A Trip to Kanto - A Pokemon Story

Chapter 5: A Cerulean Reunion!

*Third person POV*

"Erika is such a kind lady...", Iris commented. "She sure is! If we had time, we'd have had a chance to meet Gloom, Erika's partner! It's a strong Pokemon, and I had some troubles battling it.", Ash explained.

Bianca took out her PokeDex, and searched for the Pokemon. "Gloom. The weed Pokemon. A Grass and Poison type, and the evolved form of Oddish. The flower-like structure on Gloom's head emits a powerful aroma that can make people faint from two miles away!", said the PokeDex. "It looks like a dull Pokemon, but I bet it's strong!", Bianca commented, putting the PokeDex back in her green bag. "It was!", Ash replied, with enthusiasm in his voice. 

"So Ash, where are we heading now?", Stephan asked. "We'll pass by Saffron City soon, and then through a short route, we'll enter Vermilion City.", he answered. "Hey Ash, have you battled in those gyms before?", Iris asked. "Sure have! I battled Gym Leader Sabrina and her Kadabra in the Saffrom gym, and Surge and his Raichu in the Vermilion gym!", he answered. "You battled a Raichu?! Isn't that what Pikachu evolves into?", she continued her question. "Hm.. Raichu..", Bianca took out her PokeDex again and searched for a Pokemon called Raichu.

"Raichu. The mouse Pokemon. An Electric type, and the evolved form of Pikachu. It can shock its opponents with 100,000 volts, enough to knock down a Pokemon as strong and mighty as Dragonite!", the Dex said. "Oh come on! Any Pokemon BUT Dragonite!", Iris whined. She was a Dragon-type trainer and had the ambition to become a Dragon Master. She had caught a Dragonite, and doesn't like when anyone insults about it! "So, how did the battle go?", Iris asked, petting Axew on the head.

"Well, when I first went there to fight with my Pikachu, Surge insulted both him and I. His words were enough to spark off a desire for victory over Pikachu's evolved form. We battled as hard as we could, but alas, Pikachu didn't stand a CHANCE against Raichu and its incredible power. My friends took him to the hospital where he seemed to be getting better. Nurse Joy, the one who had helped Pikachu, came to me and offered me a Thunder Stone. It's something that can evolve and Electric type Pokemon. But.. After learning more about evolution, I got to know that it's an irreversible process. Once Pikachu evolved, it would be impossible to turn it back. So before doing anything myself, I took Pikachu's opinion upon evolving. I asked him if he really wanted to evolve into Raichu and THEN face off Surge, or would he refuse. And guess what? Pikachu refused. He told me that he wanted to prove that evolution doesn't necessarily mean strength. Sure, evolved Pokemon are stronger, but that's just one part of it. The other part depends upon the Pokemon's spirit. If they have the spirit to beat a Pokemon way stronger than themselves, then they can achieve even the greatest of heights and the hardest of battles. Pikachu is one such example.", Ash explained, petting Pikachu's tail. "Then... did you have a rematch?", Cilan asked. "Yeah. And we won that time. Thing is, Surge mentioned that he evolved his Raichu the moment he caught it. So, that Raichu must have never learnt any speed moves, which it can only learn in the Pikachu stage. Hence, my buddy and I used speed to defeat them!", he finished. "Wow.. Well, I can confirm, Pikachu IS the king when it comes to speed!", Dawn complimented and Pikachu blushed a little to the compliment.

About an hour later, they had crossed the Saffron and Vermilion cities. Everyone except Ash had fallen asleep, it was midday. Ash enjoyed staying awake in the afternoon, even since childhood. He gently stroked Pikachu's fur, as the sleeping electric mouse moved in his sleep on his trainer's lap. 'I can't wait to reach home....', Ash thought, smiling faintly, with a glimmer in his eyes. He had missed Pallet Town gravely, and all the citizens of it. All his relatives and all those people who had been nice to him, they all resided in the small town of Pallet.

"*yawn* Ash.. Where have we reached...?", Iris asked after yawning, snatching Ash out of his plethora of thoughts. "Oh, we're going to the Cerulean City. That's our next stop, we'll stay there for sometime. I've got to meet an old friend of mine.", he replied. "Oh, okay.... *yawn*", Iris yawned again, and went back to sleep as if she never woke up in the first place! Ash giggled softly, careful enough to not wake up the others. Just about eighteen minutes later, Ash also dozed off into his dreams of becoming a Pokemon Master, as Pikachu stood awake, letting the cool breeze blow past his long, yellow ears with black ends.

