Celebi: Voice of the Forest [Pokemon 4Ever Novel] 20th anniversary book

The Iron Masked Marauder attacks

After Ash and the others had gotten away from Team Rocket, Sam looked back to where they came from, still worried and confused to know who they were.

"Do you think they're gonna be okay?" Sam asked, looking back in concern.

"Unfortunately, yes," Misty said.

It didn't matter now. Ash and his friends were lucky to get away but Celebi seemed to be getting worse. She didn't have any time left and her breath was shallow.

"Hang in there, Celebi," Sam muttered.

"Look, that's the village up there! We're almost there!" Ash shouted as a lowering peak came into view. An enormous metal machine with four long spidery legs stopped out of the forest and blocked the path to the village. High above the long legs sat a control panel run by a hulking man in a mask.

"I've been looking for that little Celebi," his voice boomed.

"Who are you?" Ash insisted.

"A Pokemon lover," he growled.

"Leave us alone!"

Jessie, James and Meowth hid behind a tree and watched. "What does he want?" Jessie asked, annoyed.

"He must be trying to steal our Pikachu away," Meowth said.

"Well, we won't let him!" James sneered as he released Weezing, his Poison Pokemon.

The man pulled an unusual metallic black ball from his vest. He hurled it into the air and released a gigantic green fire breathing Pokemon.

"What's that?" Misty cried.

"A Tyranitar," Brock stated. "But there's something funny about it."

"Hyper Beam!" the man commanded.

Tyranitar opened its mouth to reveal a round orb of light. Suddenly, the orb transformed into a scorching flash of fire that sent Ash and the others running for cover.

"Here it comes! Come on!" Brock called out.

Tyranitar continued its fiery hot blasts as the man laughed.

"Two can play the Celebi-stealing game," Jessie exclaimed. She ordered Weezing into battle. The purple Poison Pokemon let out a big bellowing puff of smoke. Tyranitar let out a blast of laser knocking the three villains down.

"Who are you three?" the man demanded from his perch.

Jessie, James and Meowth suddenly recognized who the mysterious villain was. Their eyes are wide with fear.

"Look at that mask. I've seen him before," Jessie uttered.

"Yeah, wasn't he in that Mexican wrestling movie?" Meowth asked.

"No, Meowth, he's from Team Rocket," James corrected him. "You're one of the evil Pokémon members... the strongest executive staff member of Team Rocket..."

"The Iron Mask Marauder!" they cried in unison.

"So you heard about me," the Iron Masked Marauder smiled nastily.

"Oh, yes, we've heard a lot about you," Jessie chirped. "Please forgive us for our extreme rudeness!"

"As you can tell from the uniforms, we're also members of Team Rocket," James said, trying to impress the villain.

"Me, too, but Pokemon get to go naked," Meowth meowed. "I am deeply honored to meet you."

As Jessie and James tried to win the approval of the Iron Masked Marauder, Ash and his friends ran away as fast as they could. The Iron Masked Marauder threw two more Dark Balls into the sky and sent Scizor and Sneasel after Celebi.

The others continued on running far away from the Iron Masked Marauder. They climbed over to the rocky platform as they quickly climbed. But then, Misty stumbled and fell on the rocky hard ground. She collapsed to the ground, moaning in pain.

"Misty!" Brock shouted.

"Ash, I think Misty's hurt," Sam called out to Ash.

Misty clutched her leg, whimpering. "Brock, I twisted my knee," she moaned.

"You better stay off it," Ash suggested in concern. But then, Pikachu sensed that something was coming, as if something was chasing them. Ash then took notice too. "Something's coming!" he said, just as the Iron Masked Maruader's two Pokemon appeared only a few feet away. "What are they doing here?"

"They must want Celebi," Brock exclaimed as he eyed the red stealy Scizor and mean furry Sneasel.

"All right, then they're in for a battle," Ash declared. "Brock, take care of Celebi."

"Right."

Sam handed Celebi to Brock and pulled out a very old fashioned Pokeball. "All right, I'm with you, Ash. Ready?" he told Ash as he released a Charmeleon from the ball. It burst forth, throwing scorching flames of fire. Ash threw his own Pokeball into the air. A bright yellow female Bayleef appeared. Instantly, Bayleef attacked Scizor with razor sharp leaf blades. Both Pokemon flew through the air with blinding speed.

"Quick, Bayleef, use your razor leaf!" Ash shouted to his Pokemon.

Bayleef tried to obey but Scizor divided its image. Bayleef was confused as hundreds of Scizors floated above the rock boulders. Sneasel and Charmeleon raced around the multiple Scizor doing battle as Bayleef tried to hit her target. Bayleef began to look weak with confusion. She then got hit by Scizor's attack.

"Are you okay?" Ash called out.

"Ash, don't be tricked! You gotta find the real one," Sam called. "It's using Double Team."

"Bayleef, listen," Ash spoke calmly but firmly. "You gotta concentrate! Then you can find the real one!

Bayleef squirted her eyes and focused in on the Scizor. She waited until one image appeared stronger than the rest. Then she fired the strong fire Whip Vine. The Scizor fell, and the images disappeared.

"Yeah, Bayleef, you did it!" Ash shouted.

"You're a great trainer, Ash," Sam said with respect.

"Well, it helps when you have great Pokemon," Ash smiled. But the victory was short lived. All of a sudden, Sneasel leaped forth. "Look out, Sneasel."

"Charmeleon, use Headbutt!" Sam cried.

The dragon-like Pokemon did as it was told and with one swift slam, it defeated the Sneasel.

"Hey, you're not a bad trainer yourself," Ash exclaimed.

"We make a good team," Sam agreed.

Ash looked at his Pokemon and then at Sam. There was nothing better than Pokemon and friends.

But there was no time to enjoy their victory. They had to keep moving. The huge machine was moving through the forest again. And now it was carrying more than just the Iron Masked Marauder. Jessie, James and Meowth were now on board too. It didn't take long for them to discover their Pokemon laying defeated and tied up on two boulders.

"Those kids aren't as wimpy as I thought they'd be," The Iron Masked Marauder uttered. "This makes things interesting."