (Male) (Shiny)
Umbreon (Dark) (Male) (Shiny)
Raticate (Normal) (Female)
Butterfree (Bug/Flying) (Male)
Kingler (Water) (Female)
Absol (Dark) (Male)
Gengar (Ghost/Poison) (Male)
Primeape (Fighting) (Female)
Muk (Poison) (Male)
Tauros (Normal) (Male) (x23)
Sandslash (Ground) (Male)
Gyarados (Water/Flying) (Male)
Dragonair (Dragon) (Female)

Departed:

Mew

Unofficial:

Beldum (Steel/Psychic) (Shiny)

Misty's Pokémon:

On Hand:

Starmie (Water/Psychic)
Seel (Water) (Male)
Feebas (Water) (Female)
Vaporeon (Water) (Female)
Psyduck (Water) (Male)
Togepi (Fairy) (Male)
Egg

At Oak's Ranch:

Kabutops (Rock/Water) (Male) (Shiny)
Seaking (Water) (Female)
Staryu (Water/Psychic)
Tentacruel (Water/Poison) (Male)
Pelipper (Water/Flying) (Female)
Seadra (Water) (Female)

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Until Next Time, AshleyH30 Out!