They had all arrived in the Cerulean City, after some good naps during the ride. It was late afternoon, almost at the brink of evening. "Man! That was a good sleep!", Cameron said, stretching himself, as the trainers walk out of the rickshaw. They had stopped right in front of the Cerulean gym, as Ash had wanted to meet a close friend of his. 

"So Ash, who're we meeting?", Dawn asked. "Oh, you'll be meeting Misty, a very close friend of mine, and the Gym Leader of the Cerulean City gym. She specializes in Water types. I traveled with her through the regions of Kanto and Johto, and even through the Orange Islands. She had taught me so, so much about Pokemon and travelling got so much more fun!", Ash explained. The gym had taken up a new look, much different from what Ash saw when he entered the city for the first time. The automatic doors to the gym opened, revealing a reception area with a lady with blonde hair decorated with a baby-pink flower and green eyes running it. She looked up to see the newcomers, realizing that she had known one of them.

"Ash! Is that you?", she asked, delighted. "It's been long, Daisy! So, how's the gym coming along? And how are your sisters doing?", Ash asked. "Oh, the gym's going great! There are several challengers everyday, while Misty, Lily and Violet take turns to battle them, if they win, they get the Cascade Badge!", she replied. "Expected. Daisy, I've brought my friends from the Unova region and wondered if you could let me meet Misty. Initially, we were all going to my hometown. But since the Cerulean gym was in the same way we were going through, I decided it would be great to catch up with a friend.", he explained. "Of course! There are no challengers for right now, and I am sure Misty's free. I'll call her just now!", Daisy said and went inside to call Ash's friend. The Unovan residents looked at Ash, requesting an explanation. "That lady you just saw was Daisy, one of Misty's sisters. Misty actually has three sisters, Lily, Violet and Daisy. These three here go by the group name 'The Sensational Sisters'. "Three? What about Misty? She's not a part?", Iris asked out of curiosity. "I.. Don't know. Misty, I guess, isn't so sensational, haha!", Ash shrugged and giggled. 

"What did you just say?!", a voice said. Ash looked to his left, only to see an angry orange-haired girl with her hands on her sides. But, her angry expression changed into a soft one, as her eyes glimmered at the sight of her of one of her best friends. "How are you, Ash...?", she walked towards him. "I am good. It's been so long, Misty. I've missed you.", Ash said, shaking Misty's hand in a friendly manner. "I've missed you, too. It was never the same without you..". Misty replied. "Guys, meet Misty. As I told you, she's one of the Gym Leaders of the Cerulean gym.", Ash introduced the Water-type trainer to his friends from a foreign region. Everyone else introduced themselves with a smile and some showed admiration towards her, though Trip still hesitated to even say a word. "And you are...?", Misty asked the quiet, sand-haired boy in the orange jacket. "Oh, he's Trip. Ash's rival. You see, Trip is the main reason why we're here in the first place.", Cilan explained, which resulted in Misty asking 'why'. Ash and the others decided to first head out of the gym and go to an open place first, to which Misty agreed. She gave the responsibility of the gym to her sisters for the day, and went to spend some time with Ash and his friends.

About ten minutes later, they were all sitting on the green grass, on a patch of land situated right next to the Cerulean river. "Hey Misty, look!", Ash said, catching Misty's attention. He threw out a PokeBall, revealing an Oshawott. "AWE!! THIS IS SUCH A CUTE POKEMON!!", Misty exclaimed and pulled hugged Oshawott really hard, almost strangling him! She let him go after Ash stopped her, and then both of them laughed it out. Misty was really fond of Water types, like Oshawott, Ash's one was just really cute! "So, what's the matter?", Misty asked. Ash told her the thing, about what Trip said about Kanto. Misty was shocked. "What?! There are no bad trainers from Kanto! I mean, I am not one of them, and I'm sure Ash isn't either. Where is he?!", Misty stood up, turned around only to see Trip standing by a tree. "Hey you! Trip! I challenge you to a Pokemon battle, right here and now!", Misty said, pure fury on her face. "Misty, calm-", Ash tried to calm his friend, but Misty didn't let him complete his sentence. 

Just like Ash, Misty loved Kanto. It was the home to many great people. The difference between them was that Ash kept his anger and rage locked in, but Misty didn't hesitate to bring them out. "A battle? Seriously?", Trip asked, sarcastically. "Hey, that's a Gym Leader you're talking to!", Dawn scolded. "I mean it. Battle me, and I'll show you what trainers from Kanto really have.", she threatened. Trip unfolded his arms, and faced Misty.

"I accept your challenge.", he replied, as tension arose among everyone.

"Hey, Ash! Misty! How have you two been!", A familiar voice said from behind.

To be continued....