Pokémon Reinbow Book 1: Kanto Thoughts

Chapter 13: The 'R' on the Building, Part 1

"So, we did the gym. What now?" White asked as we waited for our Pokemon to heal. Barry was messing around with his Torterra.

"Silph building. I told you that before the battle." I fixed my headband. White put on a realized expression. "Oooh," she said. "What will we do there?"

"Look around. Possibly buy stuff and-" She hopped up and down and clapped her hands excitedly. "Oh my gosh! I love buying stuff! Its my specialty!!"

"But I thought your specialty was-"

"That too, I love spending money so much, its like a dream~!"

"But you still like-"

"Yes!" She hugged me tight and ran out of the Pokemon Center. I sighed.

"C'mon, Barry, lets go to Silph Co." Barry stopped in mid-jump and fell on his back. He slipped on a Poke Ball, seemingly Riolu's. I picked it up, and to my dumb luck, it was Riolu's. It had a big crack over the top, ending at the middle black line on the back.

"Barry! You stepped on my Poke Ball!" Barry winced in pain, arching his back to make it crack. I sighed.

"Thats what you get when you step on my Poke Ball." Nurse Joy came in with Chansey Rolling her cart. Riolu and Kirlia sat on the top together, smiling. Riolu held his Soul Dew close.

"Thank you," I said to the pink-haired lady, then took Riolu off. I held him up.

"Guess what?" I asked him.

"Ri?" He seemed to understand what I was asking.

"Barry just stepped on your Poke Ball!" Riolu pouted at Barry, but he countered back.

"Barry is in paaaaiiiiin!" He moaned. I walked out of the center, Barry staggering with Kirlia on his Torterra behind me.

"Thanks for helping me!" Barry said, rubbing his back. I stared at Riolu's ball, cleaning the footprint of of it with my thumb.

"No problem."

White came back to us with a really panicked look.

"Guys! The Silph building has a red 'R' painted on the side!" Barry gasped, and I facepalmed, being careful not to land a finger on my brick injury. It was still cracked open, all you can see was dark red and brown.

"What do we do?" Barry asked. I stood straight.

"We fight 'em."

•••

"White, you have your Pokemon?" White nodded and thrusted a fist into her open hand, a tough look on her face. Her Emboar did the same. Barry saluted to me from his Torterra's back. "Ready to fight," he said. I nodded.

"Well... Here goes." I led them to the elevator and to the first floor.

There was nothing. Literally, nothing. Just a bare room with just an empty hyper potion in a corner by the stairs. Even some nice carpet was torn. I smelled something like a charred scent.

"Do you smell that?" I asked White and Barry. They sniffed the air too and nodded.

"It smells like... burnt wood," Barry confirmed. I nodded. Riolu ran to the stairs and pointed up. We followed him.

Upstairs, were three rockets and their Pokemon. Each one was whispering to the other. It freaked me out, so I backed down a ways, praying that the stairs didn't creak. Good thing it didn't.

"He would be delighted," one rocketeer exclaimed. He clapped his hands together.

"I know that, Jeremy. Thats why we are going to do it in the first place."

"Do what?" White asked quietly. I shrugged and kept listening.

"So heres the plan. We tiptoe in, grab that Ditto, tiptoe out, and do plan number three." The third guy looked puzzled.

"But won't that girl be extra protective because of that earlier attempt that you two bozos did?"

"Yes. That's why we are going to sneak-attack."

"The boss never told me, but what will be coming from that Ditto?" Now they whispered so quietly that we couldn't hear. I sighed.

"Oh my Arceus," Barry said. "We have to do something."

"No duh," I said. "Ok, we will go on and get them later... I want to see whats going on upstairs." The three grunts got done whispering and hustled back up to the next floor. We followed a bit after.